Wendell Ford was born near Owensboro, in Daviess County, Kentucky, on September 8, 1924.[3] He was the son of Ernest M. and Irene Woolfork (Schenk) Ford.[4] His father was a state senator and ally of Kentucky Governor Earle C. Clements.[2] Ford obtained his early education in the public schools of Daviess County and graduated from Daviess County High School.[5] From 1942 to 1943, he attended the U