Heart of darkness resonates through every page of this book. Fordlandia was his vision of putting the american suburbs in the brazilian jungle. Deep in brazils amazon, exploring the ruins of fords fantasyland. Ford closed both belterra and fordlandia permanently in 1945, selling the land to the brazilian government for a fraction of its acquisition cost. Fordlandia cape cod cottages, red fire hydrants, swimming pools, and a golf course the perfect village, built by henry ford, right in the heart of the the amazon jungle of brazil. Scattered around the world are longforgotten engineering marvels, decaying cities and empty factories that once stood on the cutting edge of design and construction.
Here is additional information about centralia and the surrounding area. One of my favorite places to explore is the hudson highlands in new york. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city ebook. The album is thematically influenced by the failure of henry fords brazilian rubber plant fordlandia. Thirteen years later came his second book, the ruins which instantly became one of my favorite horror novels. Aug 19, 2016 the city would come to feature modern hospitals, schools, generators and a sawmill. Grandin has a fine time excavating the collapsed ruins of a corrupted dream. Mar 11, 2014 fordlandia a city henry ford built in the amazon with the intention of producing rubber. Jun 26, 2009 among the ruins of henry fords america. Fordlandia is the powerful, neverbeforetold fable of the pride and arrogance of the man who thought he alone could tame the amazon. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of fordlandia by greg grandin. Today they are discarded, dangerous, and some of them are even deadly. People travel halfway around the world to see the colosseum, the pyramids in egypt or the great wall of china. If feels almost too easy to list this as a modern day ruin, but this north korean hotel has been one of the biggest examples of architectural failure in the last century and probably this one too.
Greg grandin in 1927, henry ford, the richest man in the world, bought a tract of land twice the size of delaware in the brazilian amazon. Aristotle once said time crumbles things, he wasnt wrong. The screening will be accompanied by a panel discussion exploring the role of citizens in developing urban projects. With sales of his modelt booming, the automotive tycoon saw an opportunity to expand his reach further by exploiting a downtrodden brazilian rubber industry. Disused house in modern fordlandia by meduse cc bysa 3. Check out a tomdispatch audio interview with grandin about. Fordlandia by greg grandin, 9781848311541, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city, metropolitan books, 2009. The story grandin tells is not just one of fords industrial and sociological experiment, but of the difficulties of exporting american. A professor of history at new york university, grandin has published a number of other awardwinning books, including empires workshop, the last colonial massacre, and the blood of guatemala. It was established by american industrialist henry ford in the. A tragedy of people, government, and the centralia mine fire.
Modern ruins message board search archives helpful links. Located at 95 orange street, the first section was completed in 1884 and the plant eventually spread over four and a half acres with 400,000 square feet of space. Certainly he was unable to buy his way into rubber royalty, and his efforts to spread his american healthy lifestyle were met with resentment and hostility but history has repeatedly shown that obscene wealth gives one the privilege. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city metropolitan 2009. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city, author greg grandin chronicles henry fords great attempt to create a vast rubber plantation and idyllic company town in the complex ecosystem of the amazon rainforest. The town of fordlandia, founded in 1928 by henry ford, stands as a. We ponder what people were like, what parallels connect them to us, what changes and remains the same. Deep in brazils amazon, exploring the ruins of fords fantasyland, by simon romero 22017. Written, directed and produced by marcos colon, beyond fordlandia 2017, 75 min presents an environmental account of henry fords amazon experience decades after its failure. Pripyat is the site of one of the most notorious ruins of the last 100 years, and is. What are some of your recommended books on modern ruins and.
In 1927, henry ford, the richest man in the world, bought a tract of land twice the size of delaware. It is located on the east banks of the tapajos river roughly 300 kilometres 190 mi south of the city of santarem. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read fordlandia. Even by pregreen standards, the arrogance and ignorance is shocking.
Proving that truth can indeed be stranger than fiction, fordlandia is the story of henry fords illadvised attempt to transform raw brazilian rainforest into homespun slices of americana. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city greg. Deep in brazils amazon, exploring the ruins of fords. Scott smiths wrote one of my favorite crime novels with a simple plan that released in 1993. A unique and important contribution to the study of european modernity and its attendant aesthetic and political outputs. Fordlandia greg grandin haftad 9781848311541 bokus. Greg grandin is the author of fordlandia, a finalist for the pulitzer prize, the national book award, and the national book critics circle award. Modern ruins fordlandia 3sat 05 december 2012 at 5. The goal of setting up the ford motor company of brazil was twofold. The plantations of fordlandia and belterra were two attempts by the ford motor company from 19281945 to establish a permanent rubber plantation presence in brazil.
