History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I, Part 15

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Detroit, Pub. by S. Farmer & co., for Munsell & co., New York
Number of Pages: 1094

USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I > Part 15

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DETROIT RIVER

MAP OF THE CITY IN 1796.

1858 J. F. Munroe, city surveyor, issued the best map made from 1835 till then. On account of the growth of the city, it was necessarily much larger than any that preceded it. A new edition was pub- lished in 1868. In 1871 Eugene Robinson, city surveyor, compiled a large map, which was published by Calvert & Company. A second edition was issued in 1879.

FORT

MAPS OF DETROIT .- CITY BOUNDARY AT DIFFERENT PERIODS.

Several small maps of the city have been pub- lished in connection with the city directories, that of James Dale Johnson being the first. Complete small street maps of the city were first published in 1863, and have been issued almost yearly since, by the firm of S. Farmer & Company. In 1875 this firm issued the first edition of a " Map of the City of Detroit and Its Environs." It was drawn by C. H.

sides of the river are shown, with the Canadian vil- lages of Walkertown, Windsor, and Sandwich.

CITY BOUNDARY AT DIFFERENT PERIODS.

In 1803 Mr. C. Jouett, the Indian agent, wrote to the War Department that "of the two hundred and twenty-five acres granted to Cadillac in 1701, only four were occupied by the town and Fort Lernoult ; the remainder, except twenty-four acres added to William McComb's farm, is a common." The boundaries of the town, 03|62| 61 60,30 by the Act of 1802,.were @ O OF ז׳ 70 73 74 75 גד Sec. 11. as follows :--- " Bounded AVENUE 30 17 in front by the river, or AVENUE Strait of Detroit; east- PLAN 40 4 wardly by the division line between John Askin, See. 9. 70/11 73 73 Esq., and Antoine Beau- AVENT C bien; westwardly by the 1'8079 division line between the M farms belonging to the . El heirs of the late William - 40 . McComb and Pierre 74 54 37 Chesne; extending back 10 Sec.13. 77 70 from said river two miles, FR 10 34 at an equal width rear as וב in front." E E .

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REDUCED FAC-SIMILE OF THE LEWIS MAP OF THE GOVERNOR AND JUDGES' PROPOSED PLAN.

Ellis, is four by five feet in size, and shows all of Detroit with a large portion of the adjoining town- ships of Hamtramck, Springwells, and Greenfield, including the Ten-Thousand-Acre Tract and the village of Norris; it takes in the new Water Works and Belle Isle, on the east, and extends far enough west to include Fort Wayne, Delray, the Grand Trunk Junction, and Woodmere Cemetery. Both

The Pierre Chesne Farm is now known as the Jones or Crane Farm. The adopted Plan of the Governor and Judges left out the Brush and L. Beaubien farms on the east, and the Cass Farm on the west, and extended only about one mile back from the river, thus re- ducing the limits of the town on three sides.

On October 24, 1815, the city limits were ex- tended so as to include the Cass Farm for a dis- tance of two miles from the river; but by Act of March 30, 1820, the Cass Farm was again thrown outside of the city.

The Witherell Farm, which became part of De- troit by the Act taking effect April 4, 1836, was left outside of the city by the Act of February 15, 1842.

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CITY BOUNDARY AT DIFFERENT PERIODS .- CASS AND BRUSH FARMS.

city, but the Supreme Court decided that the Act was illegal. By Act of June 20, 1885, the city was en- larged by taking in portions of adjoining townships.

It thus appears that the boundaries of the city have been curtailed no less than four times. Its limits have, however, been actually and permanently extended no less than seven times, as appears from the accompanying map, which, with the above ex- planations, gives a complete showing of the area of Detroit at different periods of time.

CASS AND BRUSH FARMS.

Among all the old claims embraced within the city, probably none are so frequently mentioned as the Cass and Brush farms. These farms bounded the original Governor and Judges' Plan, the Brush Farm

lying on the easterly, and the Cass Farm on the westerly side of the town.

