View source for Michigan Territory

{{Short description|Territory of the US, 1805–1837}}
{{use American English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2013}}
{{Infobox Former Subdivision
| conventional_long_name = Territory of Michigan
| common_name = Michigan Territory
| nation      = the United States
| subdivision = [[Organized incorporated territories of the United States|Organized incorporated territory]]
| event_start = Organic Act effective
| date_start  = June 30
| year_start  = 1805
| event_end   = [[Michigan|Statehood of Michigan]]
| year_end    = 1837
| date_end    = January 26
| event_pre   =
| date_pre    =
| p1          = Indiana Territory
| flag_p1     = Star-Spangled Banner flag.svg
| s1          = Michigan
| flag_s1     = Flag of Michigan.svg
| s2          = Wisconsin Territory
| flag_s2     = Star-Spangled Banner flag.svg
| image_flag  = 
| image_coat  = FARMER(1884) p140 SEAL OF TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN.jpg
| symbol      =
| symbol_type = Territorial seal
| image_map   = Michigan and Wisconsin Territories 1836.png
| image_map_caption = The combined slate and blue areas formed the Michigan Territory at its greatest extent in 1833. In 1836, the slate area (renamed, Wisconsin Territory) was separated from the Michigan Territory in preparation for Michigan statehood in 1837. Disputed territory between Michigan and Ohio in red.
| capital      = [[Detroit]]
| government_type = Organized incorporated territory
| title_leader = [[List of Governors of Michigan#Territorial governors|Governor]]
| leader1      = [[William Hull]]
| year_leader1 = 1805–13
| leader2      = [[Lewis Cass]]
| year_leader2 = 1813–31
| leader3      = [[Stevens T. Mason]] ''(acting)''
| year_leader3 = 1831–32
| leader4      = [[George B. Porter]]
| year_leader4 = 1832–34
| leader5      = [[Stevens T. Mason]] ''(acting)''
| year_leader5 = 1834–35
| leader6      = [[John S. Horner]] ''(governing from Wisconsin on land not to be included in the Michiganian state)''
| year_leader6 = 1835–37
| legislature  = Governor and judges (1805–1824)<br />[[Legislative Council of the Territory of Michigan]] (1824-1835)
}}

The '''Territory of Michigan''' was an [[organized incorporated territory of the United States]] that existed from June 30, 1805,<ref>{{USStat|2|309}}</ref> until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the [[United States|Union]] as the [[Michigan|State of Michigan]]. [[Detroit]] was the territorial capital.

==History and government==
The earliest European explorers of Michigan saw it mostly as a place to control the fur trade. Small military forces, [[Jesuit]] missions to Native American tribes, and isolated settlements of trappers and traders accounted for most of the non-native inhabitants of what would become Michigan.

===Early government in Michigan===
After the arrival of Europeans, the area that became the Michigan Territory was first under [[French colonization of the Americas|French]] and then [[British colonization of the Americas|British]] control. The first [[Jesuit]] mission, in 1668 at [[Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan|Sault Saint Marie]], led to the establishment of further outposts at [[St. Ignace, Michigan|St. Ignace]] (where a mission began work in 1671) and Detroit, first occupied in 1701 by the garrison of the former [[Fort de Buade]] under the leadership of [[Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac]]. Soon after their arrival, his troops erected [[Fort Pontchartrain du Detroit]] and a [[Ste. Anne de Detroit Catholic Church|church]] dedicated to [[Saint Anne]], the mother of the [[Virgin Mary]]. As part of [[New France]], the upper [[Great Lakes]] had first been governed from [[Michilimackinac]], then Detroit; this was essentially a military regime that reported to the governor-general at [[Quebec City|Quebec]]. Its role was to supply the needs of the fur traders and discourage any settlements not directly supportive of that effort. After the surrender of Montreal in 1760, British troops under [[Robert Rogers (soldier)|Robert Rogers]] occupied Detroit and its dependent posts. In 1763, Pontiac's Rebellion saw the fall of [[Fort Michilimackinac]] to the northern tribes, and a lengthy [[siege of Fort Detroit]]. The siege was lifted in 1764, and rule under a British lieutenant-governor at Detroit followed soon thereafter.

