John francis dodge biography and factsheet

John Francis Dodge was an automotive pioneer who founded the Dodge automobile brand along with his brother Horace Dodge. Dodge was born in Niles, Michigan in 1864. With his younger brother, he learned the trade of machining, working after school on marine engines in their father’s shop.

After working for several companies in Detroit and Windsor, John and Horace opened their own machine shop in 1901, calling it Dodge Brothers. A large order for transmissions from Ransom E. Olds set them on their course. In 1903, Henry Ford hired them to manufacture and supply his parts, breaking with Olds and becoming Ford stockholders in the process. Leaving Ford in 1914 as wealthy men, the Dodge brothers began to produce their own vehicles. The Dodge car was so well liked that its sales almost surpassed those of Ford.

John married his first wife, Ivy Hawkins in 1892 and had three children: Winifred, Isabel Cleves, and John Duval. When Ivy died in 1901 John secretly marrie

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Dodge co‑founder dies

John Dodge, who with his brother Horace co-founded the Dodge Brothers Company, which was once America’s third-largest automaker and later became part of Chrysler, dies at the age of 55.

John Francis Dodge was born on October 25, 1864, while his brother Horace Elgin Dodge arrived four years later, on May 17, 1868. The brothers grew up in Michigan and began their careers as machinists. In 1897, they co-founded a bicycle company; however, by 1900, they had sold the business and opened a machine shop in Detroit to make parts for the fledgling auto industry. In 1901, Ransom Olds hired the Dodges to produce engines for his new curved-dash Oldsmobile vehicles. Next, Henry Ford contracted with the brothers to build engines, transmissions and axles. Ford was unable to pay the Dodges fully in cash, so he gave them stock in his company. (In 1919, the brothers sold their Ford Motor Company stock back to Henry Ford for $25 million.)

After supplying parts to Ford for a

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John Francis Dodge

American businessman (1864–1920)

John Francis Dodge
Dodge, c. 1920
Born	(1864-10-25)October 25, 1864 Niles, Michigan, U.S.
Died	January 14, 1920(1920-01-14) (aged 55) New York City, U.S.
Resting place	Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit, Michigan, U.S.)
Known for	Founding Dodge Brothers Company which became present-day Dodge
Political party	Republican
Spouses
Children
Relatives	Horace Elgin Dodge (brother)

John Francis Dodge (October 25, 1864 – January 14, 1920) was an American automobile manufacturing pioneer and co-founder of Dodge Brothers Company.

Biography

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Dodge was born in Niles, Michigan, where his father ran a foundry and machine shop. John and his younger brother, Horace, were inseparable as children and as adults. The origins of the Dodge family was earlier thought to lie in Stockport, England, where a Dodge ancestral home still stands (Halliday Hill Farmhouse in Listed buildings in S