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April 21: GM assembles its 100 millionth U.S.-built car on this date in 1967

Few companies ever reach the dominance that General Motors held on this date in 1967 when it marked the 100 millionth car it had built in the United States at the Janesville, Wis., plant. That year, GM employed some 740,000 people, and was not just the largest automaker in the world but the largest company period. Its market share of the U.S. auto industry was more than 50 percent. Today, the blue Chevy Caprice coupe resides in GM's museum in Flint, Mich.; and while GM still ranks among the world's largest automakers, 1967 was a peak of sorts. Had GM's profits kept pace with inflation since then, it would have made $13 billion last year instead of $3 billion — although its hard to top the year Chevy introduced the Camaro:

Photo: John Lloyd via Flickr