| On May 25, 1824, John Allen and Elisha Rumsey went into the federal land office of Wayne County and claimed some 650 acres of
land 40 miles west of Detroit, land to be known as Annarbour.
Although the story of Allen and Rumsey is not a particularly
romantic one, it describes the beginning of the evolution of a small
frontier town into the thriving metropolis known as Ann Arbor
today. |
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| The reasons Allen and Rumsey founded Ann Arbor are
dubious; money was one driving factor. The two men dreamed of
wealth because so may others in their time were achieving large
fortunes. Additionally, some sources suggest both Allen and Rumsey
had troubled pasts and were running away from them. No one can
say with confidence what real reasons stood behind the founding of
Ann Arbor; the end results far outweigh any underlying motives the
men may have had, whether they were selfish motives or not. |
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[More about the founding of the city]
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| It is likely John Allen left Virginia because he wanted to leave
his debts behind. When he left for the Northwest Territory, hoping to
become wealthy, he saw an opportunity to make money in area that
would become Ann Arbor. Rumsey may have left his home in New
York for a similar reason. He misused funds from a loan |
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| Allen and Rumsey purchased the land west of Detroit at a very
low price. In 1820, Congress passed a law that allowed the sale of
government lands for no less than $1.25 an acre. In hindsight, they
couldnąt have made a more remarkable business move. |
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| In order for their town to be successful, the two men needed
something more than land. Michigan Territory Governor Lewis Cass
chose Allen and Rumsey's plat as the county seat for Washtenaw
County. Allen and Rumsey paid a price for this honor one thousand
dollars and any land that was needed for the associated government
buildings. Having such buildings all but insured the economic and
political success of Ann Arbor. |
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[continued]
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The Early Political Landscape