Portions of the tract now included in the Cass Farm were granted to Robert Navarre on May 1, 1747, and other portions, in 1750, to three several persons, - Messsrs. Barrois, Godet, and St. Martin. The Pontiac Manuscript shows that the person last named was occupying a portion of the farm in 1763. On March 20, 1781, it was purchased at auction of the estate of Jacques St. Martin by W. Macomb for f,1060. About this time, twenty-four acres are said to have been added to the tract, without authority so . far as is known. The tract now known as the Cass Farm embraces Private Claim No. 55, con- firmed, by the United States Commissioners, to John, William, and David Macomb on November 16, 1807 ;

PLAT OF THE SEVERAL.ADDITIONS TO THE

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CASS AND BRUSH FARMS .- MILITARY RESERVES.

and also Private Claim No, 592, which was confirmed to the same parties on December 31, 1808.

The occasion of the transfer to Governor Cass was as follows :- The ordinance of 1787, and Acts creat- ing subsequent Territorial Governments based on that ordinance, required the governor to be a free- holder to the extent of at least one thousand acres of land. Governor Cass, in order to conform to this law, after he had brought his family from Ohio, pur- chased of the Macombs in 1816 the farm which has since borne his name, and about the same time bought a large tract near the mouth of the river.

The front of the farm was originally a very high bank, the river coming up to where stores are now located at the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Second Street. The bank was dug away and the streets graded in 1836, twenty-five thousand cords of earth being removed. In September and October of that year lots on the "Cass front," embracing that part of the farm between Larned Street and the river, were offered for sale at auction, the entire tract having previously been sold to a company of ten persons for one hundred thousand dollars.

The property was then so far away from the center of the city that the lots would not sell, and after spending a large amount of money in improve- ments, the majority of the original purchasers were very glad to have General Cass take back the prop- erty at the price they had originally agreed to pay. That part of the farm between Larned Street and Michigan Avenue, was laid out in May, 1841, the portion north of Michigan Avenue in 1851, the lots north of Grand River in 1859.

The land now known as the Brush Farm was con- ceded to Eustache Gamelin on May 1, 1747, and on March 15, 1759, by consent of Commandant Bellestre it was transferred to Jacques Pilet. On October 31, 1806, the farm, except a few lots on the western side, was conveyed by John Askin to Elijah Brush. The entire farm, as far north as High Street, was laid out into lots in 1835, and north of High Street in 1862. A large number of the lots have always been leased, the rental being determined by a valuation of the lots, new appraisals being made from time to time as agreed upon. The southern ends of both the Cass and Brush farms were built upon and im- proved many years ago, but the larger part was not sold or leased until improvements had been made on either side; consequently the owners were able, on account of the demand for central property, to affix conditions of sale that have been greatly to the advantage of themselves and purchasers. Houses of a certain value were required to be erected within a definite number of years, and thus these farms are now largely covered with elegant and comfortable residences, more being found on them than in any other part of the city.

MILITARY RESERVES.

When the English surrendered the city in 1796, the grounds occupied by the fort, the citadel, and other government buildings became the special property of the United States Government. The plan of the Governor and Judges was made to include the government property, but as they had no control over it, the plan was so far inoperative, and the Reserves remained in possession of the United States until May 26, 1824, when Congress gave to the city the Military Reserve between Larned Street and Jefferson Avenue, bounded west by the street leading to the public barn (now Wayne Street), and east by the line of the large Reserve, near the line of the present Griswold Street. On May 20, 1826, Congress granted the balance of the Military Reserves to the city, including the grounds occupied by Fort Shelby,-reserving only the arsenal and military store-keepers' lots,-the grant being conditioned upon the building, by the corporation, of a magazine outside of the city.

In accordance with the provisions of the Act, the city, on November 8, 1830, advertised for proposals for building a powder magazine for the United States, on the Gratiot Road, near what is now Russell Street, where the barracks were afterwards located. The magazine was completed in September, 1831. The city was put in formal possession of the Reserve on September 11, 1826, and on April 4, 1827, the Legislative Council gave the Common Council power to alter all that part of the Governor and Judges' Plan lying north of Larned Street, south of what is now Adams Avenue, and between Cass and Brush Streets. Individuals owning lots within the boundaries designated, whose rights were disturbed, were to have other lots assigned them, or be paid the value of their lots. Against this action many citizens protested vigorously; and on the same day that the Act was passed a memorial was sent to Congress praying that body to prevent the proposed change in the plan. The protest was of no avail, and by ordinance of April 23, 1827, the city pro- vided for obtaining the consent of lot-owners to the plan of the new sub-division as laid out by John Mullett. His plan was finally agreed to, and on May 16, 1827, a public auction of lots on the site of the old fort took place at Military Hall, one of the old buildings of the cantonment. The conditions of sale were that a stone, brick, or frame house, two stories in height, be erected on each lot before the expiration of the time for the last payment, or else all previous payments and rights to the lot were to be forfeited. Some buildings belonging to the old fort were fitted up for tenants, and for several years the city performed the part of landlord. For further particulars as to the sale of lots see chapter on Taxa- tion and Finances.

