Grace Ford

• parents: Judge Joseph Kitchell and Rachel Bates

Married

1. 20 Jan 1757 to Samuel Ford, later known as Samuel Baldwin

Children

1. William, b. ca. 1759; d. ca. 2 Jan 1793 Morris Co NJ; m. ca. 1780 Jemima Halsey; to VA with Samuel Ford
2. Elizabeth, b. ca. 1761; d. after 13 Jan 1824; m. 19 Sep 1784 Hanover NJ to Samuel Gardner
3. Mary, b. 29 Feb 1763; d. 8 Feb 1798; m. 30 Sep 1781 Stephen Halsey; to VA with William and Samuel Ford
4. Samuel, b. ca. 1767; d. after 30 May 1826; m. 10 Mar 1790 Elizabeth Reeve
5. Phebe, b. 1 Aug 1770; m. 21 Jul 1803 Robert Marvin; may have married first 1788 to Moses Ross

• From http://thomasstephenneel.com/b-samuelford.html
• The New Jersey Treasury Robbery @ http://www.examiner.com/history-in-newark/the-new-jersey-treasury-r...

After a visit to England in 1771-1772, Ford was jailed in New Jersey with a group of counterfeiters, but he soon escaped to Virginia. There, he changed his name to Baldwin and was engaged in trade as a silversmith. 

During the Revolutionary War, George Washington used the Ford home at Hammock Farms as a headquarters, and it briefly served as a hospital during the severe winter at Valley Forge. 

The estranged first wife, Grace (Kitchell) Ford, gained independence and deed records for Morris Co NJ show purchases at Ford's Hammock from Samuel Ford and Benjamin Burroughs in 1799, 1804, 1815, and sales to Stephen Young in 1815. 

In May, 1805, Grace (Kitchell) Ford and her daughter Phebe and husband Robert Marvin, and their two children, William and Samuel, left overland for Wheeling WV and took a flat boat down the Ohio River to Cincinnati. A portion of the diary account kept of this journey by Phebe (Ford) Marvin survives. They arrived in Hamilton Co OH on 1 Sep 1805 and purchased a quarter section from John Allen, the site now located at 10380 State Street in Harrison. Minutes of the formation of a Presbyterian Society in January 1811 at the home of John Allen at "Allens Ferry" include Grace Ford and Phebe Marvin among the attendees. The two are honored today with stained glass windows in their names at the First Presbyterian Church in Harrison. Grace (Kitchell) Ford returned to Hammock Farm in New Jersey in 1812 due to the harsh winters in Ohio. Her tombstone in the Hillside Cemetery at Madison NJ reads: "Sacred to the memory of Mrs. Grace Ford who died November 7, 1818, in the 79th year ofher life. She was an affectionate parent, a kind, endearing friend. She was ever ready to administer balm to the wounded hearts. An Isrealite, on whose tongue was found no guile, she found the Lord could calm the darkest skies, could give her day for night, and make streams of keenest sorrow rise to rivers of delight."

Grace Ford made a will 15 Apr 1817, proved 15 Dec 1818, mentioning children, Elizabeth and Samuel, and some grandchildren. An internet site lists the will of Samuel Ford Jr as being probated in Sep 1793 in Botetourt Co VA, but that was prior to the apparent deeds recorded above. One or more Samuel's in every generation complicates matters.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Nov 13 2021, 19:40:05 UTC