The city would come to feature modern hospitals, schools, generators and a sawmill. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city ebook written by greg grandin. The excavation is enlightening, rewarding, anddespite the texts daunting sizethoroughly enjoyable. The stunning, never before told story of the quixotic attempt to recrea. Read fordlandia online by greg grandin books free 30day trial. The album was released on 3 november 2008 via 4ad, his second new release for the record label following 2006s ibm 1401, a users manual. However, the legacy of belterra and fordlandia live on, and adventurous travelers can still hike and paddle their way to the abandoned towns to explore the ruins on their own. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city by greg grandin. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city pdf. Their fathers were supposed to be farmermechanics, equally at ease in the modern lumber mill and. Historian greg grandin has visited twice two times more than henry ford ever did, for those of you keeping count. Apr 27, 2010 greg grandin is the author of fordlandia, empires workshop, the last colonial massacre, and the awardwinning the blood of guatemala.
German television production company gebrueder beetz included fordlandia in episode 4 of their 5 part series modern ruins. Only a few days left until director alice agneskirchner will present our production modern ruins detroit. The town of fordlandia, founded in 1928 by henry ford, stands as a crumbling testament to the folly of trying to bend the jungle to the will of man. Although a lot of the old buildings are now falling down, people continue to live there. A new and titanic fight between nature and modern man is beginning. By the end of 1930, its landmark structure was complete. Ford went so far as to build a modern hospital, a power plant, a library, a golf course, a hotel, and thousands of little white clapboard houses for the employees to live in. In 2009, greg grandin published his nonfiction account, fordlandia. His intention was to grow rubber, but the project rapidly evolved into a. Fordlandia is the powerful, neverbeforetold fable of the pride and arrogance of the. Walter sedovic architects historic preservation new york. The rise and fall of pennsylvanias most notorious town.
In 2009, greg grandin published his nonfiction account fordlandia. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Jun 09, 2009 greg grandin is the author of fordlandia, a finalist for the pulitzer prize, the national book award, and the national book critics circle award. The masters tools will never dismantle the masters house penguin modern. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city is a nonfiction book by. Fortunately, some books have been written which can help to find them. He seems to have made all the classic errors of neocolonism.
The reader of ruins of modernity ultimately engages in an excavation of the ruin, uncovering it from its historical, affective and aesthetic layers of usage, revealing how modernity is an operation always in progress. In 1927, henry ford, the founder of the famous motor company and the richest man in the world, bought a 5,000 square miletract of land in the brazilian amazon. Management blunders, foreign intrigue, american capitalism, midwestern puritanism, an attempt to move car manufacturing to northwestern alabama, tropical boomtowns on the amazon river, botany of the rainforest, but more importantly, fordlandia by greg grandin is a true story of intercultural clash. In the late 1920s, automobile tycoon henry ford transplanted a little piece of the united states to the middle of brazils amazon jungle. The end of the third place at front room gallery if you dont feel like lining up outside a mall as soon as youve digested your thanksgiving turkey, the lower east sidebased front room gallery has a very different experience for your black friday. An american banking dynasty and the rise of modern finance.
Its loaded with old crumbling mansions and old ironore mines from the 1800s. But, it is also the story of henry ford a man of sharp. Greg grandin is the author of fordlandia, empires workshop, the last colonial massacre, and the awardwinning the blood of guatemala. Read fordlandia by greg grandin for free with a 30 day free trial. I found the book surprisingly wellwritten and easy to engage, wanting to read more and more. This is the story of the creation of fordlandia, amazing in itself. Westinghouse plant, newark, nj while active it was known as the newark works of the westinghouse company. The story of fordlandia itself is pretty simple but at the same time the book is wellresearched and there are. Modern ruins recommended reading one of my favorite places to explore is the hudson highlands in new york.
Fordlandia tells the story of henry fords settlement in the amazon, a model of inept planning and design. Ford had negotiated a deal with the brazilian government. Hope for the motor city at the festival of films on art fifa in montreal. It didnt quite work for various reasons that this book details, but it is a fascinating journey. A novel, by eduardo sguiglia translated from the spanish by patricia j. Feb 20, 2017 the town of fordlandia, founded in 1928 by henry ford, stands as a crumbling testament to the folly of trying to bend the jungle to the will of man. See more ideas about city, henry ford and abandoned. Trapped in the mexican jungle, a group of friends stumble upon a creep. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city. Ford wanted to create in the amazon an america in his own image fordlandia, full of neat houses, straight roads and restrained puritanism.
To the unkempt rainforest he would bring the principles of mass production order, efficiency and productivity read more. With sales of his modelt booming, the automotive tycoon saw an opportunity to expand his reach further by exploiting a. Fordlandia is a district and adjacent area of 14,268 square kilometres 5,509 sq mi in the city of. Fordlandiathe failure of henry fords utopian city in the amazon, by drew reed 81916 the new york times. This is a fine book, both a merciless expose of misplaced idealism and a detailed study of the economic. The rise and fall of henry fords forgotten jungle city by greg grandin in his book fordlandia.
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