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Native American tribes regularly travelled through Washtenaw County and the Ann Arbor area for centuries prior to the founding of the city of Ann Arbor in 1824. The land that lies just to the north of the river, where Plymouth Road is today, marks the meeting of several old Native American trails. The Huron River also served as a major canoeing route.
Native Americans called the Huron River cos-scut-e-nong sebee, meaning "Burnt District River", due to the periodic openings or clearings in the dry oak on the highland above the river (according to Charles C. Chapman's 1881 History of Washtenaw County, Michigan).
The nature of the land situated along the banks of the Huron and its tributaries was a primary reason that John Allen chose this site for the founding of his frontier town, originally called "Annarbour". In 1824, Allen had travelled from Detroit with Elisha Rumsey to found a town in the west. When they reached a beautiful wooded area with large openings of cleared land where Allen's Creek fed the greater Huron River, they deemed it the perfect location. Allen decried, "Our river is the most beautiful I have beheld." The Huron would be more than simply beautiful, providing the water the town and nearby farmers would need to become successful.
- Can you think of some reasons why settlers in the early 1800's would prefer to settle this type of open land close to the river?
- How would the character of the land be beneficial to those interested in farming it?