Harrison Ford Wellington History | Ford Dealership Wellington, OH

Our Founder

ALLEN HARRISON

Harrison Ford Inc. began with founder Allen Harrison and his wife, Alice. Allen was a born business man and all his life enjoyed 'wheeling and dealing.' He loved to talk to people, trade stories, and build relationships within the community he lived. He enjoyed farming, but also found profit in buying and selling cattle, ponies, tractors, implements, automobiles, and anything else he thought he could make a buck on. In fact, he allegedly began his buy-sell endeavors with the money he made reselling a crate of watermelons he purchased on the roadside and brought back home from a trip to the southern states. His aptitude for buying and selling led to his interest in beginning Harrison Truck and Implement which he started in Brighton, Ohio in 1963.

1960's

THE BEGINNING

In 1967, Allen and Alice moved Harrison Truck and Implement from Brighton to the neighboring Village of Wellington on Kelly Street, now the location of Wellington's Fire Department. The business quickly took off and became an International Harvester Truck Dealership that sold and serviced new International trucks, and used vehicles. In the late 60's the business was moved up the road to the corner of Kelly Street and North Main, the property that Rite Aid Pharmacy sits on today.

1970's

A NEW OPPORTUNITY

In 1972, Ford Motor Company approached Allen and offered him to opportunity to become the area's Ford Dealer. Allen and Alice excitedly accepted with the hopes that their four sons might have an interest in future operations. The future came quicker than imagined when Allen suddenly passed away in 1974. Allen's two middle sons, Lad and Brian, were working in the business and continued operations along with their mother, Alice; Lad being 23 at the time and Brian 21. The youngest of the four, Rodney, joined his brothers in December of 1978 after graduating college.

1980's & 1990's

GROWING THE BUSINESS

The three involved Harrison sons added a Goodyear Tire Center in 1984 that has since become the Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Harrison Ford. In 1989, Lad left the Ford Dealership to pursue the newly acquired Brother's Chevrolet, also in Wellington. Rodney and Brian continued operations at Harrison Ford and added Harrison Collision Center in 1995. In 1998, Harrison Ford moved locations once more to its current property, building a brand new facility on Wellington's North Main Street at the north end of town, able to handle the growing demand in the local area for vehicles, service, body repairs, and maintenance.

Harrison Ford Dealership The 21st Century

TOWARDS TOMORROW

In 2011, a Featherlite Trailer franchise was added in order to offer horse, livestock, car and utility trailers to help support the Auto and Agriculture needs of Northeast Ohio. Exiss & Sooner brands were added in 2017 and Elite Trailers was added in 2019. In 2015, with the support of Ford Motor Company, Harrison Ford remodeled their facility into a state-of-the-art dealership and service center.

Rodney's daughter, Ashley, joined the team at Harrison Ford in 2012 in the hopes of continuing operations for a third generation. The Harrison Family is proud and thankful to have had the opportunity to provide service to the community for 50 years.

Although every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained on this site, absolute accuracy cannot be guaranteed. This site, and all information and materials appearing on it, are presented to the user "as is" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied. All vehicles are subject to prior sale. Price does not include applicable tax, title, and license charges. ‡Vehicles shown at different locations are not currently in our inventory (Not in Stock) but can be made available to you at our location within a reasonable date from the time of your request, not to exceed one week.

Our History