139:
20:
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178:, a Detroit priest. She lived a single, chaste lifestyle, like a nun. In 1809, Catherine married Jean Baptiste Peltier with whom she had two children. John R. was the first mayor of Detroit, and served several of times more. He married his cousin, Mary Mott Williams, in 1804. They had ten children. Since Cecile was French Canadian, John R. spoke and wrote fluently in both
54:, in 1765. He married Cecile Campeau from a prominent French-Canadian family that had settled in Michigan in 1710. Williams was a merchant, landowner, and was active in civic and political affairs. Goods were transported to Detroit from Albany via canoe, which could take a number of months for a round-trip. He petitioned for equitable opportunities to engage in trade at
122:. Williams signed a number of petitions against the regulations in 1766 and 1767. In 1766, he was one of the merchants allowed to trade at Fort Niagara. In 1768, he made the round-trip with George Meldrum from Schenectady. His partners included John Casety and, at least until 1776, William Edgar. Indians, on their way to Fort Niagara, were often met by people on the
84:
163:, commandant of Fort Detroit on May 7, 1781. It was one of Detroit's early Protestant marriages. Cecile was born September 12, 1764. They were married by the commandant because they did not wish to be married by a Catholic priest. Their marriage certificate stated that the couple's relationship would be "conformable by the rule of the
131:
local statutes and ordinances, issue warrants, punish and/or imprison those who break the statutes and ordinance, and ensure the quiet rule of
Detroit. He was to execute legal documents in his role as notary. Williams voted in the Detroit's first election that was held in 1768 to elect a judge and justice. He was one of Detroit's
130:
He was also active in civic and political affairs. Captn. Richard B. Lernhout, the military commandant, appointed Thomas justice of the peace and notary and/or judge in
Detroit under British rule. He served as justice of the peace from 1778 to 1784. As justice of the peace, his duties were to upload
113:
Williams signed a number of petitions against
British regulation to sell goods at posts. The political climate was difficult between the British, who had taken rule of Detroit in 1760 and the French, with whom they were still at war in 1762. The French and the Indians attacked the British in May 1763
58:
and
Detroit. In his role as justice of the peace, he was charged to uphold the law and punish those who were deemed to have broken the law. As notary, he executed legal documents for the settlement. He was also town crier and took the 1782 census. He married Cecile Campeau from a prominent family of
193:
on
November 30, 1785. On December 12 of the same year, Cecile leased a house from Joseph Campeau that was north of the Detroit River and adjacent to Joseph Campeau's property. At the time of his death, much of his property was lost; there was just some property in Albany and a 600-acre farm on the
126:
who sold them their wares, which drove down business at the fort. The
British rules also favored the French who were given the fur trade, allowed to winter with the Indians and trade in the process, and got around rules for trading rum by selling on credit. Many of the traders in the region that
167:." Cecile was from a prominent family. Her father was Jacques Chapeau and her brothers were Barnabas, Denis, Joseph, Louis, Nicolas and Toussaint Chapeau. Joseph was the state's first millionaire. His mother's family had a French heritage and had been in Michigan since 1710.
198:. Although these were significant holdings for the time, there was a large loss of his property, perhaps due to his wife's lavish lifestyle or the carelessness of Casety, his partner. Cecile and her children lived on the St. Clair property after Williams' death.
150:
attributes the growth to people moving to the area to avoid the war. With the number of people in the garrison and those detained as prisoners of war and refugees, Burton estimates that there likely more than 3,000 people in
Detroit in 1782.
185:
Williams lived on
Woodbridge Street in the 9th Ward in Detroit and owned a lot of land in the area. During the Revolutionary War, William's property in Albany was confiscated. He or his family later had the property returned to them.
118:. Traders coming to Fort Detroit were killed or captured. Civil unrest continued, particularly regarding the restriction of trading to the posts by the British and a monopoly that William Rutherford held at
628:
History of St. Clair County, Michigan: Containing an
Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources, Its War Record, Biographical Sketches, the Whole Preceded by a History of Michigan
714:
244:
Burton states that
Elizabeth was born August 2, 1786 and was the daughter of Thomas and Cecile. Thomas died before December 12, 1785 when Cecile was named as his widow on a lease.
138:
146:
Williams performed the census for Detroit in 1782 and calculated that there were 2,191 people compared to 1,367 in 1773. The totals do not include Indians or the garrison.
826:
75:
Williams was born in Albany, New York, where his ancestors settled in 1690. He served in the New York militia as an officer. Williams settled in Detroit in 1765.
135:
who passed on the news of the day by speaking to a crowd of people or by ringing a bell while walking through the streets and calling out the news.
797:
776:
673:
206:
721:
142:
View of Detroit in 1796. Landmarks from left to right: Citadel, Wayne Street, St. Anne's Church, Brig. Gen. Gage, and Griswold Street
110:
Williams was a trader and licensed merchant, who brought goods to Detroit from Albany via canoe. The round-trip could many months.
