Mabel, I believe Howard Ford Bridge crosses the James River northwest on the road that runs in front of McConnell Cemetery. We at one time took this road all the way from Republic across the James River low water ford south of Battlefield and Manley Cemetery to get to the McConnell graveyard. When I was little, the bridge scared me because it sounded like it was falling apart as you drove over it. It has been improved, but the pictures still look like the same old bridge. I suppose the term "Howard Ford" refers to the F.C./Woodson/George Howard families that lived in the area in the mid-1800s. Randy McConnell