History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I, Part 71

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 71

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MICHIGANIA.

Come all ye Yankee farmers who wish to change your lot, Who 've spunk enough to travel beyond your native spot, And leave behind the village where Pa and Ma do stay, Come follow me, and settle in Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

I've hearn of your Penobscot, way down in parts of Maine, Where timber grows in plenty, but darn the bit of grain ; And I have heard of Quoddy and your Piscataqua, But they can't hold a candle to Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, to Michigania.

Then there's old Varmount, well, what d'ye think of that ? To be sure, the gals are handsome, and the cattle very fat : But who among the mountains, 'mid clouds and snow, would stay; When he can buy a prairie in Michigania ?-

Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

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THE FOUNDING AND GROWTH OF DETROIT.

Then there 's your Massachusetts, once good enough, be sure, But now she 's always laying a tax upon manure,

She costs you pecks of trouble, which the de'il a peck can pay, While all is free and easy in Michigania,-

Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

There is the land of Blue Laws, where deacons cut your hair, For fear your locks and tenets will not exactly square,

Where beer that works on Sunday a penalty must pay, While all is Scripture measure in Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

Then there 's the State of New York, where some are very rich; Themselves and a few others have dug a mighty ditch,

To render it more easy for us to find the way,

And sail upon the waters to Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, to Michigania.

Then there 's your bold Ohio, I've often heard them tell, Above the other places, she surely wears the bell ;

But when you come to view her, I will be bound you'll say She falls quite far below our Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, our Michigania.

Then there is Indiana, and Illinois too,

Besides the grand Missouri which rises to our view,

All these are fine indeed, and stand in nice array,

But they must all knock under to Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, to Michigania.

Upon the Clinton River, just through the country back, You'll find, in shire of Oakland, the town of Pontiac,

Which, springing up a sudden, scared wolves and bears away, That used to roam about there, in Michigania, Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

And if you follow downwards, why, Rochester is there, And further still, Mt. Clemens looks out upon St. Clair, Besides some other places within Macombia,

That promise population to Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, to Michigania.

If you had rather go to a place called Washtenaw,

You'll find the Huron lands the best you ever saw ;

The ships sail to Ann Arbor right through La Plaisance Bay, And touch at Ypsilanti in Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

Or if you keep a going a great deal further on,

I guess you'll reach St. Joe, where everybody's gone ;

There everything, like Jack's bean, grows monstrous fast, they say, And beats the rest all hollow in Michigania,

Yea, yea, yea, in Michigania.

Then come, ye Yankee farmers, who've mettle hearts like me, And elbow-grease in plenty, to bow the forest tree,

Come, take a quarter section, and I'll be bound you 'll say, This country takes the rag off, this Michigania,- Yea, yea, yea, this Michigania.

No considerable number of Irish were here prior to 1833, but at that time numbers of them came. The Germans began coming in the spring of 1832, and the Poles in 1870. The numbers of the various nationalities in the city, according to the census of 1870, were as follows: France, 760; Germany, 12,647 ; England, 3,282; Ireland, 6,970; Scotland, 1,637 ; Holland, 310; Hungary, 310; Norway, 523; Poland, 325. Out of a total of 79,577, 44, 196 were born in America. The census of 1880 gives the number of citizens born in various states and coun-

tries as follows : France, 721 ; Germany, 17,292 ; England, 4,200; Ireland, 6,775; Scotland, 1,783; Holland, 275; Hungary, 64; Norway, 27; Poland, 1,771 ; Africa, 2; Australia, 15; Austria, 128; Bo- hemia, 557; British America, 10,754; China, II ; Cuba, 3; Gibraltar, 2; Greece, 1; India, 9; Italy, 127; Malta, 3; Mexico, 6; Russia, 77; Sandwich Isles, 3; South America, 17; Spain, 8; Sweden, 55 ; Switzerland, 421 ; Wales, 71 ; at sea, 24.

Every State and Territory in the Union, except Montana, has contributed to our population. New York heads the list with 7,722, Ohio sent 1,965, Pennsylvania 998, Massachusetts 922, and Illinois 568. Out of a total of 116,340 there were born in America 70,695, and of these 2,300 were colored.

