From Henry Ford to Fairmont Ford – A Century of Progress
From Henry Ford to Fairmont Ford, a century of progress is being marked this year in Martin County. In today’s world it seems quite unlikely that a small Midwestern community can be called home to any business that has survived, no less prospered, for 100 years. However, Fairmont can boast of two that fit that definition by celebrating 100 years of business in 2009, Fairmont Railway Motors, Inc./Harsco Rail and Fairmont Ford.
Henry Ford incorporated the Ford Motor Company in 1903 and envisioned an automobile for the average person, not merely the wealthy. His vision was accomplished by revolutionizing manufacturing through the utilization of an assembly line and creating the
Model T, of which nearly fifteen million were sold in the United States alone.
The heritage of the current Fairmont Ford dealership in Martin County dates back to 1909 when John Grill started selling Ford Flivvers, also known as the Model T, in Sherburn. At that time, the Ford Motor Company had been in existence for a mere six years. Then, in 1914, Grill opened a branch in Fairmont at the corner of Park and Third Streets. Although Fords were not sold in Fairmont until 1914, Henry Beecher Ward was the first Fairmont resident to own a “factory built” car, a Ford that he purchased in 1903. In 1920, Grill moved the dealership to a new building on the corner of Park Street and Blue Earth Avenue where it would remain for over thirty years.
In 1921, Grill sold most of his interest in the dealership to a group of Fairmont residents that included Dr. Lester Webb, Dr. R. H. Zierke, Frank Jones, and Robert Porter. The company was managed by C. W. Dammann and Ray Steelsmith during the 1920s. In 1927, Claus Kloeckner joined Park Motors as office manager. He soon became general manager and eventually became one of the owners. The company took its name, Park Motor Company, Inc., as a result of its location on Park Street and, although previous dealership names carried the managers name, people had trouble both spelling and pronouncing Kloeckner.