Longtime union leader Marlin “Whitey” Ford dies

Staff report

AUSTINTOWN

Longtime union leader Marlin D. “Whitey” Ford, formerly of Lordstown, died on Thursday, surrounded by family, at age 75.

Ford, a 1960 graduate of Robertsdale High School in Wood, Pa., first began working at the General Motors Lordstown Assembly Complex in 1966 after moving to the area from Martinsburg, Pa., where he was vice president of the Boot and Shoe Workers Local union.

Before long, Ford became a member of the United Auto Workers Local 1112, eventually serving as the union’s president from 1974 until 1980.

During his time as president, Ford appointed Anna Biggins to a leadership position, making her the first woman to have a full-time, appointed position in Local 1112. She will be speaking at Ford’s memorial service.

Ford, who worked in the facility’s paint mixing room, retired from the Lordstown complex in 2000.

His tenure as a union leader drew this snippet from the New York Times in 1982: “In May, a key local leader, Marlin D. (Whitey) Ford, president of the cantankerous Local 1112 in Lordstown, Ohio, was defeated for president, in part because of his support for national concessions.

“So strong is resistance to concessions among the Canadian leaders of the union, including the Canadian director, Robert White, that they have talked of leaving the U.A.W.”

Before his work at GM, Ford served in the Army for two years and was honorably discharged in 1961.

Outside of the automotive industry, Ford also owned and operated the Lordstown Auction for more than 20 years and was a member of the Auctioneers Association.

He leaves his wife, the former Peggy Hunter, three daughters, two sons and numerous grandchildren.