A curious illustration of the lack of knowledge concerning this region is afforded in the address of Mr. Lymbruner, agent of the Province of Canada, read in 1793 before the House of Commons. The address, which had been prepared in Canada, was endorsed by Chief Justice Powell, and contained this passage :

Although there is a small settlement at Detroit, which is, and must be considered of great importance as a post to trade with the Indians, yet it must appear to this Honorable House that from its situation it can never become of any great importance as a settle- ment. The falls of the Niagara are an insurmountable obstacle to the transportation of such rude materials as the produce of the land. As the farmers about Detroit, therefore, will have only their own settlement for the consumption of their produce, such a confined market must greatly impede the progress of settlement and cultivation for ages to come.

The following figures do not verify the predic- tion :

Census of Detroit.

Years.

Population.

Years.

Population. Years.

Population.

1796

500

1830

2,222

1864

53,170

1810

770 | 1834

4,968

1868

68,827

1812

800

1840

9, 192

1870

79,577

1817

900

1845

13,065

1874

101,225

1819

I, IIO

1850

21,019

1880

116,342

1820

1,442

1854

40, 127

1884

134,834

1828

1,517

I860

45,619

The census of 1884 does not do justice to the growth of the city, because many of the people doing business in Detroit, and in suburbs that are practically a part of the city, are counted in Spring- wells or Hamtramck instead of Detroit. If the census had included all who really form part of the population, the number would have reached fully I 50,000.

The per cent. of increase of population by de- cades is as follows : 1830-1840, 400 per cent ; 1840-1850, 102 per cent ; 1850-1860, 101 per cent ; 1860-1870, 74 per cent ; 1870-1880, 46 per cent. An average increase of only fifty per cent. will give the following population in the years named : 1890, 185,000 ; 1900, 275,000.

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MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.

The number of families in 1860 was 8,973; in 1870, 14,717; and in 1880, 20,493. The statistics, very carefully taken by the Water Commissioners in June, 1887, showed a total of 35,959 families. As compared with the population, the average in each decade was about five persons to a family. As compared with the school census in the same. decades, there was an average of less than two chil- dren between five and twenty years of age to each family. The percentage of children to the total population in various decades was as follows : 1840, 22 per cent ; 1850, 33 per cent; 1860, 31 per cent; 1870, 33 per cent ; 1880, 34 per cent. The number of births in Detroit in 1880 was 4,565, and in 1881, 3,611.

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.

Many of the earlier colonists mingled freely with the Indians, and adopted so many of their habits that they became more like Indians than white men, for, as Cadillac says in one of his letters, "With wolves one learns to howl." The coureurs de bois in their habits resembled the wildest and worst of the men in the lumber-camps of to-day, and the rioting and squandering of the lumbermen, on their return from the woods, is paralleled by the doings of these wild and reckless men of the olden time.

Almost every individual was designated, beside his own name, by a sobriquet indicative of some characteristic or incident in his life, and frequently these names entirely usurped the original ones.

In the list of claims for farms, and in other old records, we find that Joseph Andre was called Clark; Chesne, Sequin; La Butte, Laderoute ; Godet, Marantette; Casse, St. Aubin; Velair or Villier was called St. Louis and now Lewis; Hubert was called La Croix; Prieur, La Fleur; Trotier, Beaubien; Descompte, Labadie; Vernier, Ladou- ceur; Billou, L'Esperance; Cerait, Coquillard; Vis- sier was called La Ferté, now spelled Lafferty. In some cases the French name has been Anglicised, Charboneau becoming Cole; Laframboise, Berry ; Gobiel, Gubby; Le Blanc, White; Le Noir, Black ; La Pierre, Stone; and Meunier, Miller. Several of our most prominent families have thus entirely lost their original names.

The almost universal dress of the male population in the olden time is portrayed in one of Judge Campbell's unpublished fireside poems, as follows :

Each sported as he walked the floor, Such garments as the others wore ; Though some-a careful eye might note- Had extra cambric round the throat, Not as a sanitary stay To ease their creaking vertebræ, But as a figurative sign Of an unbending moral spine.

But wrapped to meet the wintry air.

'T would make a modish tailor stare

To see what garments, quaint and warm,

Kept off the rigors of the storm.

Upon the head,-the noblest part,- Well fashioned by the hatter's art, Clung close and warm an ample cap Of seal or otter's downy nap.

And when the wind more fiercely beat

And dimmed the air with driving sleet, Raised from the shoulders of the coat The traveler donned his huge capote, Within whose folds he could defy

The scowling of a polar sky.