[[Image:Province of Quebec 1774.gif|upright=1.35|thumb|The [[Province of Quebec (1763-1791)|Province of Quebec]] in 1774]]Due to the [[Quebec Act]] of 1774, Michigan was governed during the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolution]] as part of the [[Province of Quebec (1763-1791)|Province of Quebec]]. Although the 1783 [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]] gave the fledgling United States a claim to what is now Michigan, British policy was to hold on to Detroit and its dependencies at all costs. In 1784, [[Baron von Steuben]] would be sent to Canada by the [[Congress of the Confederation]] in a diplomatic capacity to address the question of Detroit and the Great Lakes, but [[Frederick Haldimand]], the Governor of Quebec, refused to provide a passport, and negotiations collapsed before they had begun. Starting in 1784, the British administered their Michigan holdings as part of the [[Western District, Upper Canada|District of Hesse]] along with what is now [[Western Ontario]]; in 1791 the Province of Quebec was split into [[Lower Canada]] (today's [[Province of Quebec]]) and [[Upper Canada]] ([[Ontario]]), and the districts of Upper Canada were renamed the next year, with the Hesse District designated as the [[Western District, Upper Canada|Western District]].

In addition to the British remaining in the region, several states also held competing claims on the future state of Michigan. In 1779, [[Virginia]] established [[Illinois County, Virginia|Illinois County]] with boundaries that encompassed all of the land east of the [[Mississippi River]], north of the [[Ohio River]] and west of the [[Appalachian Mountains]]. For all practical purposes, however, the county government never exercised actual control beyond an area limited to a few old French settlements along the major rivers. The overwhelming majority of the northwestern lands were controlled by the native tribes. [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Connecticut]], and [[Massachusetts]] also claimed portions of what was to become Michigan, but were even less able to enforce their pretensions, given Britain's control of the Great Lakes and the hostility of the tribes.

Virginia surrendered its claim to lands north and west of the [[Ohio River]] effective March 1, 1784. Coincidentally (or not), this was the same day that the findings of a [[Congress of the Confederation|Congressional committee]] on the western lands, chaired by [[Thomas Jefferson]] since the previous October, were reported. Jefferson's recommendations became the basis for the [[Land Ordinance of 1784]], which established that new states equal in all respects to the founding thirteen would be erected in the territory, that they would forever be a part of the United States, and that their governments would be republican in form. The [[Land Ordinance of 1785]] would go further by establishing a procedure for land sales in the new territory. However, the Ohio River remained an effective boundary between the United States and the Northwest tribes for a few more years.

The other states with claims in the Northwest eventually followed Virginia's example, and in 1787, the [[Congress of the Confederation]] enacted the [[Northwest Ordinance]], which created the [[Northwest Territory]].<ref>Finkelman, Paul, Hershock, Martin J., and Taylor, Clifford W. (2006). ''The History of Michigan Law'', p. 13. Ohio University Press. {{ISBN|0-8214-1661-8}}.</ref> The first settlement under the Northwest Ordinance was at [[Marietta, Ohio|Marietta]] (Ohio) in 1788.

The region that became Michigan was initially unorganized territory and essentially remained under British control; that did not stop [[Arthur St. Clair]], the first Governor of the Northwest Territory, from establishing a structure of government for the area, if only on paper. [[Knox County, Indiana|Knox County]] was established on June 20, 1790 with boundaries that included the western half of the [[Lower Peninsula of Michigan]] and roughly the middle third of the [[Upper Peninsula of Michigan]]. In 1792, the boundaries of [[Hamilton County, Ohio|Hamilton County]] were expanded to include the eastern portions of Michigan not included in Knox County.

American claims to Michigan were frustrated by Britain's refusal to evacuate the forts at [[Fort Lernoult|Detroit]], [[Fort Mackinac|Mackinac]] and elsewhere. Britain's tacit support for the Northwest tribes during the [[Northwest Indian War]] was dependent on Detroit remaining out of American hands. But the position of the British and their allies in the Northwest deteriorated after the signing of [[Jay's Treaty]] and the [[Battle of Fallen Timbers]] in 1794, and after negotiations, the British evacuated Detroit on July 11, 1796. The United States had finally established a presence in Michigan. Fort Mackinac was turned over soon after but [[Drummond Island]] remained as part of Canada until 1828.

===Beginnings of American rule===
By proclamation of acting governor and territorial secretary [[Winthrop Sargent]], the "first" [[Wayne County, Michigan|Wayne County]] was established from Knox and Hamilton counties on August 15, 1796, and included most of the area that later became the Michigan Territory, as well as portions of what are now Ohio and Indiana.

