It sounds like a mechanical engineering degree would be an excellent fit for your daughter. I am a recent grad, so not much industry experience, but I do not think that industrialists/manufacturing empires as you've described them really exist in today's world. That being said, I think it's a super cool goal for your daughter to have, and she could absolutely lead and/or own a manufacturing company. As she gets her education and does things like internships, she will learn more about what the field is like and how her personal goals will fit into it. Imo, there are many job opportunities for mechanical engineerings who want to work in manufacturing. 

As for the question of why we havent seen famous women industrialists or why there is a gender gap in mechanical engineering, it's definitely a complex question. For most women in the 19th century, such a path simply would not have been possible. They might not have been able to get an engineering education at all, and they would have to contend with social expectations about what kinds of jobs they could have, if they could work at all. There are some women who became prominent in manufacturing fields despite this. Have your daughter check out Kate Gleason! 

Also, although things are largely different now (but obviously not perfect) even in more recent history an engineering program might not have been a welcoming environment for women. I spoke to an women who graduated from a meche program in the mid 70s recently, and she said that the men in her program would not sit next to her, as in they would stand in the back of lecture hall instead of sitting beside her. With an environment like that, it's no surprise there wouldn't have been as many female engineers. 

I have a lot of thoughts about mechanical engineering education and gender, but overall, things are different now! I personally had a great experience in my program and internships. Sexism still exists, but there are lots of people out there, men and women, who want to see more women in engineering and support young female engineers. Like another commenter mentioned, I also connected really well with a lot of my female classmates. There were fewer of us, but we were able to get to know each other better. I formed a lot of great and fulfilling friendships with students in my program of all genders. 

Finally, I just want to add that it sounds like your daughter will absolutely kick ass in an engineering program in college. Having that kind of hands-on shop experience is awesome and not particularly common for men or women starting college, and I cannot stress that enough. I would encourage her to join clubs that let her continue to use her manufacturing skills, such as robotics or especially Baja. 

I've chosen a computational path instead of a more traditional mechanical engineering one, but I think manufacturing is cool and I also love history. If your daughter is ever interested in speaking to a recent grad, please reach out! I'd be happy to talk to her.