CHAPTER VII.

PUBLIC SURVEYS .- UNITED STATES LAND OFFICE.

PUBLIC SURVEYS.

IN the earliest days of the settlement, lands were surveyed under the direction of the king, by an officer appointed for the purpose, and the same method prevailed under English rule. This copy of an old document making such appointment is of interest :

In consequence of repeated complaints made by several of the inhabitants that their neighbors have encroached on their farms, and that they do not actually possess the quantity specified in the primitive grants, and for which they pay rents to His Majesty; therefore, Mr. James Sterling being an experienced and approved surveyor, I have appointed him King's Surveyor at Detroit; and for the future his surveys only shall be looked upon as valid and decisive; and all whom it may concern are hereby ordered to con- form thereto.

Given under my hand and seal at Detroit, April 21, 1774.

HENRY BASSETT, Major and Commandant.

From other old records it appears that Philip Frey was the surveyor on March 27, 1785. He appointed Thomas Smith his deputy on May 8, 1787. P. McNiff acted as surveyor in 1794 and 1799.

Under the American Government, by law of May 16, 1812, Aaron Greely was paid $5,565.92 for sur- veying private claims in Michigan. The first public surveys under a general law were commenced in 1815, and the survey of the entire State was com- pleted in 1857. In the month of May, 1845, the office of surveyor-general for the district including Michigan was removed from Cincinnati to Detroit. William Johnson was then surveyor-general. The subsequent appointees were as follows: 1845 to 1851, Lucius Lyon; 1851 to 1853, Charles Noble ; 1853 to 1857, Leander Chapman; 1857, Charles J. Emerson. The office was closed at Detroit May 11, 1857, and the Record of Surveys deposited with the Commissioner of the Land Office at Lansing. The records show that the State contains 56,451 square miles or 36, 128,640 acres.

UNITED STATES LAND OFFICE.

The first Land Office in what is now Michigan was established at Detroit under Act of Congress on March 26, 1804. On May 1, 1818, a proclamation of President Monroe authorized the first public auction sale of lands in Michigan. It took place at the Council House on July 6, 1818. The prices ranged from $2 to $40 per acre, the average price being $4. Up to 1826, United States lands were sold on credit, only a small amount being required

to be paid down. In 1826 the law requiring full payment went into effect, and sales were greatly reduced. The receipts for United States lands sold at Detroit up to 1830 were as follows : One half year of 1820, $2,860.32; 1821, $7,444.39; 1822, $17,359.38; 1823, $30,173.34 ; 1824, $61,917.15; 1825, $92,332.55; 1826, $41, 125.13; 1827, $34,805.45; 1828, $17,433.72; 1829, $23,329.48. Total, $718,548.36.

From 1825 to 1837, the immigration from the Eastern States increased so rapidly that business flourished, and by the purchase and clearing of lands large sums of money were brought into and scattered about the Territory. As early as 1833 capitalists began to come from New York to invest in wild lands. In 1836 the number of immigrants was simply amazing; the steamers and sailing ves- sels were literally loaded down with people who came to settle in Michigan and the West. From five hundred to seven hundred frequently arrived on a single boat. During the month of May public lands were entered so rapidly that on Monday, May 9, the register had to close his door and receive ap- plications through the window, and the receipts at the Land Office between the Ist and the 25th of the month were $278,000. The total amount received at the three Michigan land offices, namely, Detroit, Kalamazoo, and Monroe, was over $1,000,000. Dur- ing the year the total sales in Michigan amounted to the enormous sum of $7,000,000. Numerous asso- ciations were formed for the purchase of wild lands and embryo city sites, and at the mouth of every western river, and almost every township corner, towns were laid out. "On paper," creeks were magnified into streams, and comparatively insignifi- cant streams were transformed into large rivers floating steamboats and other water-craft, while on the land the speculator's dreams took form in imaginary hotels, churches, schools, and railroads. Absolute forests were in imagination transformed into cities, and sold at ten thousand per cent ad- vance. The laying out and making maps of these "paper cities " kept the few draughtsmen then in Detroit busy all day long and far into the night. Hundreds of dollars, in the "wildcat" currency of the times, were frequently paid for a draughtsman's services for a single day. Leading men of both parties formed pools with fifty or a hundred thousand dollars, and committed the amounts to the discre-