In 1800, the western half of the Lower Peninsula and most of the Upper Peninsula were attached to the [[Indiana Territory]] when it was established as a separate government from the Northwest Territory. Wayne County was thereby reduced to the remainder of the two peninsulas, and continued under the government of the Northwest Territory. [[St. Clair County, Illinois|St. Clair County]], another Indiana Territory county, was also expanded at this time to include the western portion of the Upper Peninsula and a small sliver of the Lower Peninsula along the shore of [[Lake Michigan]].

When Ohio was admitted as a state in early 1803, the eastern half of Michigan was incorporated into the Indiana Territory. One of the first acts taken that year by the Indiana government under [[William Henry Harrison]] was to reorganize Wayne County under Indiana law, adding territory from Knox and St. Clair counties. Michigan's first county now encompassed all of the Lower Peninsula, much of the Upper Peninsula, and those portions of today's Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin that drained into Lake Michigan. In many respects, the change from the government of the Northwest Territory to that of the Indiana Territory had little effect on Wayne County's limited operations. By Governor Harrison's proclamation of January 11, 1803, the courts of Wayne County—common pleas, orphans, and quarter sessions—kept their organization under the new territorial government, with almost identical composition.

But the logistics of government went from difficult to almost impossible, with the mail between Detroit and the capital at [[Vincennes, Indiana|Vincennes]] being routed at one point through Warren<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2895.htm |title=Petition to Congress by Democratic Republicans of Wayne County |access-date=January 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141820/http://www.in.gov/history/2895.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> in northeastern Ohio. The deciding factor may have come when an election was called by Governor Harrison for September 11, 1804,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2453.htm |title=Proclamation: For an election on entering second territorial stage |access-date=January 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129142850/http://www.in.gov/history/2453.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> to decide whether Indiana Territory (which by this time was responsible for not only the settlements in Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois, but the newly acquired [[District of Louisiana]] as well) should progress to the second stage of territorial government. But word failed to reach Detroit until after the date had passed,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2482.htm |title=Proclamation: Announcing that Indiana Territory had passed to the second grade |access-date=January 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141941/http://www.in.gov/history/2482.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> and the settlers of Michigan petitioned Congress in December 1804, asking that Wayne County be set off as an independent territory.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2895.htm |title=Petition to Congress by Democratic Republicans of Wayne County |access-date=January 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129141820/http://www.in.gov/history/2895.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Organization===
[[Image:Michigan Territory 1805-1818.png|thumb|upright|From 1805 to 1818, the western border was a line through [[Lake Michigan]]. Disputed territory in red.]]

Michigan Territory was established by an act of the [[United States Congress]] on January 11, 1805, effective June 30 of that year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.in.gov/history/2454.htm |title=Act Dividing Indiana Territory, 1805 |access-date=January 28, 2018 |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129142839/http://www.in.gov/history/2454.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The act defined the territory as "all that part of the Indiana Territory, which lies North of a line drawn east from the southerly bend or extreme of lake Michigan, until it shall intersect lake Erie, and East of a line drawn from the said southerly bend through the middle of said lake to its northern extremity, and thence due north to the northern boundary of the United States." A historical marker at a roadside park, approximately three miles east of [[Naubinway, Michigan|Naubinway]] at {{Coord|46|05|50|N|85|23|51|W|}},<ref>{{Cite GNIS|2359901|Naubinway Rest Area}}</ref> commemorates the northernmost point of Lake Michigan, which is located approximately one mile west of the park.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080704221523/http://www.michmarkers.com/Pages/S0258.htm Northernmost Point of Lake Michigan]}}, Michigan Historical Markers</ref>

The first territorial governor, [[William Hull]], abolished Wayne County and established new districts of his own making, which proved to be short-lived. [[Lewis Cass]] became governor in 1813 and promptly undid Hull's work and re-established a third incarnation of Wayne County that included all lands within Michigan Territory that had been ceded by [[Native Americans of the United States|Indians]] through the 1807 [[Treaty of Detroit]].

During the [[War of 1812]], following General [[Isaac Brock]]'s capture of Detroit on August 16, 1812, the Michigan Territory was at least nominally a part of the [[Upper Canada|Province of Upper Canada]]. On August 24, Colonel [[Henry Procter (British Army officer)|Henry Proctor]] proclaimed the continuation of civil government under existing laws with Proctor acting as Governor and Chief Justice [[Augustus B. Woodward]] acting as Secretary. On February 4, 1813, Proctor suspended civil government and imposed [[martial law]].