That coat-no dainty cloth of France Bedizened with extravagance --

Was shaped of blanket, black or blue,

Though not unknown the scarlet hue. Bound were the cuffs and pocket flap With fur sufficient for a cap,

And on the collar too enough To make his wife a stylish muff,- While moccasins of Caribou

Covered his feet instead of shoe.

But in the shoepac's clumsy bags,

Stuffed at the toes with blanket rags,

The dweller in the rural shade

His stout extremities arrayed. Gartered about his knees were seen Leggings of baize of lively green,-

'T was only time or accident. His mighty buck or woolen mittens

Would hold at least a brace of kittens;

And when he sought to cut a dash

He girt him with a crimson sash,

And crowned his long and curly locks

With spoil of woodchuck, coon, or fox, While o'er his shoulders broad the tail Streamed like a comet on the gale. Some older and sedater folks

Were draped in flowing camlet cloaks,

With soft lined collars stiff and high, Concealing all beneath the eye, Whose bushy brows would overlap And seem to fringe the hairy cap.

After the English came, wealthier citizens and officials wore black silk breeches and hose, with shoe and knee buckles, which, with a stiff stock and beaver hat, were signs of gentility. For the women, swanskins were in great demand. They were used to trim bonnets and capes. Bright colors were much in favor; and the French damsels understood the art of tying a handkerchief or a ribbon in the most attractive manner.

Simultaneously with the coming of the English, larger and more attractive stocks of goods gave opportunity for display, and at an evening party, honored by the presence of the wives and daughters of the officers and leading families, there was no lack of silk and satin gowns, hosiery, and ribbons. Silk and "gold-spangled shoes" were worn, and Fashion had her devotees, as in our day. Colonel

His blanket wrapper 't was polite To mention by the name of white,

For though through darkening hues it went,

338

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.

De Peyster paid his respects to one of her worship- pers in the following lines

TO A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG LADY, WHO HAD ON ONE OF THOSE ABOMINABLE STRAW CAPS OR BONNETS IN THE FORM OF A BEE- HIVE.

While you persist that cap to wear, Miss, let a friend contrive So that the bees, when swarming near, Sha' n't take it for a hive.

For, lest you some precaution take, I'll be in constant dread That, through a mouth so sweet, they 'd make A lodgment in your head,

Where such loud buzzing they would keep, And so distract your brain, That you 'd not get one wink of sleep Till they buzzed out again.

Wherefore, to disappoint the bees, What I'd advise is this : Close your sweet lips, when, if you please, I'll seal them with a kiss.

Books and papers were practically unknown for very many years. News from the outside world came in the form of letters, and these were few and far between. Personal and family plans and adven- tures were the usual subjects of conversation, and these, with numerous alarms from the Indians and the changes made by succeeding commandants, filled up the measure of the passing years. The tables were well supplied. Beavers' tails, wild ducks, turkeys, partridges, quails, bear-steaks, ven- ison, whitefish, hulled corn, succotash, and baked French pears were common articles of diet ; later on, many of the best families cured their own pork and beef, and hams and shoulders were smoked at the smoke-house of some enterprising grocer. A family of bovines and eight chickens were sent from Montreal in the fall of 1701 ; they soon multiplied, and the lowing of cows and the cackling of hens helped to make the wilderness seem a home. There was never more stock raised than was needed for home consumption, and after the War of 1812, for nearly twenty years, a large share of the provisions was brought from Ohio and New York.

The Gazette for July 25, 1817, announced that "during the preceding two weeks, more than 1,700 head of cattle were brought from Ohio." Even now little livestock is raised in the vicinity, but in 1883 about 800 cattle, 1,600 sheep and calves, and 1,200 hogs were weekly slaughtered in Detroit. The consumption of flour is nearly 4,000 barrels per week ; and a single firm supplies 3,000 gallons of milk daily to customers. Prior to 1830 maple sugar was the only sugar in common use; it was not made in cakes, but was finely grained by stir- ring. The Indians cooked their fish in the boiling sap, and fish-bones and scales would sometimes stare at you from the bottom of the coffee-cup. It

was used also as sweetening for tea, and the daily drink of many of the early American settlers was " wintergreen tea sweetened with maple sugar." The mention of this delicious drink will bring up many visions of the past to some of the older inhabi- tants.

A graphic picture of olden days is given by Gov- ernor Cass in a letter dated May 31, 1816, addressed to the Secretary of War. He says :

The Indian trade originally furnished the only employment of the people of this country, and their only resource against want. As traders, engages, and voyageurs, they spent one half of the year in labor, want, and exposure, and the other in indolence and amusements.

