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TERRITORIAL ROAD RECOLLECTIONS OF THE "OLD TERRITORIAL ROAD" AND ITS TAVERNS
The recognized villages or hamlets in 1824, were Port Lawrence, on the Maumee, Monroe, Frenchtown, Brownstown, Truax's near Detroit, Mt. Clemens, Palmer, on St. Clair, Tecumseh, Pontiac, and Saginaw. Orange Risdon, of Ypsilanti, made the first map of the surveyed part of Michigan in 1825. In addition to the old, six new counties were added on 'this map. These were Washtenaw and Lenawee, both organized in 1825; Saginaw and Lapeer, in 1835; Shiawassee, in 1837; and Sanilac in 1839. On this map the average village is indicated by four black dots. Detroit had twenty dots; Ann Arbor ten; Woodruff's Grove, eight; Ypsilanti, three; Dexter, two; while Dixbor-ough, with a name as black and much larger than any of them, had not even a speck. At the same time the possessions of Benjamin Sutton, the pioneer of 1825, covered two sections of land in Washtenaw county.
The roads at this time, 1824, were the Chicago road, starting from Detroit, with a fork at Ypsilanti, to Tecumseh, and one to Ann Arbor; and a road from Detroit to Pontiac and Saginaw. The most noted of these was the old Chicago road, which was cut through from Detroit to Ypsilanti in 1823. That old pioneer, John Bryan, was the first white emigrant that passed over this road. Soon after it was cut through, he drove an ox team before a wagon, carrying his family and household effects from Detroit to Woodruff's Grove, which place he reached on the night of October 23d, 1823.
In 1835, John Farmer mapped out Michigan with its improvements at that date. I find an old map the most valuable and interesting of histories. Just one decade had elapsed in the new pilgrim's progress, between Orange Risdon's map of 1825 and John Farmer's of 1835.
Michigan
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