[[Image:Michigan Territory 1818-1833.png|thumb|left|By 1818, both Illinois and Indiana had been admitted as states; the unincorporated land from their territories was made part of the Michigan Territory; and a strip of land in southern Michigan was given to Indiana. Disputed territory in red.]]

When [[Indiana]] (1816) and [[Illinois]] (1818) joined the Union, remnants of their territories were joined to Michigan Territory. An area equal to 30 [[civil township|townships]] was also transferred from Michigan Territory to Indiana to allow that state access to Lake Michigan. Soon afterward, the federal government rapidly began signing treaties with local Native American tribes and acquiring their lands.

In 1818, a [[1818 Michigan Territory general assembly referendum|general assembly referendum]] was held to determine whether a majority of the territory's [[Freehold (law)|freeholders]] favored the creation of a general legislative assembly to replace the system of governors and judges in effect at the time, as provided for by the [[Northwest Ordinance]]. The election was called by Territorial Governor [[Lewis Cass]], and results showed a majority opposed changing the system of government.<ref>{{Citation|title=The Territorial Papers of the United States|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015071178845|volume=10|pages=769–770|year=1942|editor-last=Carter|editor-first=Clarence E.|place=Washington, D.C.|publisher=Government Printing Office|access-date=2019-10-17|archive-date=December 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211225175321/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015071178845}}</ref>

In 1824, the Michigan Territory graduated to the second grade of territorial status, and the government's power was transferred from the Governor and a handful of judges to the people. The people elected 18 to the [[Michigan Territorial Council|Legislative Council]], of which nine were approved by the [[President of the United States|President]], and it first sat in council on June 7, 1824. This council was expanded from nine members to 13 in 1825, with the 13 being chosen by the President from a field of 26.

The [[Erie Canal]] opened in 1825, allowing settlers from [[New England]] and New York to reach Michigan by water through [[Albany, NY|Albany]] and [[Buffalo, NY|Buffalo]].

[[Image:Michigan Territory 1833-1836.png|thumb|Between 1833 and 1836, all the remnants of the old Northwest Territory were part of the Michigan Territory along with portions of the [[Louisiana Purchase]]. Disputed territory in red.]]

In 1834, all of the lands acquired in the [[Louisiana Purchase]] that were as yet unallocated and lay east of the [[Missouri River]] (generally, [[the Dakotas]], Iowa and the western half of [[Minnesota]]) were attached to the Michigan Territory, an area that was officially characterized as "north of [[Missouri]] and east of the [[Missouri River|Missouri]] and [[White Earth River (North Dakota)|White Earth River]]s." At this point, Michigan Territory included what is now the states of Michigan, [[Wisconsin]], [[Iowa]], [[Minnesota]] and a large portion of the [[Dakotas]].

[[File:Disputed Toledo Strip.png|left|upright|thumb|The disputed portion of Michigan Territory, referred to as the ''Toledo Strip'']]
[[Image:Michigan 1837.png|left|thumb|Michigan became a state when it agreed to the boundaries dictated by Congress, giving up its claim to the Toledo Strip, and accepted the western portion of the Upper Peninsula.]]

Meanwhile, in 1835, the [[Toledo War]] was fought with Ohio because Michigan Territory wanted to retain the [[disputed territory|disputed]] "[[Toledo Strip]]." The Toledo area of Ohio was finally surrendered in exchange for the western section of the [[Upper Peninsula of Michigan]].<ref>Faber, D. (2008). ''The Toledo War: The First Michigan-Ohio Rivalry''. (p.142-143) University of Michigan Press.</ref>

Slavery was forbidden in the territory under the [[Northwest Ordinance]], but British and French residents in [[History of slavery in Michigan|Michigan were permitted to retain possession of slaves]] already owned at the time the territory became organized. Census records show that the slave population in the territory numbered 24 in 1810<ref>Williams, George Washington (1883). ''History of the Negro Race in America from 1619 to 1880'', Vol. II, p. 9. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons.</ref> and 32 in 1830.<ref>Fess, Simeon D. (1910). ''The History of Political Theory and Party Organization in the United States'', p. 272. Boston: Ginn and Company.</ref> It is believed that those counted as slaves were, in many cases, Indians rather than blacks.

