Ghosts from Mississippi's Past: Over 200 Years in the John Ford Home

While much has been written about the historical events of the John Ford Home of Marion County, Mississippi, little has been published about the people that lived in the home. The John Ford Home, built in 1809 on the Pearl River in Marion County Mississippi, still stands today. Members of the same family lived in the home until it was sold to the Marion County Historical Society in 1962. Each generation of the family had its own difficulties and hardships. Reverend John Ford and his brothers from South Carolina migrated to the newly opened Mississippi Territory at the turn of the Nineteenth Century. The Ford Home became an important stockade and mail stop for travelers crossing the Pearl River to reach different areas of the Territory. John Ford was instrumental in the state’s development and many important people of the time visited the home, including General Andrew Jackson and his War of 1812 militia. The next generation of the family to live in the home was William Milton and Patsy Warren Rankin and their family. The Civil War brought hardship and loss. When the Rankin patriarch suddenly died during the war without a will, the estate went to the Probate Court, where 55 enslaved people were divided among family heirs. Before the war ended, the plantation was raided by thousands of Union Troops, leaving the family destitute. The last of the Ford/Rankin family to live in the home was William Edward Rankin, Clara Ford Rankin, and family. The author is their granddaughter. The photos of these long-ago deceased family members still hang from the walls of the historical home. Their photos and stories are presented in this book. The names of the enslaved people who once lived on the plantation are included, as well as their court estimated values. The book will be interesting reading for those interested in early frontier plantation life, Mississippi historians, visitors touring the home, students and teachers of Mississippi history, Ford and Rankin family descendants, and descendants of the enslaved people who once lived on this plantation.
ASIN: B0D8H9TCZW
VSKU: BVV.B0D8H9TCZW.VG
Condition: Very Good
Author/Artist:Miller, Clare H.
Binding: Paperback
Note: Any images shown are stock photographs and product may differ from what is shown.
Condition Notes: Book has little sign of wear or use