“Mister Ford” is a 1950 Ford Custom Deluxe Fordor (4-door, in Ford-speak) that first belonged to my maternal grandfather, Edward Wheeler (“Wheeler”) Rittenhouse.  There was no way I could comfortably assign a nickname like “Smoky” to a car that belonged to my grandfather, so the car is simply, “Mister Ford”.  I think (hope) my grandfather would have approved. 

Wheeler Rittenhouse took great pride in his Ford, and was pleased to point out features, like the twin-beam chassis and flathead V-8, to my Chevy-owning father.  Grandpop religiously performed routine car maintenance (and shamed my father, who did not).  He protected the factory seat covers with set of cloth covers — and an extra covering of blankets, when grandkids visited.

As a kid, I came to know and love the old Ford.  Throughout the 50s and early 60s, every visit to my grandparents entailed some kind of outing in the Ford.  We visited Grandpop’s birthplace and historical sites, chased steam locomotives, and visited local farmers to bring home homemade sausage and fresh milk.