John Meredith Ford

John Meredith Ford (1923 – 18 November 1995) was a Guyanese businessman and politician who served as the Lord Mayor of Georgetown, Guyana, from 1970 to 1972. During his time in office, Guyana transitioned from a monarchy under the rule of Elizabeth II to the Co‑operative Republic of Guyana, an independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations. He hosted independence celebrations in the nation's capital and renamed streets to celebrate the country's freedom from British rule. After immigrating to the United States in 1982, Ford worked as a furniture salesman and real estate investor in the Washington, D.C. area.

Career Ford was a businessman, civic leader, and political figure who served as the head of Governmental Ministries.

He worked as a business manager and executive in finance, real estate, sawmilling, sales, and furniture manufacturing in Guyana. On 21 February 1970, Ford renamed High Street in Georgetown, pulling a string during the ceremony to reveal the independence flag of Guyana and the street's new name, Avenue of the Republic.

He married Sarojini Janki, an Indo-Guyanese woman who worked for the Ministry of Education and was the daughter of the first Presbyterian elder of Demerara. Ford is the grandfather of Princess Ariana Austin Makonnen.

Ford and his family emigrated to the United States in 1982 and settled in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. He was brought to Prince George's Hospital Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, where he died on 18 November 1995.