Mercury Was In Orbit At the Pumpkin Run

Henry Ford basically owned the automobile market in the early 20th century. His Model T was without a doubt one of the biggest selling automobiles of all time. In fact, he felt there was no need to change it or to offer anything else. Yes, they had acquired the luxury Lincoln line but by the Depression Era 1930s, the Ford Motor Company was seeing that a limited number of offerings wasn't enough. They were competing against the seven brands of General Motors and the four brands of Chrysler. So by the end of the 1930s, then president Edsel Ford launched a mid range car brand, Mercury. While it wasn't an instant success, it did garner market share while filling the gap between the low priced Ford and the luxury Lincoln. By the 1960s Mercury had grown and was competing heavily in the small car and medium car wars, even offering competition in the muscle car market. By the dawn of the 21st century, Mercury sales were in a steady decline, so much so that Ford decided to pull the plug in 2011. Still, a number of fans exist and proudly show their vehicles at old car events such as the 47th Pumpkin Run Nationals. Among the Mercury vehicles on display at this past year's Pumpkin Run was a classic Eight, a 1946 Eight, and a number of Cougars.