In honor of Presidents Day, we decided to take a look at Gerald Ford, the only U.S. president with close ties to the great state of Michigan. So without further ado, here are some fun facts about President Ford!
- He was born Leslie Lynch King Jr. (on July 14, 1913). Gerald Ford was his stepfather’s name, and the one that the future president legally took when he was around 20.
- He was born in Omaha, Nebraska, but raised in Grand Rapids.
- Ford went to the University of Michigan. He played on the football team and won two national championships with the Wolverines.
- The Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers were interested in Ford, but he decided to go to Yale Law School.
- After Pearl Harbor, Ford joined the U.S. Naval Reserve and served there from 1942-46.
- He is the only U.S. president to have served as a park ranger, according to NationalParks.org.
- In 1949, Ford was elected a U.S. representative from Michigan’s 5th Congressional District, kicking off his political career.
- He became vice president in 1973 when Spiro Agnew resigned.
- After President Richard Nixon resigned the next year, Ford became the 38th president of the United States. He served from 1974-77.
- He is the only president never to have been elected as president or vice president.