[37]

UNITED STATES LAND OFFICE.

tion of agents who were to be compensated by a share of the profits in the lands purchased.

The details of some of these enterprises are so ludicrous as to be hardly credible. There remain to this day survivors of the crowds which, in the height of the season, occupied the entire width of Jefferson Avenue in front of the Land Office, each individual awaiting his turn to enter and secure his prize. Some- times large sums were given to secure the services of the fortunate man at the head of the column by another who was far in the rear. Horses were merci- lessly driven and killed in the race to reach the Land Office. In one instance, at midday, two men on horseback were seen turning the corner of Wood- ward and Jefferson Avenues, hastening at full speed to the Land Office. It turned out that they were victims of a cruel joker in Genesee County. Each of them had ridden all night, breaking down two horses apiece in the seventy-mile race, in order to be the first to enter a certain tract of land. The . sequel showed that they desired to purchase entirely different parcels. Men who one day were the pos- sessors of meadow or pasture lots near some village or city found themselves, the next day, the proprie- tors of innumerable fractions into which their acres had been subdivided, and could hardly believe they were the same persons who, so short a time before, had been hewers of wood and drawers of water.

It is utterly impossible to describe, in terms which the present generation would comprehend, the actual condition of the public mind at that period. This abnormal activity began to show itself in 1834, grew rapidly in 1835, and culminated in 1836; and when the panic came, the sites of many "paper cities " could be bought for less than the price of wild land, and to this day are owned and assessed as farm lands. At the present time the Detroit District of the United States Land Office embraces parts of the counties of Huron, Sanilac, Lapeer, St. Clair, Macomb, Oakland, Livingston, Ingham, Jackson, Washtenaw, Wayne, Hillsdale, Lenawee, and Monroe. All the government lands, however, in these counties are sold. The district also em- braces the counties of Cheboygan, Presque Isle, Alpena, Montmorency, and Otsego, in parts of which government land is for sale. In 1880 about one hundred thousand acres were still subject to entry. Lands within six miles of an existing or pro- posed railroad are held at twenty shillings per acre. All other government lands are sold for ten shillings per acre. No credit is given, and payment must be made in cash, or lands may be selected, and obtained by the use of Bounty Land Warrants or United States scrip, so called. This scrip is of the nature of a due-bill, issued by the Government to holders of land claims, in some of the Southern and Western

States, at the time certain territory was ceded by foreign governments.

The Land Office contains a record of the names of the original purchasers of all government lands in the counties above named; and where parties have failed to call or send for the patent issued by the Government and have it put on record, the names of original owners can be obtained only from this office and the Land Office at Washington. When payments are made for lands, a receipt is given for the money, and a record is forwarded to Washing- ton. The government patent or deed is then issued. The receipt of the receiver for the payment of the price of a piece of land is considered good evidence of ownership, but unless the government patent or deed is placed on file the chain of title is not com- plete in the county records. That many persons neglect to obtain their patents is evident from the fact that there are between twenty and thirty thou- sand uncalled-for patents in the office at Detroit. There are two officers connected with this office, one is designated as the "register," the other as the "receiver," and each of them has a salary of five hundred dollars per year and one half of the fees. The fees consist of two per cent on the gross value of all selections for which cash or land-warrants are received, and two per cent on the cash valuation of lands taken up under the Homestead Act. There is also a government fee of ten dollars when the amount of land entered is over eighty acres, and five dollars when eighty acres or less are entered. The total receipts by the United States from sales of land in Michigan, up to June 30, 1883, amounted to $18,501,522.

