Defining Michigan

People have been living in Michigan for longer than anyone can remember. Before the French, British and Americans came here in the 1600s and 1700s, Michigan was home to several native tribes. Michigan’s three largest tribes are the Ojibwa, the Odawa and the Potawatomi.  They… Read More

Kanapima, which means “He Who is Talked About,” was an Odawa (Ottawa) leader.  Born in 1813 near Harbor Springs, Michigan, Kanapima also had an English name, Augustin Hamlin Jr. His father, Augustin Hamlin Sr. was Odawa, Ojibwe and French.  His mother was Odawa named Angelica… Read More

There are many reasons people move to a new place. Sometimes, it’s for a new job or opportunity. Other times, it’s to be with family. In the early 1800s, people began moving to Michigan for similar reasons. Let’s look at some reasons why people were… Read More

In the 1830s, people coming to Michigan traveled along dirt roads that followed the routes of Indian trails. These roads were full of holes and often muddy. After traveling on one of these early roads, one person wrote that she had just been “jolted to… Read More

Indian boarding schools were for children from tribal communities. These schools were found throughout the United States and Canada. Some of these schools were placed near tribal land, but others were placed far from tribal populations. Although Indian boarding schools were sometimes operated by different… Read More

The First Try On January 12, 1835, territorial governor Stevens T. Mason announced that Michigan was ready to become a state. But, the United State Congress said no. Congress said Michigan had work to do before becoming a state. First, at least 60,000 people had to live… Read More

In the 1800s, tribal nations and the United Stated entered into many treaties.  A treaty is an agreement between two independent nations and is upheld by the U.S. Constitution. A nation is a group a people living under their own independent government.  The United States… Read More

The United States entered into nearly 400 treaties with over one hundred tribal nations from 1778-1871. This timeline highlights five major treaties between the United States and Tribal Nations living within Michigan.  There are many more treaties than the ones highlighted here. … Read More

Let’s Define Constitution Before a territory can become a state, it has to write a constitution. A constitution is a set of laws or a plan about how a government is organized. Michigan wrote its first constitution in 1835, two years before it became a state. State constitutions are… Read More

In 1836, Michigan and Ohio fought over which state would get the city of Toledo. Toledo is on the Maumee River. Both Michigan and Ohio wanted the area because the Maumee was important to transportation. Once it was connected to the Ohio River, boats could… Read More

Most wars leave people hurt or dead, and cause much damage.  However, the Toledo War was an exception.  It was not an official war.  No one died in the war and there was little damage.  Michigan and Ohio waged this war in 1835 over a… Read More

Emily Wells was born in 1824 in Richmond, New York. In 1834, her entire family, including her parents and seven brothers and sisters, traveled on the Erie Canal to Buffalo, New York.  Then they took a steam ship across Lake Erie. Eventually they settled in… Read More

Building a Home Mary Lewis and her family moved to Michigan from New York when she was four years old. Her father bought land in Barry County, halfway between the present cities of Grand Rapids and Battle Creek. The first thing Mary’s family did was to cut… Read More

Martin Stockwell was born in 1818 in New York state. He didn’t go to school much when he was young because he worked on the family farm. When he was 17 years old, Martin decided he wanted to go to Michigan and have his own… Read More

The Underground Railroad was not a real railroad. It was a network of people, both black and white, who helped enslaved people, people forced to perform labor and services against their will, escape from their enslavers, people who enslave another person. This network was called “Underground”… Read More

An Anti-Slavery Society In 1832, in a simple wood meetinghouse near Adrian, Michigan, the first anti-slavery society in Michigan was formed. Some of the people in this meeting were Quakers, a religious group that spoke out against slavery. One of the Quakers was Elizabeth Chandler. Elizabeth wrote… Read More

Adam Crosswhite and his family escaped from slavery, a system by which a person is forced to work without pay and doesn’t have freedom, in Kentucky. They traveled north and settled near Marshall, Michigan. Adam feared that slave catchers from Kentucky might come to Michigan… Read More

Henry Bibb, a formerly enslaved person, spoke out about the horrors of slavery. After freeing himself, he urged enslaved people to “break your chains and fly for freedom.” Henry was born enslaved in Kentucky in 1815.  His mother was enslaved and his father was his enslaver… Read More

Frank Demas was born in Kentucky in 1818.  He was born into slavery, a system by which a person is forced to work without pay and doesn’t have freedom. His enslavers, people who enslave another person, worked in the shipping trade, and so… Read More

There were people for and against slavery in Michigan before it was completely banned by the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution.  You can read a quick history about those who opposed slavery in Michigan below. … Read More