[[Image:Michigan and Wisconsin Territories 1836.png|thumb|Michigan shrank in 1836 with the creation of the Wisconsin Territory. Wisconsin Territory was established in 1836 with the present boundary in the Upper Peninsula. Disputed territory in red.]]

On July 3, 1836, in preparation for Michigan statehood, the [[Wisconsin Territory]] was organized from Michigan Territory, consisting of the present states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and the eastern portion of the Dakotas. Michigan became a state on January 26, 1837, and included the Upper Peninsula as part of the resolution to the conflict over the [[Toledo Strip]], which had blocked Michigan statehood for several years. The western border of the Upper Peninsula was marked at the [[Montreal River (Wisconsin-Michigan)|Montreal River]] on the [[Lake Superior]] shoreline and the [[Menominee River]] on the coast of [[Lake Michigan]].<ref>Temple, Robert D. (2010). How Wisconsin got its borders. http://www.wisconsintrails.com/culture/How-Wisconsin-got-its-borders-261151011.html {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160629051332/http://www.wisconsintrails.com/culture/How-Wisconsin-got-its-borders-261151011.html |date=June 29, 2016 }}</ref> Detroit remained the capital until March 17, 1847 when [[Lansing, Michigan|Lansing]] was chosen as a replacement. The population of Michigan at the time of statehood is estimated to have been about 200,000, which was well above the [[Northwest Ordinance]]'s minimum requirement of 60,000.

==Territorial acquisition==
The area that became Michigan had been British territory, and was ceded to the United States in 1783, although the native peoples of the area had not ceded control to either the British or Americans for most of the territory by 1783. The majority of it was gained by cession, coerced or otherwise. The people who resided in Michigan before American settlement were the [[Ottawa (people)|Ottawa]], the [[Potawatomi]], [[Ojibwa]] and the [[Wyandot people|Wyandot]]. Treaties ceding the land were signed between 1795 (the [[Treaty of Greenville]]) and 1842 (the [[Treaty of La Pointe]]). Other notable treaties were [[Treaty of Brownstown|Governor Hull's treaty]] of 1808, the [[Treaty of Saginaw]] in 1819, the two [[Treaty of Chicago|Treaties of Chicago]] ([[1821 Treaty of Chicago|1821]] and [[1833 Treaty of Chicago|1833]]), the [[Carey Mission]] in 1828 and the [[Treaty of Washington (1836)|Treaty of Washington]] in 1836 and a later [[Treaty of St. Peters #1837 Treaty of St. Peters|treaty of January 14, 1837]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://treaties.okstate.edu/treaties/treaty-with-the-chippewa-1837.-(0482) | title=Treaty with the Chippewa, 1837 - Tribal Treaties Database | access-date=July 7, 2022 | archive-date=July 7, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707065813/https://treaties.okstate.edu/treaties/treaty-with-the-chippewa-1837.-(0482) | url-status=live }}</ref>

==Territorial subdivisions==
[[File:Map of Michigan (1831) DH Burr.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|An 1831 map of Michigan by [[David H. Burr]], showing boundaries of early counties]]
[[Wayne County, Michigan]], originally part of the vast Northwest Territory, was eventually whittled down into its current size by the separation of several tracts: [[Monroe County, Michigan|Monroe]] in 1817, Michilimackinac County (later called [[Mackinac County, Michigan|Mackinac]]) and [[Macomb County, Michigan|Macomb]] counties in 1818, [[St. Clair County, Michigan|St. Clair]] and [[St. Joseph County, Michigan|St. Joseph]] counties in 1820 and [[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw County]] in 1822. The first township organization was Detroit, in Wayne County, in 1802.

Also organized in 1818 were two counties that survive in present-day [[Wisconsin]]. [[Crawford County, Wisconsin|Crawford]] was set up to govern the settlements on the upper [[Mississippi River]] from its seat at [[Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin]], while [[Brown County, Wisconsin|Brown]] performed a similar function for the settlements around [[Green Bay, Wisconsin|Green Bay]]. These would become part of the [[Wisconsin Territory]] in 1836.

