The Alexandria Ford Plant

The Alexandria Ford Plant. . , One of the last and most architecturally important buildings constructed on the waterfront was the Alexandria branch of the Ford Motor Company. Designed by architect Albert Kahn (1869–1942) and built on wood pilings over the Potomac River in 1932, it served as a wholesale distribution and service facility for automobiles until 1942, when the U.S. Navy put it into temporary service as a munitions factory., Kahn is internationally known as a pioneer architect of modern industrial buildings, having designed more than 2,000 factories worldwide. Emphasizing function and efficiency over ornament, his structures were designed for adaptability to rapidly evolving manufacturing methods. Kahn’s Ford Plant in Alexandria was composed of two distinct buildings united with simplified Art Deco detailing., The bulk of the facility along Union Street was a nearly two-acre, one-story steel frame service building. Kahn created large, unobstructed spaces using his hallmark sawtooth-shaped butterfly roof trusses which maximized daylight. The pavilion you are standing near reflects this interior design. A traditional administration building with a large “Ford” sign on its roof was oriented to the river instead of to the city. Its primary façade extended 204 feet along the Potomac’s edge. Visitors were greeted by a lobby and offices paneled in exotic woods and fitted with custom-built furnishings created by Walter Dorwin Teague (1883–1960), one of the most influential industrial designers of the 20th century. These buildings were long an Alexandria landmark, prominently visible from the Maryland shore and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge., In the late 1980s, the Ford Plant property was redeveloped. A residential community was built on the site, known as Ford’s Landing. After extensive study, the deteriorating wood pilings supporting the building were removed, and the remaining structures were demolished in 1996., The new townhouses and boardwalk that stand on the property today were constructed in accordance with a plan approved by the City Council and Board of Architectural Review in 1996. The site design recreates the old town grid pattern, with all streets ending at the waterfront and 18th- and 19th-century architectural styles. Buildings along the waterfront, known as Ford’s Landing, were completed in September 1996 and are owned by the Ford’s Landing Homeowners Association.[Captions:] , Albert Kahn (1869–1942) designed many buildings for the Ford Motor Company and other manufacturers. His flexible industrial designs were well suited to Ford’s assembly line production. (Illustration: Ford Motor Company Archives), The Alexandria Ford Plant, designed by industrial architect Albert Kahn, was constructed over a pier in the Potomac River. The building’s ornate administrative wing and rooflines faced the river. (Illustration: Alexandria Library, Special Collections), This detail, taken from the original blueprints for the Ford Plant, shows the design of the butterfly trusses of the plant. These trusses gave the building its sawtooth roofline and allowed daylight into the assembly area. (Illustration: City of Alexandria, Archives and Records Center), Ford’s Landing, a residential community, was designed by The Lessard Architectural Group to reflect the Alexandria waterfront’s rich industrial history. (Illustration: Eakin/Youngentob Associates), On October 29, 1996, Alexandria City Councilman William C. Cleveland, Councilman David G. Speck, Mayor Kerry J. Donley, and Councilwoman Redella S. Pepper joined LeRoy Eakin III and Robert Youngentob at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ford’s Landing residential community. (Illustration: Eakin/Youngentob Associates)