Tombstone Tuesday--Alton Cemetery, Kent County

One of the last road trips my father took before he passed away was to go cemetery hopping with his 2 sisters and myself.

We visited some of the cemeterys in Kent County where his grandparents and some of the greats were buried. Since Aunt Glenna had been there more than any us, she quickly found the first graves.

Omar Allen and his wife Carrie Ford Allen were resting peacefully side by side in a lower portion of the rolling graveyard.

With some roaming around, I spotted the ancester with my favorite name, my 3rd great grandfather, Barlo Barto. Isn't that name great? Wife Fanny (Frances Clark) was listed on the south side of this stone and the inscription was fading. Aunt Glenna said it was much fainter since her previous trip.

Barlo and Fanny's daughter Edna married into the Ford line. Somewhere here is the legendary connection to Gerald Fords adoptive family. He was at Ford reunions that my grandmother attend, so all I have to do is confirm the connection. I once wrote to President Ford asking about this. He referred me to his daughter, but I was too chicken to write to her. Maybe someday.

My grandmother, Edna Cross Allen, was named for her grandmother whose grave is shown here: Edna Barto Ford.