The Wiki article for him states "Historians have used public records to identify Fard as Wallace Dodd Ford, a former restaurateur and Moorish Science Temple leader." Yet there seems to be quite a bit of uncertainty as to his place of birth, etc. Of course, "orthodox" Nations of Islam sources challenge the idea that Wallace Fard Muhammad was Wallace Dodd Ford, and claim W. F. Muhammad was originally from Mecca (I suppose in much the same sense that early Christian sources place Jesus' birth in Bethlehem)...but the Wiki article also reports that in various documents signed by W. D. Ford, he gives his birthplace as New Zealand, Oregon, or "Shinkay," Afghanistan. So what do we really know about this?
My impression is that the identification of Wallace Fard Muhammad as Wallace Dodd Ford is solid - and that he indeed rose to prominence in the Moorish Science Temple, which had very similar doctrines as the Nation of Islam. But I'd be interested in some more educated views on the matter.
There is quite a bit of uncertainty regarding W.D. Fard. This is partially due to scant records and also his intentional use of mystery to authenticate his divinity. For example, his renaming to W.F. Muhammad likely was meant to signify his status as a prophet and maybe even Allah himself.
Claude Clegg's An Original Man: The Life and Times of Elijah Muhammad is a solid source here. Clegg doesn't really take a side on the many "Fards" that exist, instead presenting what he believes are the most believable biographies. He contends that W.D. Fard was either born in Portland, Oregon or New Zealand to parents of Polynesian or British descent. Fard was "fair-skinned" and Clegg argues that his Europeanness was helpful as his "willingness to take the time to counsel blacks in matters of race and religion probably impressed them more than a similar program sponsored by a conspicuously black man would have" (22).
In terms of ideology, I think the wiki is correct in identifying the Moorish Science Temple as an influence. But the NoI appropriated beliefs from the Ahmadiyya Movement, the MST, Garveyism, African-American Christianity, and orthodox Islam. I also think there's something to be said about how science & social darwinism informs these beliefs. It was more of a mixing pot of a variety of beliefs than anything else. Moreover, Elijah Muhammad codified and changed some of these beliefs after W.D. Fard disappeared in the early 1930s.
The Nation of Islam is a very hard religion/organization to study. The paucity of good scholarly work is noticeable. Partially, this is due to the fact that NoI members are notoriously difficult to interview. It also does not help that some studies are written by former NoI members. But Clegg's work, as well as Manning Marable's recent biography of Malcolm X are both good starting points.