[[Oakland County, Michigan]] was created in 1819, and over time was subdivided into all or parts of [[Genesee County, Michigan|Genesee]], [[Lapeer County, Michigan|Lapeer]], [[Sanilac County, Michigan|Sanilac]], [[Shiawassee County, Michigan|Shiawassee]] and [[Saginaw County, Michigan|Saginaw]] counties. Saginaw County would be split further into eight separate counties, three of which ([[Isabella County, Michigan|Isabella]], [[Arenac County, Michigan|Arenac]] and [[Midland County, Michigan|Midland]]) were established during the territorial period.
[[File:FARMER(1884) p164 ELECTION SCENE - FIRST STATE ELECTION.jpg|thumb|Stevens T. Mason ran for governor in the first state elections in 1835.]]
[[Lenawee County, Michigan|Lenawee County]] was created in 1822 from what had been Native American lands, and [[Hillsdale County, Michigan|Hillsdale County]] was separated from it in 1829. Other parts of Lenawee were turned into [[Cass County, Michigan|Cass]] and [[Berrien County, Michigan|Berrien]]. [[Branch County, Michigan|Branch]] also sprung fully formed from Michigan Territory in 1829.

[[Chippewa County, Michigan|Chippewa County]] was created from Michilimackinac County in 1826.

[[Kalamazoo County, Michigan|Kalamazoo County]], established 1829 from St. Joseph County, was the dominant tract in [[Western Michigan]] and was divided and subdivided into many other counties: [[Allegan County, Michigan|Allegan]], [[Barry County, Michigan|Barry]], [[Calhoun County, Michigan|Calhoun]], [[Eaton County, Michigan|Eaton]], [[Ionia County, Michigan|Ionia]], [[Montcalm County, Michigan|Montcalm]], [[Kent County, Michigan|Kent]], [[Ottawa County, Michigan|Ottawa]] and [[Clinton County, Michigan|Clinton]] (some created during the territorial period, others split off later).

[[Jackson County, Michigan|Jackson]] and [[Ingham County, Michigan|Ingham]] were created in 1829 from Washtenaw; [[Isabella County, Michigan|Isabella]] was created from parts of Saginaw and [[Midland County, Michigan|Midland]] counties in 1831. [[Gratiot County, Michigan|Gratiot County]] was also established in 1831, with land from Saginaw and Clinton counties.

Seven of the 12 counties created in 1829 were named for members of [[Andrew Jackson#Administration and cabinet|President Andrew Jackson's Cabinet]], and [[Jackson County, Michigan|one]] was named for Jackson himself.

[[Iowa County, Wisconsin|Iowa County]], with its seat at [[Mineral Point, Wisconsin|Mineral Point]], was established in 1829 and transferred to the Wisconsin Territory in 1836.

Michigan Territory briefly governed lands west of the Mississippi, after the statehood of [[Missouri]] left the area north of the new state as unorganized territory; this comprised what is now [[Iowa]] and that part of Minnesota west of the river. Such was the case until 1834, when that area was placed under the government of Michigan Territory. [[Dubuque County, Iowa|Dubuque]] and [[Des Moines County, Iowa|Des Moines]] counties were created in 1834, and transferred to the Wisconsin Territory in 1836 upon its organization.

[[Milwaukee County, Wisconsin|Milwaukee County]] was established in 1834 and was also transferred to Wisconsin Territory two years later.

==Territorial population==
{{Historical populations
|type= USA
|1810|4,762
|1820|8,896
|1830|31,639
|footnote=Source: 1810–1830 (includes only [[Michigan]] and [[Wisconsin]])<ref>{{cite report|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|title=Population of the States and Counties of the United States: 1790–1990|page=4|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|access-date=May 18, 2020|archive-date=January 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116181938/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}

These census numbers do not include most [[Native Americans of the United States|Native Americans]], defined in the [[U.S. Constitution]] as "Indians not taxed" (Article I, Sec. 2). Under the Northwest Ordinance, a territory could apply for statehood once it had surpassed 60,000 inhabitants.

