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Timeline
1805 Detail
January 11, 1805 - The Michigan Territory is established.
Land of Michigan Prior to the Establishment of the United States
It was, as Native American land, inhabited by three main tribes of the Paleo-Indians; Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Ottawa, plus others. They had lived on the territory for thousands of years, circa 11,000 B.C.E., before Europeans followed. Yes, for Michigan, the first meant the French, explorer Etienne Brulé in 1618, his first voyage in the quest for a route to China. Brul@eacute came back in 1620, followed by many other explorers and traders, drawn by the abundance of beaver pelts. They built forts and trading posts and settlements. French officer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and fifty-one more French-Canadians founded a settlement called Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit in 1701.
Bad for the French was the outcome of the Seven Years War, the last of the French and Indian Wars, with Great Britain. It brought an end to their dominance and control of the territory by 1763. Now the British took over, with more laws and government intervening with the native population. They built their own forts. They established their own fur trade. They built their own settlements.
After the American Revolution
Once the United States had prevailed in the American Revolution in 1783, the land of Michigan was now theirs, although it would be contested territory between them and the British (see War of 1812) as well as the tribes that felt loyal to Great Britain. Over the next several years, the U.S. Government continued to perform under the Articles of Confederation, then established the Constitution on September 17, 1787. Congress would pass legislation about the Northwest Ordinance in 1784, 1785, and 1787. That law established the Northwest Territory, the manner in which states could be constructed from it, and become part of the Union. It also gave rights to the Native Americans of the region. The Northwest Territory included the eventual states of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois. There would be a government entity that ran the Northwest Territory until such states would comply and apply to join the United States as full member states.
Indiana was given its own territory in 1800, which included parts of Michigan. In 1802, Ohio became a state. As more Europeans settlers began to arrive in the land of Michigan, there began a push by the United States to split it from the remainder of the Northwest Territory. On January 11, 1805, that law was passed. The Territory included both Michigan and Wisconsin, plus a small part of Minnesota. It would have a Governor appointed by the President of the United States. And during its time prior to statehood, would conduct several negotiations with the Native American tribes to ensure rights and hope of peace. However, there was a problem. The British continued to control and run Michigan's government in large parts of the territory, not acceding control after the Treaty of Paris ending the American Revolution.
Statehood for Michigan
For the first half decade, the Michigan Territory was running its own affairs. The problem, however, was that the treaty that ended the American Revolution, had not satisfied the British on who owned it, or other contested territory along the border with Canada. Thus, the War of 1812 was spawned from these disputes, and the British invaded the territory, overtaking and controlling the city of Detroit and Fort Mackinac with many of the Michigan tribes; Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Ottawa, who sided with the British. Even though those years of control and contest in the territory would eventually end several years later, it prompted the United States to begin steps toward making parts of the Michigan Territory into their own state.
First came the Michigan Constitution in 1835, then establishment of its boundaries in 1836 (there have been eight challenges since), and statehood on January 26, 1837. There were eighty thousand residents upon admission. Three years later, there were two hundred and forty thousand. Ten years more, the population had grown to three hundred and ninety-seven thousand. Its abundant natural resources, including lumber, copper, and iron ore drew European settlers west to begin their realization of the American dream.
Congressional Act to Create the Michigan Territory
CHAP. V.-In .Bct to divide the Indiana Territory into two separate governments.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That from and after the thirtieth day of June next, all that part of the Indiana territory, which lies north of a line drawn east from the southerly bend or extreme of Lake Michigan, until it shall intersect Lake Erie, and east of a line drawn from the said southerly bend through the middle of said lake to its northern extremity, and thence due north to the northern boundary of the United States, shall, for the purpose of temporary government, constitute a separate territory, and be called Michigan.
SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That there shall be established within the said territory, a government in all respects similar to that provided by the ordinance of Congress, passed on the thirteenth day of July, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven, for the government of the territory of the United States, northwest of the river Ohio; and by an act passed on the seventh day of August, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine, entitled "An act to provide for the government of the territory northwest of the river Ohio;" and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to, and enjoy all and singular the rights, privileges, and advantages granted and secured to the people of the territory of the United States, northwest of the river Ohio, by the said ordinance.
SEc. 3. And be it further enacted, That the officers for the said territory, who by virtue of this act shall be appointed by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall respectively exercise the same powers, perform the same duties, and receive for their services the same compensations, as by the ordinance aforesaid and the laws of the United States, have been provided and established for similar officers in the Indiana territory; and the duties and emoluments of superintendent of Indian affairs, shall be united with those of governor.
SEC. 4. And he it further enacted, That nothing in this act contained, shall be construed so as, in any manner, to affect the government now in force in the Indiana territory, further than to prohibit the exercise thereof within the said territory of Michigan, from and after the aforesaid thirtieth day of June next.
SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That all suits, process, and proceeding, which, on the thirtieth day of June next, shall be pending in the court of any county, which shall be included within the said territory of Michigan; and also all suits, process, and proceedings, which on the said thirtieth day. of June next, shall be pending in the general court of the Indiana territory, in consequence of any writ of removal, or order for trial at bar, and which had been removed, from any of the counties included within the limits of the territory of Michigan aforesaid, shall, in all things concerning the same, be proceeded on, and judgments and decrees rendered hereon, in the same manner as if the said Indiana territory had remained undivided.
Congressional Act for Establishment of Michigan Boundaries, 1836
CHAP. XCIX.---an act to establish the northern boundary line of the State of Ohio, and to provide for the admission of the State of Michigan into the Union upon the conditions therein expressed.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the northern boundary line of the State of Ohio shall be established at, and shall be a direct boundary line drawn from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan, to the most northerly cape oP the Maumee (Miami) bay, after that line, so drawn, shall intersect the eastern boundary line of the State of Indiana; and from the said north cape of the said bay, northeast to the boundary line between the United States and the province of Upper Canada, in Lake Erie; and thence, with the said last mentioned line, to its intersection
with the western line of the State of Pennsylvania.
SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the constitution and State Government which the people of Michigan have formed for themselves be, and the same is hereby, accepted, ratified, and confirmed; and that the State of Michigan shall be, and is hereby, declared to be one of the United States of America, and is hereby admitted into the Union upon an equal footing with the original States, in all respects whatsoever: Provided always, and this admission is upon the express condition, that
the said State shall consist of and have jurisdiction over all the territory included within the following boundaries, and over none other, to wit: Beginning at the point where the above described northern boundary of the State of Ohio intersects the eastern boundary of the State of Indiana, and running thence with the said boundary line of Ohio, as described in the first section of this act, until it intersects the boundary line between the United States and Canada, in Lake Erie; thence, with the said boundary line between the United States and Canada through the Detroit river, Lake Huron, and Lake Superior, to a point where the
between the United States and Canada' in Lake Erie; to a point where the said line last touches Lake Superior; thence, in a direct line through
said line last touches Lake Superior; thence, in a direct line through Lake Superior, to the mouth of the Montreal river; thence through the middle of the main channel of the said river Montreal, to the middle of the Lake of the Desert; thence, in a direct line to the nearest head water of the Menomonie river; thence, through the middle of that fork of the said river first touched by the said line, to the main channel of the said Menomonie river; thence, down the centre of the main channel of the same, to the centre of the most usual ship channel of the Green bay of Lake Michigan; thence through the middle of Lake Michigan, to the northern boundary of the
State of Indiana, as that line was established by the act of Congress of the nineteenth of April, eighteen hundred and sixteen; thence, due east, with the north boundary line of the said State of Indiana, to the northeast corner thereof; and thence, south, with the east boundary line of Indiana, to the place of beginning.
SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That, as a compliance with the fundamental condition of admission contained in the last preceding section of this act, the boundaries of the said State of Michigan, as in that section described, declared, and established, shall receive the assent of a convention of delegates elected by the people of the said State, for the sole purpose of giving the assent herein required; and as soon as the assent herein required shall be given, the President of the United States
shall announce the same by proclamation; and thereupon, and without any further proceeding on the part of Congress, the admission of the said State into the Union, as one of the United States of America, on an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever, shall be considered as complete, and the Senators and Representatives who have been elected by the said State as its representative in the Congress of the United States, shall be entitled to take their seats in the Senate
and House of Representatives respectively, without further delay.
SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That nothing in this act contained, or in the admission of the said State into the Union as one of the United States of America upon an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever, shall be so construed or understood as to confer upon the people, Legislature, or other authorities of the said State of Michigan, any authority or right to interfere with the sale by the United States, and under their authority, of the vacant and unsold lands within the limits of the said State, but that the subject of the public lands, and the interests which may be given to the said State therein, shall be regulated by future action between Congress, on the part of the United States, and the said State, or the authorities thereof. And the said State of Michigan shall in no case and under no pretence whatsoever, impose any tax, assessment or imposition of any description upon any of the lands of the United States within its limits.
APPROVED, June 15, 1836.
Image above: Drawing of Detroit, Michigan, 1837, "City of Detroit, Michigan. Taken from the Canada Shore near the Ferry," after a sketch by Frederick Grain, published by Henry J. Megarey, New York, 1837. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Below: "Siege of Fort Detroit 1763," date unknown, Frederick Remington. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Info source: "How Michigan Became a State," Michigan.how; "The Establishment of Michigan's Legal Boundaries," Library of Michigan State University; Britannica.com; uslaw.link; Wikipedia Commons.