Associated with the Indians, they contracted their manners and gained their confidence. As a necessary consequence, their farms were neglected, and the agricultural products of the coun- try formed a small portion of the subsistence of the inhabitants. When the failure of game reduced the profits of this trade, and rendered it more difficult for the persons engaged in it to procure employment, the people were driven to other pursuits, and the fatal mistake of educating a whole community for a single and temporary business is now deeply felt and acknowledged. Driven at length to seek resource in tilling the productions of the country, the state of the farms shows the extreme defect of agricultural knowledge.

The spinning-wheel and the loom are unknown in the country. Long since the Territory was ceded to the United States, and to a certain extent, to the present day, the farmers were in the prac- tice of drawing their manure upon the ice of the river during the winter, that it might be carried into the lake in the spring. The wool of the sheep was thrown away, and even now, I presume, a pound of wool is not manufactured in the Territory by any person of Canadian descent, and four fifths of its inhabitants are of this class of population. Within twelve years the making of soap for family purposes was a curiosity which attracted the attention of the people, and although the wonder has ceased with the novelty, yet few have attempted to profit by the experiment.

That there were gentlemen in 1837 cannot be doubted, for Mr. McCabe, in his directory of that year, names fourteen persons whose occupation was that of "gentlemen." Truth compels us to add, however, that according to his record there was but one "gentlewoman" in all the city, or at least only one who was so specified.

At the present time the habits and manners of the people partake largely of the characteristics of both the French and English races. The result of this commingling is manifested in the entire social and business life of the city. Detroit is certainly con- servative ; but coupled with caution there is a spirit of enterprise that, building upon sure foundations, is yearly pushing the city into the front rank of Amer- ican cities. There can be no question that it is a remarkably desirable place for those who wish, while making money, to enjoy life as well. Various European nationalities are represented in the popu- lation, but no one of them in sufficient numbers to control public sentiment ; and, as this is true also of the population of the entire State, both Detroit and Michigan stand for the New England of the West.

Our citizens will compare in personal appearance

339

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.

with the best representatives of the American peo- ple. All qualified observers agree that in no eastern or western city are fine-looking women as numerous as in Detroit; fresh and fair complexions are the rule ; and among manufacturers of ladies' shoes it is well known that more fine and small-sized shoes are sold here than in any other city of equal popu- lation.

The isolated condition of the first habitans, and their consequent dependence upon each other, natu- rally made them friendly and social ; and partly for protection, and partly for companionship, the farms of the early settlers were of narrow frontage on the river, and the houses only a quarter of a mile apart. A number of the first comers were of ancient and gentle lineage, and they brought the graces of an older civilization, "the small, sweet courtesies of life," to the settlement on the Strait. When the English came, the numerous officers of a large gar- rison, and the Scotch and English merchants that soon followed, contributed to form a society that could hardly have been more attractive. After it was surrendered to the United States, the recog- nized importance of the post caused it, for many years, to be under the command of noted officers ; several wealthy and educated eastern families also made it their home at this period ; and after the War of 1812, a number of leading families came from Marietta, Ohio, the then educational centre of the West. The society of this western city thus secured an element quite exceptional in polish and culture, that has affected its characteristics to the present time. Probably no city in the West has possessed, or maintains, more of the old-school friendliness and cordial hospitality than is here manifested. In 1831 a correspondent of an east- ern paper made this report :

The society of Detroit is kind, hospitable, and excellent. A strong sense of equality and independence prevails in it. A citi- zen whose conduct is respectable and decorous is respected by all and associates with all. Very little etiquette is practised here. Genuine friendliness and cordiality are the agreeable substitutes. Afternoon visits even to strangers are as orthodox, and even as frequent, as morning visits. Recently domiciled here, we can speak feelingly upon this subject. A frank, cordial, and general civility, at once peculiarly gratifying, and indicative of the char- acter of the Michiganians, has been extended to us. One of the most agreeable and best established traits of hospitality at Detroit is that decent strangers are always invited to the weddings which take place in the city.

The spirit indicated in this letter now as then actuates the inhabitants of Detroit, and worth is a passport to the best society.

