VIDEO: Ford celebrating 100 years in Ireland

Ford has announced it is to hold a number of events throughout this year to mark the centenary of Henry Ford registering his factory in Cork city in 1917.

The founder of the renowned car brand registered the plant in Cork’s Marina just 14 years after initially setting up his company in Michigan in 1903. It was the first purpose-built Ford factory outside North America.

Henry Ford’s father, William, had emigrated from Ballinascarty in Co. Cork in 1847, so when it came to establishing a base for his business in Europe he chose Cork because he hoped it ‘would start Ireland along the road to industry’.