History Photo Bomb
President Thomas Jefferson. Courtesy Library of Congress.
Jefferson Expansion Memorial Arch along the Mississippi River
in St.
Louis, commemorating westward expansion, Lewis and
Clark, and the Louisiana Purchase. Courtesy National Park Service.
Bad for the French was the outcome of the Seven Years War, the last of the French and Indian Wars, with Great Britain. It brought an end to their dominance and control of the territory by 1763. Now the British took over, with more laws and government intervening with the native population. They built their own forts. They established their own fur trade. They built their own settlements.
After the American Revolution
Once the United States had prevailed in the American Revolution in 1783, the land of Michigan was now theirs, although it would be contested territory between them and the British (see War of 1812) as well as the tribes that felt loyal to Great Britain. Over the next several years, the U.S. Government continued to perform under the Articles of Confederation, then established the Constitution on September 17, 1787. Congress would pass legislation about the Northwest Ordinance in 1784, 1785, and 1787. That law established the Northwest Territory, the manner in which states could be constructed from it, and become part of the Union. It also gave rights to the Native Americans of the region. The Northwest Territory included the eventual states of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois. There would be a government entity that ran the Northwest Territory until such states would comply and apply to join the United States as full member states.
Indiana was given its own territory in 1800, which included parts of Michigan. In 1802, Ohio became a state. As more Europeans settlers began to arrive in the land of Michigan, there began a push by the United States to split it from the remainder of the Northwest Territory. On January 11, 1805, that law was passed. The Territory included both Michigan and Wisconsin, plus a small part of Minnesota. It would have a Governor appointed by the President of the United States. And during its time prior to statehood, would conduct several negotiations with the Native American tribes to ensure rights and hope of peace. However, there was a problem. The British continued to control and run Michigan's government in large parts of the territory, not acceding control after the Treaty of Paris ending the American Revolution.
Statehood for Michigan
For the first half decade, the Michigan Territory was running its own affairs. The problem, however, was that the treaty that ended the American Revolution, had not satisfied the British on who owned it, or other contested territory along the border with Canada. Thus, the War of 1812 was spawned from these disputes, and the British invaded the territory, overtaking and controlling the city of Detroit and Fort Mackinac with many of the Michigan tribes; Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Ottawa, who sided with the British. Even though those years of control and contest in the territory would eventually end several years later, it prompted the United States to begin steps toward making parts of the Michigan Territory into their own state.
First came the Michigan Constitution in 1835, then establishment of its boundaries in 1836 (there have been eight challenges since), and statehood on January 26, 1837. There were eighty thousand residents upon admission. Three years later, there were two hundred and forty thousand. Ten years more, the population had grown to three hundred and ninety-seven thousand. Its abundant natural resources, including lumber, copper, and iron ore drew European settlers west to begin their realization of the American dream.
Congressional Act to Create the Michigan Territory
CHAP. V.-In .Bct to divide the Indiana Territory into two separate governments.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That from and after the thirtieth day of June next, all that part of the Indiana territory, which lies north of a line drawn east from the southerly bend or extreme of Lake Michigan, until it shall intersect Lake Erie, and east of a line drawn from the said southerly bend through the middle of said lake to its northern extremity, and thence due north to the northern boundary of the United States, shall, for the purpose of temporary government, constitute a separate territory, and be called Michigan.
SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That there shall be established within the said territory, a government in all respects similar to that provided by the ordinance of Congress, passed on the thirteenth day of July, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven, for the government of the territory of the United States, northwest of the river Ohio; and by an act passed on the seventh day of August, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine, entitled "An act to provide for the government of the territory northwest of the river Ohio;" and the inhabitants thereof shall be entitled to, and enjoy all and singular the rights, privileges, and advantages granted and secured to the people of the territory of the United States, northwest of the river Ohio, by the said ordinance.
SEc. 3. And be it further enacted, That the officers for the said territory, who by virtue of this act shall be appointed by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall respectively exercise the same powers, perform the same duties, and receive for their services the same compensations, as by the ordinance aforesaid and the laws of the United States, have been provided and established for similar officers in the Indiana territory; and the duties and emoluments of superintendent of Indian affairs, shall be united with those of governor.
SEC. 4. And he it further enacted, That nothing in this act contained, shall be construed so as, in any manner, to affect the government now in force in the Indiana territory, further than to prohibit the exercise thereof within the said territory of Michigan, from and after the aforesaid thirtieth day of June next.
SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That all suits, process, and proceeding, which, on the thirtieth day of June next, shall be pending in the court of any county, which shall be included within the said territory of Michigan; and also all suits, process, and proceedings, which on the said thirtieth day. of June next, shall be pending in the general court of the Indiana territory, in consequence of any writ of removal, or order for trial at bar, and which had been removed, from any of the counties included within the limits of the territory of Michigan aforesaid, shall, in all things concerning the same, be proceeded on, and judgments and decrees rendered hereon, in the same manner as if the said Indiana territory had remained undivided.
Congressional Act for Establishment of Michigan Boundaries, 1836
CHAP. XCIX.---an act to establish the northern boundary line of the State of Ohio, and to provide for the admission of the State of Michigan into the Union upon the conditions therein expressed.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the northern boundary line of the State of Ohio shall be established at, and shall be a direct boundary line drawn from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan, to the most northerly cape oP the Maumee (Miami) bay, after that line, so drawn, shall intersect the eastern boundary line of the State of Indiana; and from the said north cape of the said bay, northeast to the boundary line between the United States and the province of Upper Canada, in Lake Erie; and thence, with the said last mentioned line, to its intersection
with the western line of the State of Pennsylvania.
SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the constitution and State Government which the people of Michigan have formed for themselves be, and the same is hereby, accepted, ratified, and confirmed; and that the State of Michigan shall be, and is hereby, declared to be one of the United States of America, and is hereby admitted into the Union upon an equal footing with the original States, in all respects whatsoever: Provided always, and this admission is upon the express condition, that
the said State shall consist of and have jurisdiction over all the territory included within the following boundaries, and over none other, to wit: Beginning at the point where the above described northern boundary of the State of Ohio intersects the eastern boundary of the State of Indiana, and running thence with the said boundary line of Ohio, as described in the first section of this act, until it intersects the boundary line between the United States and Canada, in Lake Erie; thence, with the said boundary line between the United States and Canada through the Detroit river, Lake Huron, and Lake Superior, to a point where the
between the United States and Canada' in Lake Erie; to a point where the said line last touches Lake Superior; thence, in a direct line through
said line last touches Lake Superior; thence, in a direct line through Lake Superior, to the mouth of the Montreal river; thence through the middle of the main channel of the said river Montreal, to the middle of the Lake of the Desert; thence, in a direct line to the nearest head water of the Menomonie river; thence, through the middle of that fork of the said river first touched by the said line, to the main channel of the said Menomonie river; thence, down the centre of the main channel of the same, to the centre of the most usual ship channel of the Green bay of Lake Michigan; thence through the middle of Lake Michigan, to the northern boundary of the
State of Indiana, as that line was established by the act of Congress of the nineteenth of April, eighteen hundred and sixteen; thence, due east, with the north boundary line of the said State of Indiana, to the northeast corner thereof; and thence, south, with the east boundary line of Indiana, to the place of beginning.
SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That, as a compliance with the fundamental condition of admission contained in the last preceding section of this act, the boundaries of the said State of Michigan, as in that section described, declared, and established, shall receive the assent of a convention of delegates elected by the people of the said State, for the sole purpose of giving the assent herein required; and as soon as the assent herein required shall be given, the President of the United States
shall announce the same by proclamation; and thereupon, and without any further proceeding on the part of Congress, the admission of the said State into the Union, as one of the United States of America, on an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever, shall be considered as complete, and the Senators and Representatives who have been elected by the said State as its representative in the Congress of the United States, shall be entitled to take their seats in the Senate
and House of Representatives respectively, without further delay.
SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That nothing in this act contained, or in the admission of the said State into the Union as one of the United States of America upon an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever, shall be so construed or understood as to confer upon the people, Legislature, or other authorities of the said State of Michigan, any authority or right to interfere with the sale by the United States, and under their authority, of the vacant and unsold lands within the limits of the said State, but that the subject of the public lands, and the interests which may be given to the said State therein, shall be regulated by future action between Congress, on the part of the United States, and the said State, or the authorities thereof. And the said State of Michigan shall in no case and under no pretence whatsoever, impose any tax, assessment or imposition of any description upon any of the lands of the United States within its limits.
APPROVED, June 15, 1836.
Image above: Drawing of Detroit, Michigan, 1837, "City of Detroit, Michigan. Taken from the Canada Shore near the Ferry," after a sketch by Frederick Grain, published by Henry J. Megarey, New York, 1837. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Below: "Siege of Fort Detroit 1763," date unknown, Frederick Remington. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons. Info source: "How Michigan Became a State," Michigan.how; "The Establishment of Michigan's Legal Boundaries," Library of Michigan State University; Britannica.com; uslaw.link; Wikipedia Commons.
History Photo Bomb
President Thomas Jefferson. Courtesy Library of Congress.
Jefferson Expansion Memorial Arch along the Mississippi River
in St.
Louis, commemorating westward expansion, Lewis and
Clark, and the Louisiana Purchase. Courtesy National Park Service.