The following persons have served as registers of the Land Office :

1804 and 1805, George Hoffman; 1806-1821, Peter Audrain; 1821-1823, Henry B. Brevoort; 1823-1837, John Biddle; 1837-1839, Thomas Hunt; 1839-1841, Olmstead Hough; 1841-1847, Robert A. Forsyth; 1847-1849, Elisha Taylor; 1849-1853, Lansing B. Mizner; 1853-1857, Daniel J. Campau; 1857-1861, Charles F. Heyerman; 1861-1863, J. G. Peterson; 1863-1869, Arnold Kaichen; 1869-1871, Addison Mandell; 1871-1877, Frederick Morley ; 1877-1883, Joseph B. Bloss; 1883-1886, Adam E. Bloom; 1886- , W. Foxen.

The receivers of the Land Office have been as follows :

1804-1807, Frederick Bates; 1807-1819, James Abbott; 1819-1851, Jonathan Kearsley; 1851-1853, Ezra Rood; 1853-1857, Elisha Taylor; 1857-1861, Jacob Beeson; 1861-1865, H. K. Sanger ; 1865-1869, Edward Le Favour; 1869 to October, 1881, John M. Farland ; 1881 to July, 1882, E. W. Cottrell ; 1882- 1886, Lyman G. Willcox ; 1886- , J. M. Welch.

CHAPTER VIII.

DEEDS, MORTGAGES, AND TITLES .- PAST AND PRESENT PRICES OF LANDS.

DEEDS, MORTGAGES, AND TITLES.

UNDER French and English rule, all deeds were recorded by a notary in a book kept for the purpose. By law of June 18, 1795, of the Northwest Territory, the office of register was created. The first Act concerning the registering of deeds under Michigan Territory was passed August 29, 1805; it provided that deeds might be recorded with the clerk of any court. An Act, passed on January 19, 1811, author- ized the register of probate to record deeds; and by Act of November 4, 1815, deeds were required to be recorded in his office.

On April 12, 1827, the register was directed to provide a book for the recording of mortgages. On January 29, 1835, the office of county register was created, and the register of probate ceased to have the recording of deeds or mortgages. The deeds and mortgages are recorded in separate volumes, which are numbered or lettered in the order in which they are filled. The records are open to free consultation. Under the Revised Statutes of 1846, the register is required to keep and record alphabet- ically the name of every party to each instrument, with a reference to the book and page where the name is recorded. These index volumes are so numerous and the arrangement so incomplete that in almost all transfers of real estate reference is had to abstracts furnished by private parties.

The most thorough and comprehensive abstract history of lands in Wayne County is possessed by Charles M. Burton. Many thousands of dollars and years of labor were spent by E. C. Skinner in mak- ing the compilations and collections, all of them being stored in an elegant fireproof building erected especially for their preservation.

Upon so important a question as the title to real estate there ought to be nothing vague or uncertain. A very few lots are held under deeds obtained under English rule, and for these a long chain of title can be shown. All other titles to lands in the city are derived primarily from the United States; and sec- ondarily: Ist, from persons to whom old French farms were confirmed by the United States com- missioners; 2d, from the Governor and Judges, who were authorized to convey by Congress; 3d, from the " Mayor, Recorder and Aldermen" of the city,

and later the Common Council, who were made the successors of the Governor and Judges, and who also received some of the Military Reserves as a gift from the United States; 4th, from the United States, who deeded directly some of the Govern- ment Reserves; and 5th, from the State, which issues deeds for lands on which the taxes are not paid to any one who will pay the amount due.

To constitute a perfect title there should be a chain of deeds starting from some one of these classes, and continuing, without a break, down to the latest claimant or owner; and each new deed should be signed by all the parties to whom the property had previously been deeded, or their heirs or assigns. If any of the parties have married since the deed was made to them, the deed should be signed by the new parties, and the man and wife should in all cases unite in the signing of deeds.

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History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I, Part 15

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902 Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Detroit, Pub. by S. Farmer & co., for Munsell & co., New York Number of Pages: 1094

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Detroit, Pub. by S. Farmer & co., for Munsell & co., New York
Number of Pages: 1094