"Ann Arbour" a Ann Arbor Travel Page by TRimer

The name Ann Arbor was chosen by John Allen - one of its founders. The town was named in honor of John Allen's wife, Ann. John Allen, the town's principal founder, had chosen the word 'arbour' to follow his wife's first name, it being commonly used in Virginia for a bower of trees. In Michigan Territory, arbour seemed appropriate to describe the setting of sunshine and shadow produced by the scattered oaks in the 'opening.' In so doing, he created a place name that would remain unique. Recorded officially for the first time in a plat map of the village on May 25, 1824, the name was written 'Annarbour,' but thereafter it appeared as two words.

The University of Michigan was founded in 1817 as one of the first public universities in the nation. It was first established on 1,920 acres of land ceded by the Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi people "...for a college at Detroit." The school moved from Detroit to Ann Arbor in 1837, when Ann Arbor was only 13 years old. The city had a booming population of 2,000, a courthouse and jail, a bank, four churches and two mills.