Ford Family of Alton
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F is for Ford Family of Alton* and Grattan
September 26, 2026, 10am - noon, the Lowell Area Historical Museum will be hosting an educational historical cemetery tour at the Alton Cemetery, at the intersection of Lincoln Lake Ave NE, and 3 Mile Rd NE. This is a sneak peek into the families who lived there and now rest there. In 1839, four Ford brothers, Barnabus Jr. (Barney), David, Ira and Abel settled in Moseley along 4 Mile Road, the line straddling Grattan and Vergennes Townships, purchasing the land from the government. Later two additional brothers, Alva and Mary Barnes Ford and Chester Ford, and at least two sisters, Rhoda and Abel Cross, and Clarissa and Silas Aldrich also came to the area. These were most of the adult children of Barnabus Ford Sr. of Connecticut. Barnabus Sr. had served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and was a descendant of Timothy Ford, one of five main Ford lines in the United States. Barney died young, and most of the family moved on to other areas, but Ira and Abel lived out their lives here, as did their descendants. Barney has the distinction of being the first burial in the Alton Cemetery. With his death in 1843, the Village residents agreed to create the burial ground behind the schoolhouse located on Three Mile Road, just east of Lincoln Lake Avenue. The schoolhouse burned in 1845, and the Alton Church building was later built just west of the former schoolhouse. Ira and his wife Lydia settled on the north side of Four Mile Road, along Ashley Avenue. On the trip one of their children took sick and died. The family had no option but to bury the child along the way and continue their journey. Ira and Lydia lived the rest of their lives on the homestead and are buried in the Alton Cemetery. The land remained in the family until 2001. The original land patent, hand signed by President John Tyler is still in the possession of their descendants. Ira’s descendant Ralph Ford operated a blacksmith shop in Alton, along Lincoln Lake Avenue, on land that is now part of the Alton Cemetery. When the expected Alton train depot was placed at Moseley instead, many businesses in Alton, including Ford’s blacksmith shop, moved to Moseley. Later Ralph opened a creamery and General Store in Moseley, and his brother Fred took over the blacksmith shop. Ira’s great-great-grandson, Dale Vinton Ford, was one of the famous Monuments Men*, noted World War II rescuers of art stolen by the Nazis. Dale is buried in Alton Cemetery. Abel and his wife Lydia Philips Ford bought the southeast side of the intersection of Four Mile Rd and Lincoln Lake Ave. Abel married Anna Baker following the death of Lydia. They are all buried in the Alton Cemetery. Abel and his family had long been involved in the First Christian Church of Vergennes that met in the Alton church building. In 1865 Anna completed a quilt that contains over 4,000 small squares that is now on display at the Lowell Area Historical Museum. The large Michigan Ford family supported their country by serving in the military through the generations, beginning with these Civil War Soldiers.
Today there are still these Grattan/Alton area Ford family descendants in Kent County and there are seven generations of Ira Ford’s family buried in the Alton Cemetery. *For more information on -Alton Village – See ABC’s of Lowell History Round 1, A is for Alton -Dale Ford and the Monument Men - See ABC’s of Lowell History Round 4, M is for Monument Man Images: Anna Baker Ford, wife of Abel. Jacob and Cornelia Jakeway Ford, son of Ira, Civil War soldier.jpg Dale Vinton Ford - Descendant of Ira, WWII Monuments Men. Quilt by Anna Ford, wife of Abel. |
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