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Raymond C. and Evangeline Cote Dahlinger
- Wayne State University Press
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Raymond C. Dahlinger 1885-1969 "Between Dahlinger and that ex-pugilist Bennett and all those, Henry Ford had a regular system of reports that he got daily, and there was nothing he didn't know about." —H. M. Cordell* Evangeline Cote Dahlinger 1893-1979 "Mr. Ford admired Mrs. Dahlinger a great deal. Mrs. Ford did not." —Harry Bennett** The Dahlingers, husband and wife, were quite ordinary employees of Ford Motor Company until Henry Ford decided to employ them both as personal helpers. Their relationship with Henry and Clara Ford extended well beyond that of domestic servants to positions of exceptional influence. Raymond C. Dahlinger was born in Detroit on July 3, 1885, son of Charles F. Dahlinger, an instrument maker, and Emma Dahlinger. They lived at 12 Chestnut Street, and Raymond attended Detroit grade and high schools. When he was sixteen, he left school to work as a stock boy in the Newcomb Endicott Department Store, one of the best in Detroit. He was eventually elevated to floorwalker but was still earning only thirteen dollars a week. He was interested in higher-paying automotive work, especially with Henry Ford, and his opportunity came when Ford stockholder Horace Rackham came into the store and young Dahlinger had a chance to discuss his wishes with him while *From the oral reminiscences of H. M. Cordell, secretary to Henry Ford. **From Harry Bennett , We Never Called Him Henry (New York: Fawcett Publications , 1951), p. 105. 89 Henry's Lieutenants Mrs. Rackham was busy shopping. As a result of their discussion, Dahlinger was given a job on April 7,1907, on the Ford factory final assembly line. This job included driving cars from the end of the line and on short final test drives before shipment. Henry Ford often wanted to sample cars as they came from the line, so this is how Ford became acquainted with the twenty-two-year-old Dahlinger. About 1912, Dahlinger was transferred to the experimental room, where new devices and materials were being tried on the Model T. He became an automotive tester and sometimes shared these test runs with Ford, becoming Ford's personal driver to some extent. Ford developed considerable confidence in Dahlinger. They were well enough acquainted by 1915 for Ford to choose Dahlinger to accompany him on his peace mission to Europe. Dahlinger acted as personal bodyguard and custodian of large cash funds carried on the trip. After their unsuccessful European voyage, Dahlinger did not return to the factory but instead was retained by Ford as a driver and handyman at Fair Lane. He was soon put in charge of the farmlands adjoining the mansion. In the meantime, at the factory, Ford had had his eye on Evangeline Cote, secretary to C. Harold Wills. Henry is said to have convinced Dahlinger he should try to marry Evangeline. Henry also may have encouraged Evangeline in the matter. Raymond Dahlinger was then, in 1916, boarding with his widowed mother, Emma, at 12 Chestnut Street, and Evangeline Cote was boarding at her parents' home at 181 Glendale in Highland Park. They were married February 10,1917, and Ford immediately furnished them with a farm home in Dearborn Township close to his own Fair Lane. Raymond was thirty-two and Evangeline twenty-four. Raymond Dahlinger's most important position under Ford was as general manager of Ford Farms, consisting of tens of thousands of acres in several counties of southeastern Michigan. Dearborn was the headquarters office. These farmlands included a hundred or more individual farms with homes and families living on them. In most cases, the farmers were supplied with seed, fertilizer, and implements and paid wages by Ford. The produce was marketed by Ford Farms. Overall directions for planting and harvesting were given by Ford to Dahlinger, who in turn passed these instructions to his several area managers. Millions of dollars were lost by these farm operations. They were a very costly hobby of Ford's. In addition to farm responsibilities, Dahlinger, in 1924, took charge of construction of the Ford Airport and Automotive Proving Grounds in Dearborn. And in 1929, with his workmen, he provided the landscap90 ing of Greenfield Village. When the Model A Ford was introduced in [34.229.223.223] Project MUSE (2024-03-19 11:35 GMT) 1927, as a publicity stunt Dahlinger drove from coast to coast for a total of 8,328 miles, gathering inquisitive crowds at each stop. He was chief test driver for the Model A, but his...