Orchard Lake in Oakland County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Walter Flanders
⎯⎯⎯
Flanders Garage

Photographed by J.T. Lambrou, May 13, 2021

1. Walter Flanders / Flanders Garage Marker

Side 1

Inscription. Walter Flanders During his career, automotive pioneer Walter Flanders was considered a genius of production and management. He was one of the first men to develop the moving automotive assembly line in Detroit. In 1907 he implemented production methods at the Ford Motor Company's Piquette Avenue Plant, which produced 10,000 cars in one year. Flanders left Ford in 1908 and with B.F. Everitt and W.E. Metzger formed the E-M-F Company in Detroit. Flanders led several automobile companies, including the Studebaker Company which purchased E-M-F in 1911. In 1917 U.S. President Woodrow Wilson called Flanders to Washington D.C. along with Henry Ford, William C. Durant, and John Dodge, to determine how the automobile industry could assist in winning World War I. Flanders died in an automobile accident in 1923.

Flanders Garage Automobile entrepreneur Walter E. Flanders (1871 ~ 1923) was born on a Vermont farm. At the peak of his success during the 1910s, he owned a 1000-acre estate, which included all of Green Lake, large farm outbuildings, a greenhouse, this garage and the adjacent Craftsman-style house. Flanders owned a variety

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of livestock and at times he employed 300 to 400 men on his farm. The garage, which he used for entertaining, had an automobile turntable, a billiard room, a ballroom, and a two-lane bowling alley. Flanders moved to Virginia in 1919. The Aviation Country Club purchased the estate in 1920 and used the garage as a clubhouse. The lakefront land and golf courses have been developed as subdivisions. The Green Lake Association purchased the garage in 1949.

Erected 2004 by Michigan Historical Commission - Michigan Historical Center. (Marker Number S0683.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the Michigan Historical Commission series list.

Location. 42° 35.585′ N, 83° 24.659′ W. Marker is in Orchard Lake, Michigan, in Oakland County. It can be reached from Alden Drive 0.1 miles west of Bay Drive. Marker is on the grounds of Villa at Green Lake Estates. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 6470 Alden Dr, West Bloomfield MI 48324, United States of America.

Photographed by J.T. Lambrou, May 13, 2021

2. Walter Flanders / Flanders Garage Marker

Side 2

Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Michigan

and in Greater Detroit.

It is also in the American Midwest.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Westacres (approx. 0.9 miles away); Westacres Community (approx. 0.9 miles away); Sharing the Ride (approx. 0.9 miles away); Orchard Lake Chapel (approx. 1.2 miles away); Four Towns Methodist Church (approx. 1.7 miles away); An Advocate for Parks (approx. 2 miles away); Settling the Dust (approx. 2 miles away); WB Parks Kiosk (approx. 2 miles away).

Also see . . . Walter E. Flanders Inducted 1994. Automotive Hall of Fame

Walter Flanders found a way to make machines work better. A knack for mechanics and a youthful apprenticeship in a sewing machine factory helped Flanders learn his way around machinery and prove himself useful to auto pioneer Henry Ford.

(Submitted on May 14, 2021, by J.T. Lambrou of New Boston, Michigan.)

Flanders Garage image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J.T. Lambrou, May 13, 2021

3. Flanders Garage

Walter Flanders image. Click for full size.

Public domain - James Rood Doolittle, 1916

4. Walter Flanders

Credits. This page was last revised on May 15, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 14, 2021, by J.T. Lambrou of New Boston, Michigan. This page has been viewed 1,914 times since then and 160 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on May 14, 2021, by J.T. Lambrou of New Boston, Michigan. • Mark Hilton was the editor who published this page.

Walter Flanders⎯⎯⎯Flanders Garage

Walter Flanders
⎯⎯⎯
Flanders Garage