Enzo Ferrari
Born in Modena, Italy on
February 18, 1898 Enzo Ferrari was forced to leave school when
his father died, he stared working in the Modena Fire Brigade
workshop as a turning instructor. In late 1918 he worked as a
test driver in Turin after serving in World War I, he later began
working at Costruzioni Meccaniche Nazionali (CMN) in Milan where
he worked as a race car driver and test driver.
Enzo Ferrari made his racing debut in 1919 at the Parma-Berceto
race, in the same year he entered the Targa Florio race. In 1920,
his career with Alfa Romeo began and lasted for two decades, it
saw him climb from test driver to race driver to sales assistant
and he ultimately reached the post of Director of Alfa Racing
Division until November 1939.
While with Alfa Romeo Enzo Ferrari founded the Scuderia Ferrari
in 1929 in Modena, the prime purpose was to organize racing for
its members. That started an intensive involvement motor racing
which led to the creation of an official team and the Scuderia
was transformed into the engineering-racing division of Alfa
Romeo, in 1933 it took over the racing function entirely. The
Alfa Romeo connection was abandoned in 1940 when Scuderia became
"Auto Avio Costruzioni Ferrari" an independent company,
it worked for the National Aviation Company in Rome, for Paggio
and for RIV.
The Ferrari workshop was moved from Modena to Maranello in 1943,
it began manufacturing powered grinding machines for ball
bearings. In 1944, during World War II, the workshop was bombed.
In 1946 the workshop was rebuilt and the designing and building
of the first ever Ferrari began. In 1960 the business became a
joint stock company, in 1969 Fiat became a 50-50 partner in the
joint stock company, in 1988 Fiat became the major shareholder.
Enzo Ferrari built a training school "Istituto Professionale
per lInduatria e lArtigianato" in Maranello in
1963. In 1972 the Fiorano test track was built by him.
In 1924, Enzo Ferrari was given the Italian award of Cavaliere
for sporting merit, he later received two more honors from the
nation - Commendatore in 1927 and Cavaliere del Lavoro in 1952.
In 1960 he received an honorary degree in mechanical engineering
from Bologna University. He got a degree in Physics in 1988 from
the Modena University. The UN awarded him the Hammerskjold Prize
in 1962, he received the Columbus Prize in 1965, the Gold Medal
from the Italian School of Art and Culture in 1970 and in 1987 he
received the De Gasperi Award.
Ferrari won over 5000 races around the world and earned 25 world
titles under his leadership from 1947 to 1987.
Enzo Ferrari died in Modena on August 14 1988.