Electric City - Henry Ford and Thomas Edison at Muscle Shoals, Al
Henry Ford was at the top of his game when he decided to build an electric generating complex at Muscle Shoals on the Tennessee River in Alabama. Along with his mentor, the great Thomas Edison, he used all his political might to pursue this dream.Thomas Hager's "Electric City: the Lost History of Ford and Edison's American Utopia" provides a fascinating glimpse into the grand thinking and backgrounds of these two heroes of the age. Ford's proposal to build a hydro-electric generating station was rejected by congress and he withdrew his bid.
Top Recommendation for October
Electric City: The Lost History of Ford and Edison's American Utopia, Thomas, Hager (May, 2021 - 262pp)
A terrific history of the 1920'a and the Tennessee River Valley area. Ford and Edison had joined forces to build a modern utopia at Muscle Shoals along the Tennessee and created the historic town of Florence, Alabama. Power politics ultimately sank the deal, but it is a fascinating story about money, power and a great social engineering experiment.