One of the most noticeable social events that has occurred in Detroit, and in view of all the facts, perhaps one of the most notable occurring in the country, was the complimentary banquet tendered to C. C: Trowbridge by the citizens of Detroit, on

December 29, 1882, on the occasion of his eighty- third birthday. That which caused the occasion to be exceptional and unique was the fact that, living in Detroit continuously for sixty-three years, and occupying during that time various positions of trust and responsibility, he had so endeared and recom- mended himself to two distinct generations, includ- ing men of differing political creeds and religious faiths and of various nationalities, that they eagerly embraced the opportunity of doing him honor. The tribute was offered him solely on the ground of his personal worth as the first gentleman of the city, embodying a rare combination of courtesy, scholar- ship, and business ability.

At the banquet compliments were literally rained upon him, and the highest compliment of all was the universal feeling that he could not be injured by the words and tokens of appreciation so heartily bestowed. It was a remarkable fact that he had witnessed the growth of Detroit from the little French town of 1, 1 10 inhabitants to the metropolis with a population of 1 30,000.

The reception and banquet took place at the Russell House. The toasts were : "Our Guest," "The Banks and Bankers of the Northwest Terri- tory," " The French and English Rule in Michi- gan," "The Wars and Military Heroes of Michigan," "Vigorous Age the Product of Virtuous Youth," "The Highways and Byways of Michigan." Hon. G. V. N. Lothrop presided at the banquet, and responded to the first toast. In making his ac- knowledgments, Mr. Trowbridge read an interesting account of old-time citizens with various reminis- cences. The other speakers were Hon. T. P. Handy, of Cleveland, Hon. James V. Campbell, of Detroit, President James B. Angell, of the University, Rev. Dr. T. C. Pitkin, of Detroit, Colonel C. G. Ham- mond, of Chicago, Hon. R. G. Horr, and Hon. Thomas W. Palmer. Letters of regret were re- ceived from General U. S. Grant, General M. C. Meigs, Hon. Hugh McCulloch, General H. H. Sib- ley, Colonel John N. Macomb, James Watson Webb, and others.

The occasion will be long remembered by all who enjoyed it as one that awakened aspirations after all that is truest and noblest in character. No sermon or address could have been more effective. The testimonial was timely, for a few months later, on Tuesday, April 3, 1883, as the result of what seemed at first only a slight cold, Mr. Trowbridge passed away.

The custom of New Year's calls has been com- mon since the beginning of the century. In 1879 it became the practice to print in the daily papers the names and addresses of those intending to re- ceive calls.

Many persons of various nationalities have or-

340

MANNERS AND CUSTOMS .- MARRIAGE LAWS.

ganized societies for the promotion of social feeling. Among those of a purely social character is the Burns Club, organized February 26, 1867, and the New England Society, organized November 6, 1873. This last has no stated times of meeting. The Phoenix Social Club, composed principally of Jewish members, was organized September 15, 1872, and incorporated in November, 1875; it occupies the second and third stories of the block on the south- west corner of Woodward Avenue and Duffield Street. The rooms were dedicated November 24, 1875, and in their own Hall the Club have lectures and readings, dramatic and musical entertainments. A society called the Detroit Club was organized in May, 1875, and had its quarters in an elegant build- ing on West Fort Street, but its members became in- active, and its effects were sold at auction on October 8, 1878. A second club by the same name was or- ganized and incorporated October 4, 1882, and fitted up a building at 72 Lafayette Avenue, which was formally opened November 18. The Club subse- quently purchased the residence on the northwest corner of Fort and Wayne Streets. The officers of the Club have been as follows: 1882, president. Hugh McMillan ; secretary, S. T. Douglas; treas- urer, John V. Moran. In 1883, 1884 and 1885, the officers were the same, except that James V. Campbell, Jr., was treasurer. In 1886 and 1887 the officers were: President, Don M. Dickinson ; secretary, S. T. Douglas, Jr .; treasurer, E. I .. Lewis.

The Grosse Pointe Club was organized June 24, 1885, and has a beautiful location, of about seven acres, on the coast of Lake Ste. Claire, the grounds costing $16,000 and their elegant club house $35,000. This Club, when its list is full, will num- ber three hundred members. The initiation fee is one hundred and fifty dollars, with an annual assess- ment for the maintenance of the Club. The club house is 100 x 140 feet in size, with a wing on the west side. The following persons served as of- ficers: Presidents, 1885 and 1886, W.G. Thompson; 1887- , R. A. Alger; secretary, 1885- , Cam- eron Currie ; treasurers, 1885 and 1886, W. A. Butler, Jr .; 1887- , C. B. Hull.

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History of Detroit and Wayne County and early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present, Vol. I, Part 71

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