 Fords Prairie was named after Judge Sidney S. Ford, Sr. and his wife Nancy who were among the earliest white pioneers who settled north of the Columbia River in 1846 in what was then a part of Oregon Territory.Their 640-acre (259 hectare) Ford Donation Land Claim abutting the Chehalis River was the center of what became known as Fords Prairie which became an important travelling stop between the Columbia River and the Puget Sound.Fords Prairie is located at (46.741303, -122.996572).