The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant Museum stands as a Michigan Historic Site and National Historic Landmark. It is the first factory that Henry Ford built for Ford Motor Co. The building has stood for 120+ years and yet it still has a huge role to play in contibuting to a new generation of automotive pioneers.
Jill Woodward, President & CEO of the museum, is proud to tout a worldwide visitor base of more than 30,000. They host daily docent tours and accomodate 4,500 school student visits each year.
In summer of 2025 they launch the Automotive Foundations program. This weekend workshop invited students ages 14-21 to learn about the early mechanical simplicity of the Model T and other vehicles of that era. They were able to compare and contrast early combustion and electrical motors. The goal was to illustrate how, though some technology has advanced, there are a lot of common themes through the design and engineering of these vehicle compared to today.
Daniel Hodges, founder of Meknology LLC, leads the program as Piquette's first Engineer-in-Residence. Driven by the findings of the Flint Water Crisis, his company is looking at ways that we can all improve the condition of our water systems. He brings his own unique experiences from his personal journey, citing encouraging influences along the way. His goal is to tie together the past, present and future of automotive technlogy. He hopes to teach stewardship and sustainability to the next generation of mobility leaders.
John McPike participated in the program. It blended his love for mechanics and his appreciation of history (rare for a 14 year old). He had a bit of a head start as his family are already avid Piquette volunteers, so he has been around Model Ts all of his life.
MotorCities Deputy Director, Brian Yopp sat down with Jill, Dnaiel and John to discuss the program. Check out the video interview here
Learn more about the program and how to sign up for summer 2026 at the museum's website.