Detroit's Popular Ford Billionaire Siblings.

**Gistok** · April-20-24, 10:03 AM

Of course I am talking about William Clay Ford Jr. and his sister Sheila Firestone Ford Hamp, both billionaires in their own right.

William Clay Ford Jr. gets all the attention for the restoration of Michigan Central Station, and Corktown's "Mobility Capital of the World.

But in the last year Sheila Hamp, since 2020 principal owner of the Detroit Lions, has become very popular in the past year.

Lions owner Sheila Hamp speaks publicly, sets high bar for 2024 season [[msn.com)

The son/daughter of the late Lions owner William Clay Ford Sr. [youngest of Edsel Ford's 4 children], and 98 year old Martha Firestone Ford... they are very popular here.

**Gistok** · April-22-24, 04:36 AM

Something I never thought about... the 4 children of Edsel & Eleanor Ford [Edsel was Henry Ford's only child] all died 15-45 years ago, except for William Clay Ford Sr., who made it to 2014 before passing away... his widow 98 year old widow Martha Firestone Ford is still alive.

I believe that because William Clay Ford Sr. lived so long... he amassed a larger fortune over the years than his 3 siblings [Henry Ford II, Benson Ford, Josephine Ford].

So the result is that the estate that William Clay Ford Sr. had, is worth over $4 billion. Thus each of the kids Ford CEO William Jr., Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp, and the others are worth over $1 billion each.

This is much more than their cousin Edsel Ford II [worth $500 million] and all of the other cousins [worth less].

So this puts William Clay Ford Sr.'s kids quite a bit richer than the rest of the extended Ford family of cousins and their offspring.

**Cincinnati_Kid** · April-22-24, 08:00 AM

Not being disrespectful, but what difference does it make which siblings or cousins are richer? They obviously live in a different stratosphere and have a life that most common people will never experience. Please don't take this the wrong way, but it's news I'm not particularly interested in.

**gnome** · April-22-24, 09:14 AM

Cincinnati, it’s just a discussion. Gistok didn’t sign up to be your custom news concierge.

**Cincinnati_Kid** · April-22-24, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by gnome

Cincinnati, it’s just a discussion. Gistok didn’t sign up to be your custom news concierge.

You sure about that? It sounds like it, and not just to me. Again I ask, what's the point of the discussion?

**Richard** · April-22-24, 01:17 PM

I think it is interesting because most long term generational wealth is squandered by the next generations.

To say they have a life that most of the common folk will never have,is true but all of that wealth was achieved by people that started out as common folk.

They also contribute to many organizations so it is not like they are hoarding it all,they are a testament of what built this country alongside of millions of other Americans.

A heck of a lot more interesting than the Kardashians or others who actually never really contributed to society.

**Gistok** · April-22-24, 02:57 PM

With the upcoming NFL Draft, the opening of Michigan Central, and the blossoming of the Detroit Lions, I thought it was of interest to share some background of our new and upcoming metro Detroit boosters not named Gilbert or Ilitch.

It wasn't that long ago that nobody even knew who Sheila Hamp was. And as Richard mentioned, those outside of metro Detroit knew less about Detroit's blue bloods out of the spotlight, and don't seem to be bothered by learning about it.

**ABetterDetroit** · April-22-24, 08:24 PM

We are talking 2nd Industrial Revolution wealth here. Ford has been paying dividends to those share holders for a really long time and they have had some of the best wealth managers money could buy for many decades. I would guess that what is private and cannot be measured publicly like share values, Lions etc… is immense.

**401don** · April-22-24, 08:46 PM

Originally Posted by ABetterDetroit

We are talking 2nd Industrial Revolution wealth here. Ford has been paying dividends to those share holders for a really long time and they have had some of the best wealth managers money could buy for many decades. I would guess that what is private and cannot be measured publicly like share values, Lions etc… is immense.

It wouldn't hurt the family if, with the profits of the last decade, Ford stock reached double digits. I get that stock prices are bets on future revenue but Wall Street has been betting against Ford basically since the 2009 bankruptcy of the other two.

**JBMcB** · April-23-24, 10:37 AM

For reference, Cornelius Vanderbilt was the wealthiest man in the US in the late 1800s. His income alone made up a significant percentage of the total GDP of the entire US.

Nowadays, the wealthiest descendants are probably Anderson Cooper, and the family members who own the Biltmore estate which, at one time, was primarily funded by a successful dairy farm ran on the property. One is also a relatively successful movie producer, as well.

I'm sure that none of the heirs are destitute, but none of them are building 50,000 square foot mansions in Malibu, either.

**ABetterDetroit** · April-23-24, 08:04 PM

Originally Posted by JBMcB

For reference, Cornelius Vanderbilt was the wealthiest man in the US in the late 1800s. His income alone made up a significant percentage of the total GDP of the entire US.

Nowadays, the wealthiest descendants are probably Anderson Cooper, and the family members who own the Biltmore estate which, at one time, was primarily funded by a successful dairy farm ran on the property. One is also a relatively successful movie producer, as well.

I'm sure that none of the heirs are destitute, but none of them are building 50,000 square foot mansions in Malibu, either.

The Vanderbilts are a notorious example of squandered family wealth. Not exactly a good ruler for reference but more of an excellent case that failure is always an option.

https://trustandwill.com/learn/rocke...vs-vanderbilts

**Gistok** · April-23-24, 09:10 PM

Dan Gilbert is currently [by far] Michigan's richest billionaire, worth an estimated $22-$25 billion.

His 3 surviving sons and a daughter could one day inherit quite a lot, depending on many things, of course. Each one could potentially outdo the entire Ilitch clan.

His sons, 25 year old A.J., 21 year old Grant, 17 year old Nash...

**Henry Whalley** · April-24-24, 06:00 PM

Originally Posted by ABetterDetroit

The Vanderbilts are a notorious example of squandered family wealth. Not exactly a good ruler for reference but more of an excellent case that failure is always an option.

Easy come, easy go. Before they were robber barons, the Vanderbilts were in the China opium trade. Same for Forbes.

**DavidGeorge** · April-24-24, 08:25 PM

Originally Posted by Gistok

...

So the result is that the estate that William Clay Ford Sr. had, is worth over $4 billion. Thus each of the kids Ford CEO William Jr., Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp, and the others are worth over $1 billion each.

...

There's something wrong with this math. How exactly did the heirs not pay a 40% federal estate tax?

"...Of course, the federal government imposes an estate tax of 40% on assets over $11.4 million. ..." https://seanjnichols.com/blog/estate...-estate-taxes/

**Gistok** · April-24-24, 08:53 PM

Originally Posted by DavidGeorge

There's something wrong with this math. How exactly did the heirs not pay a 40% federal estate tax?

"...Of course, the federal government imposes an estate tax of 40% on assets over $11.4 million. ..." https://seanjnichols.com/blog/estate...-estate-taxes/

In this entire discussion, all you got out of it was estate planning?

The answer to your question is that we don't know! The public is not privy to estate planning and how to best minimize taxes. But what I can tell you is that the source I referenced was Forbes.