Elisha Rumsey
Encyclopedia
Elisha Walker Rumsey was an American pioneer
and co-founder of the U.S. city of Ann Arbor
. He and John Allen
founded Ann Arbor in 1824.
, not in New York as most stories claimed. His reasons for travelling to Michigan are unclear.
in January 1824 in Detroit. Rumsey and Allen left Detroit together, reaching the site of present-day Ann Arbor in early February. By February 14, they had returned to Detroit to register their claims at the federal land office. Rumsey, the less wealthy of the two, purchased 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) of land for $200. Allen purchased 480 acres (1.9 km²) for $600. They also purchased the right to have their village designated the county seat for $1,000. On May 25, the town plot was registered in Wayne County. Initially, the name of the town was written "Annarbour", but thereafter it appeared as two words. According to Russell Bidlack's Ann Arbor's First Lady: Events in the Life of Ann I. Allen (1998), Ann Arbor was named in honor of John Allen's wife, Ann. Other writers have suggested that Ann Arbor was named for both of the wives of its founders, Ann Allen (wife of Allen) and Mary Ann Rumsey (wife of Rumsey).
Rumsey's house, completed in 1825, was the first structure to be built in the new town. Named Washtenaw Coffee House, it became the first hotel and cafe in Ann Arbor. Many new settlers stayed in Rumsey's hotel until their houses were built. Unlike Allen, who was concerned with business functions of Ann Arbor, Rumsey was more involved in the human aspect of the city, providing housing and meals to new residents.
, with a headstone bearing the inscription, "The first settler in Ann Arbor". He is the only town founder buried in Ann Arbor.
American pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...
and co-founder of the U.S. city of Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
. He and John Allen
John Allen (pioneer)
John Allen was an American pioneer and a co-founder, along with Elisha Rumsey, of the U.S. city of Ann Arbor, Michigan.-Early life:...
founded Ann Arbor in 1824.
Early life
Little is known about Rumsey's early life. He was born in Sharon, ConnecticutSharon, Connecticut
Sharon is a town located in Litchfield County, Connecticut, in the northwest corner of the state. It is bounded on the north by Salisbury, on the east by the Housatonic River, on the south by Kent, and on the west by Dutchess County, New York...
, not in New York as most stories claimed. His reasons for travelling to Michigan are unclear.
Ann Arbor
Rumsey met with John AllenJohn Allen (pioneer)
John Allen was an American pioneer and a co-founder, along with Elisha Rumsey, of the U.S. city of Ann Arbor, Michigan.-Early life:...
in January 1824 in Detroit. Rumsey and Allen left Detroit together, reaching the site of present-day Ann Arbor in early February. By February 14, they had returned to Detroit to register their claims at the federal land office. Rumsey, the less wealthy of the two, purchased 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) of land for $200. Allen purchased 480 acres (1.9 km²) for $600. They also purchased the right to have their village designated the county seat for $1,000. On May 25, the town plot was registered in Wayne County. Initially, the name of the town was written "Annarbour", but thereafter it appeared as two words. According to Russell Bidlack's Ann Arbor's First Lady: Events in the Life of Ann I. Allen (1998), Ann Arbor was named in honor of John Allen's wife, Ann. Other writers have suggested that Ann Arbor was named for both of the wives of its founders, Ann Allen (wife of Allen) and Mary Ann Rumsey (wife of Rumsey).
Rumsey's house, completed in 1825, was the first structure to be built in the new town. Named Washtenaw Coffee House, it became the first hotel and cafe in Ann Arbor. Many new settlers stayed in Rumsey's hotel until their houses were built. Unlike Allen, who was concerned with business functions of Ann Arbor, Rumsey was more involved in the human aspect of the city, providing housing and meals to new residents.
Personality of Rumsey
Little is known about Elisha Rumsey's personality. A reminiscence from a Mr. and Mrs. Anderson described him as "a commonplace man both in ability and appearance”. Another reminiscence, by a Mr. Morton, described him as "a man of more than ordinary intelligence, and . . . he knew how to keep a hotel.Death
Rumsey died in August 1827 due to a fever. He was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Ann ArborForest Hill Cemetery (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
Forest Hill Cemetery in Ann Arbor, Michigan is a cemetery founded in 1857. A civil engineer named James L. Glenn designed the cemetery in the rural or garden style popular in the second half of the 19th century. The cemetery's main gate was designed by James Morwick in the Gothic Revival style....
, with a headstone bearing the inscription, "The first settler in Ann Arbor". He is the only town founder buried in Ann Arbor.
External links
- Elisha Rumsey on Arborwiki