The [[1830 United States census]] reported the following population counts for 13 counties in present-day [[List of counties in Michigan|Michigan]] and 3 in [[List of counties in Wisconsin|Wisconsin]]. The boundaries of counties at that time differed significantly from present-day boundaries. The [[1810 United States census]] was reported in terms of four Civil Districts of a single Wayne County: Michilimackinac, Detroit, Erie, and Huron. The 1810 population shown in the table for Mackinac County is that reported for Michilimackinac Civil District, for Macomb County that reported for Huron Civil District. for Monroe County that reported for Erie Civil District, and for Wayne County that reported for Detroit Civil District.<ref>{{cite report|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|title=Population of the States and Counties of the United States: 1790–1990|pages=71–73|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|access-date=May 18, 2020|archive-date=January 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116181938/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite report|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|title=Population of the States and Counties of the United States: 1790–1990|pages=183–185|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|access-date=May 18, 2020|archive-date=January 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116181938/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/population-of-states-and-counties-us-1790-1990/population-of-states-and-counties-of-the-united-states-1790-1990.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
{| class=wikitable
! 1830<br>Rank
! County
! 1810<br>Population
! 1830<br>Population
|-
|1
|[[Wayne County, Michigan|Wayne]]
|2,227
|6,781
|-
|2
|[[Oakland County, Michigan|Oakland]]
|–
|4,911
|-
|3
|[[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw]]
|–
|4,042
|-
|4
|[[Monroe County, Michigan|Monroe]]
|1,340
|3,187
|-
|5
|[[Macomb County, Michigan|Macomb]]
|580
|2,413
|-
|6
|[[Iowa County, Wisconsin|Iowa]]
|–
|1,587
|-
|7
|[[Lenawee County, Michigan|Lenawee]]
|–
|1,491
|-
|8
|[[Brown County, Wisconsin|Brown]]
|–
|1,356
|-
|9
|[[St. Joseph County, Michigan|St. Joseph]]
|–
|1,313
|-
|10
|[[St. Clair County, Michigan|St. Clair]]
|–
|1,114
|-
|11
|[[Cass County, Michigan|Cass]]
|–
|919
|-
|12
|[[Mackinac County, Michigan|Michilimackinac]]
|615
|877
|-
|13
|[[Crawford County, Wisconsin|Crawford]]
|–
|692
|-
|14
|[[Chippewa County, Michigan|Chippewa]]
|–
|626
|-
|15
|[[Berrien County, Michigan|Berrien]]
|–
|325
|-
|16
|[[Van Buren County, Michigan|Van Buren]]
|–
|5
|-
|
|Michigan Territory
|4,762
|31,639
|-
|}

==Territorial officers==

===Governors===
{| class="wikitable"
|- align=center
! Governor
! Dates Served
! Notes
|-
| [[William Hull]]
| March 1, 1805 to August 16, 1812
| Surrendered Detroit to British forces, August 16, 1812
|-
| [[Henry Procter (British Army officer)|Henry Proctor]]
| August 24, 1812 to September 28, 1813
| Civil governor under British rule to February 4; martial law thereafter until evacuation of Detroit in September
|-
| [[Lewis Cass]]
| October 13, 1813 to August 6, 1831
| Appointed military governor by General [[William Henry Harrison|Harrison]]; civil governor from October 29
|-
| [[George Bryan Porter]]
| August 6, 1831 to July 6, 1834
| Died in office.
|-
| [[Stevens T. Mason]]
| July 6, 1834 to September 15, 1835
| ''ex officio'', Acting Governor due to position as Secretary
|-
| [[John S. Horner]]
| September 15, 1835 to July 3, 1836
| ''ex officio'', Acting Governor due to position as Secretary
|}

===Secretaries===
{| class="wikitable"
|- align=center
! Secretary
! Dates Served
|-
| [[Stanley Griswold]]
| March 1, 1805 to March 18, 1808
|-
| [[Reuben Atwater]]
| March 18, 1808 to October 15, 1814
|-
| [[William Woodbridge]]
| October 15, 1814 to January 15, 1828
|-
| [[James Witherell]]
| January 15, 1828 to May 20, 1830
|-
| [[John Thomson Mason (1787–1850)|John T. Mason]]
| May 20, 1830 to July 12, 1831
|-
| [[Stevens T. Mason]]
| July 12, 1831 to September 15, 1835
|-
| [[John S. Horner]]
| September 15, 1835 to July 3, 1836
|}

===Supreme Court===
From 1805 through 1823, Territorial Supreme Court Justices were appointed by the U.S. president, with consent of the U.S. Senate. Their terms had no fixed limits. In 1823, the U.S. Congress passed an act reorganizing territorial government and setting a four-year term of office for justices.

