William Clay Ford Sr. Dies At Age 88

 

The last surviving grandson of car maker Henry Ford, died Sunday at  age 88.  William Clay Ford Sr.  Ford owned the Detroit Lions Football team, and according to Forbes’ newly released 2014 Billionaires list has an estimated net worth of $1.35 billion.  His most lasting effect is noted to have been his insistence that the Ford family not give up control of the company when it went public in 1956.  He demanded the family retain 40 percent of the voting rights through a special class of stock, ensuring the family’s influence over his grandfather’s company would be sustained through multiple generations.  A great supporter of the city of Detroit, Ford continued with the financing of initiatives at the Henry Ford Hospital that his grandfather helped establish a century ago, including the Center for Athletic Medicine.  (con't)

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