Detroit and World War One - 100 years ago today

[night-timer]

I am looking for information on Detroit 100 years ago [[1914 - ie, during World War One).

I am also looking for information on Detroit's war effort during World War Two, as well.

Specifically, what changes happened to Detroit's manufacturing during those times - such as switches away from automobile manufacturing towards armaments manufacturing to help with the war effort?

I think Detroit's industrial capacity was put to good use during the two world wars. Maybe that aspect of Detroit's history has been overlooked or under-appreciated?

Opinions welcome... thanks!

[jcole]

The U.S. didn't get involved in WWI until 1917 and there wasn't a whole lot of involvement here until that point, but once we got in, the gear up was quick.
Here's an interesting article from the Lansing Journal Archives and a link to the Google search "Detroit industrial involvement WWI"
https://www.google.com/search?q=amer...lvement+in+WWI

http://archive.lansingstatejournal.c...rld-War-effort

Henry Ford built the first massive building at the Rouge Plant complex to produce the Eagle, an escort ship designed to battle German U-boats.“It was an enormous undertaking,” said Timothy O’Callaghan of Northville, a retired Ford employee and author of “Ford in the Service of America: Mass Production for the Military During the War Years.”
So enormous that gearing up took almost the entire time the U.S. was in the war.
“The first boats were released to the Navy two or three days before the armistice,” O’Callaghan said. “Most of the stuff produced in America outside of men and cars never saw military action.”
Ford did ship as many as 18,000 vehicles to France; other carmakers did also. GMC produced the Model 16AA for use as a military ambulance. Companies that would later combine under the General Motors umbrella sent more than 2,000 cars and 8,500 trucks to Europe.