Bold and brash, coarse and competitive, dynamic and driven … this is how John and Horace Dodge – founders of the Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company – are remembered today.
But this reputation does not explain how they catapulted to success in the Motor City. Hear the more obscure stories of the brothers and their brand, from advertising stunts to swimming lessons, and learn how their charity still impacts the region today. Rare objects from the Meadow Brook collection will be showcased, including a newly-acquired object made of solid gold.
Madelyn Rzadkowolski is the curator at Meadow Brook Estate. Since beginning her tenure at Meadow Brook in 2009, Rzadkowolski has developed a series of tours and exhibits – including a permanent exhibit on the history of the Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company for its centennial in 2014 – and has done extensive research on the lives and legacies of the Dodge-Wilson families.
The Dodge Brothers: The Men Behind the Myth
Wednesday, Oct. 27, at 12 p.m.
The webinar is free and open to the public.
Meadow Brook Hall is the historic home built by one of the automotive aristocracy’s most remarkable women, Matilda Dodge Wilson, widow of auto pioneer John Dodge, and her second husband, Alfred Wilson. Constructed between 1926 and 1929, Meadow Brook Hall represents one of the finest examples of Tudor-revival style architecture in America, and is especially renowned for its superb craftsmanship, architectural detailing and grand scale of 88,000 square-feet. It was the center of a country estate that included 1,500 acres, numerous farm buildings, recreational facilities, several residences and formal gardens. Named a National Historic Landmark in 2012, Meadow Brook Hall strives to preserve and interpret its architecture, landscape, and fine and decorative art so that visitors may be entertained, educated and inspired by history. Meadow Brook Hall is located in Rochester, Mich. on the campus of Oakland University.