{| class="wikitable"
|- align=center
! Supreme Court Justices
! Dates Served
! Notes
|-
| [[Augustus B. Woodward]]
| March 2, 1805 to February 1, 1824
| Appointed by Thomas Jefferson; resigned following reorganization of court
|-
| [[Frederick Bates (politician)|Frederick Bates]]
| March 3, 1805 to November 1808
| Appointed by Thomas Jefferson; resigned after being appointed Secretary of [[Louisiana Territory]]
|-
| [[John Griffin (Michigan jurist)|John Griffin]]
| December 23, 1805 to February 1, 1824
| Appointed by Thomas Jefferson; resigned following reorganization of court
|-
| [[James Witherell]]
| April 23, 1808 to January 15, 1828
| First appointed by Thomas Jefferson; reappointed by James Monroe; resigned after being appointed Secretary of Michigan Territory
|-
| [[Solomon Sibley]]
| February 2, 1824 to July 17, 1836
| First appointed by James Monroe, reappointed by John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson; not reappointed after Michigan statehood
|-
| [[John Hunt (Michigan jurist)|John Hunt]]
| February 20, 1824 to June 15, 1827
| Twice appointed by James Monroe; died in office
|-
| [[Henry C. Chipman]]
| July 18, 1817 to April 25, 1832
| Twice appointed by John Quincy Adams; was not reappointed by Andrew Jackson
|-
| [[William Woodbridge]]
| January 15, 1828 to April 25, 1832
| Appointed by John Quincy Adams; was not reappointed by Andrew Jackson
|-
| [[Ross Wilkins]]
| April 26, 1832 to July 17, 1836
| Appointed by Andrew Jackson; appointed U.S. District Court judge for Michigan after statehood
|-
| [[George Morell (Michigan jurist)|George Morell]]
| April 26, 1832 to July 17, 1843
| First appointed by Andrew Jackson; appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor Mason
|}

==Congressional delegates==
{{Main|Michigan Territory's at-large congressional district}}
In 1819, Michigan Territory was given the authority to elect a [[Delegate (United States Congress)|Congressional delegate]].

{| class=wikitable
! Delegate
! Years
! Party
|-
| [[William Woodbridge]]
| 1819–1820 ({{USCongressOrdinal|16}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Democratic-Republican}} | [[Democratic-Republican Party|Democratic-Republican]]
|-
| [[Solomon Sibley]]
| 1820–1823 (16th and {{USCongressOrdinal|17}} Congresses)
| {{Party shading/Federalist}} | [[Federalist Party | Federalist]]
|-
| [[Gabriel Richard]]
| 1823–1825 ({{USCongressOrdinal|18}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Independent (US)}} | [[Independent (US)|Independent]]
|-
| [[Austin Eli Wing]]
| 1825–1829 ({{USCongressOrdinal|19}} and {{USCongressOrdinal|20}} Congresses)
| {{Party shading/Anti-Jacksonian}} | [[Anti-Jacksonian]]
|-
| [[John Biddle (Michigan)|John Biddle]]
| 1829–1831 ({{USCongressOrdinal|21}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Jacksonian}} | [[Jacksonian Party (United States)|Jacksonian]]
|-
| [[Austin Eli Wing]]
| 1831–1833 ({{USCongressOrdinal|22}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Anti-Jacksonian}} | [[Anti-Jacksonian]]
|-
| [[Lucius Lyon]]
| 1833–1835 ({{USCongressOrdinal|23}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Jacksonian}} | [[Jacksonian Party (United States)|Jacksonian]]
|-
| [[George Wallace Jones]]
| 1835–1837 ({{USCongressOrdinal|24}} Congress)
| {{Party shading/Jacksonian}} | [[Jacksonian Party (United States)|Jacksonian]]
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Michigan|Iowa|United States|History}}
{{commons category|Michigan Territory}}
* [[Historic regions of the United States]]
* [[History of Michigan]]
* [[Michigan Territory Militia]]
* [[Territorial evolution of the United States]]
* [[Territorial Road (Michigan)]]
* [[Toledo War]]
* [[U.S. territories]]

{{Clear}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.in.gov/history/2454.htm Act Dividing Indiana Territory, 1805] (the law that created the Michigan Territory)
* [http://www.michigan.gov/hal/0,1607,7-160-17451_18670_18793-79532--,00.html Michigan.gov: Important Dates in Michigan's Quest for Statehood]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20030911200317/http://bay-journal.com/maps/maphistory.html Bay County Map History: Michigan Territory to Present]}}

{{Territories of the United States}}
{{MIHistory}}
{{Slavery in Michigan}}

[[Category:Michigan Territory| ]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1837]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Iowa]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Michigan]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Minnesota]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of North Dakota]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of South Dakota]]