460:
31:(center, above Detroit River) and across the river at what is now Windsor, Canada. The ribbon farm concept originated with
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32:
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232:
202:
19:
578:
History of Detroit and Wayne County and Early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present
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Elizabeth taught in a Catholic school that co-founded with three other young women under the auspices of
201:
In July 1790, Cecile married Jaques Leson (also spelled Loson and Lauson) and they lived in what is now
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692:
Historical collections. Collections and researches made by the Michigan pioneer and historical society
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35:'s founding of the fort, first called Fort Pontchartrain du DĂ©troit, in July 1701. (See also the
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Journal of the Common Council of the City of Detroit: From the Time of Its First Organization
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Williams was married to Marie Cecile (commonly called Cecile or Cecelia) Chapeau by
123:
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768:
The New Imperial Economy: The British Army and the American Frontier, 1764-1768
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292:, Volume 2, page 1031; and deeds on fine in the Register’s Office in Detroit.
235:(1775-1783), but he was involved in trade and had signed petitions by 1766.
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556:
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720:. Michigan’s Habitant Heritage. October 2011. p. 11. Archived from
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French heritage who had come to Michigan about 1710. Cecile's brother,
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People of the American Frontier: The Coming of the American Revolution
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Frontier Seaport: Detroit's Transformation into an Atlantic EntrepĂ´t
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Clarence Monroe Burton; William Stocking; Gordon K. Miller (1922).
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18:
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signed the petitions were from Albany, many of the Albany Dutch.
527:"Detroit in the Revolution: Proclamations of Sir Henry Hamilton"
37:
original map that covers a wider area, including Belle Isle Park
715:"People Buried from Ste. Anne de Detroit (1800-1805): Part VII"
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Burton states that Williams settled in Detroit during the
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695:. Vol. 8. Library of Congress. pp. 645, 1174
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282:. Collected and published by C.M. Burton. p. 337.
205:. Cecile died on June 24, 1805, and was buried in the
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Memorial Record of the Northern Peninsula of Michigan
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533:. Vol. 3. Detroit Public Library. pp. 2–3.
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170:They had three children: Catherine, Elizabeth, and
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279:Manuscripts from the Burton Historical Collection
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63:, was the state's first millionaire. Their son,
463:. History of Detroit. com. 2008. Archived from
419:. Vol. 31. The Society. 1902. p. 315.
499:
497:
8:
631:. A.T. Andreas & Company. 1883. p.
756:. S. J. Clarke publishing Company. p.
668:. University of Chicago Press. p. 46.
510:. Lewis Publishing Company. 1895. p.
46:(died November 30, 1785), originally from
827:Military personnel from Albany, New York
753:The City of Detroit, Michigan, 1701-1922
581:. S. Farmer & Company. p. 1021.
525:Detroit Public Library (June 15, 1920).
290:Farmer’s History of Detroit and Michigan
284:The sources of the information were the
312:. Churchman Company. 1895. p. 709.
257:
224:
455:
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689:"Lease of House and Lot in Detroit".
7:
444:
432:
392:
365:
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662:Catherine Cangany (March 4, 2014).
609:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
597:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
563:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
544:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
489:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
381:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
351:Burton, Stocking & Miller 1922
67:, was the first mayor of Detroit.
14:
306:"The Rev. G. Mott Williams, M.A."
96:The Siege of the Fort at Detroit,
276:Clarence Monroe Burton (1916).
98:depiction of the 1763 Siege of
792:. Greenwood Publishing Group.
771:. Greenwood Publishing Group.
1:
286:Michigan Pioneer Collections
33:Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac
16:Settler in Detroit, Michigan
853:
786:Walter Scott Dunn (2005).
765:Walter Scott Dunn (2001).
211:
203:St. Clair County, Michigan
504:"Rev. G. Mott Williams".
368:, pp. 102, 104, 107.
23:The 1796 map illustrates
114:in what was called the
416:Historical Collections
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107:
88:
40:
611:, pp. 197, 1402.
575:Silas Farmer (1890).
141:
116:Siege of Fort Detroit
94:
86:
22:
651:. 1876. p. 217.
87:Fort Detroit in 1763
832:People from Detroit
565:, pp. 201–202.
332:, pp. 107–108.
822:History of Detroit
461:"John R. Williams"
148:Clarence M. Burton
144:
108:
104:Frederic Remington
89:
41:
837:American pioneers
799:978-0-275-98181-5
778:978-0-275-97180-9
675:978-0-226-09684-1
395:, pp. 51–52.
233:Revolutionary War
207:St. Anne's church
165:Church of England
52:Detroit, Michigan
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48:Albany, New York
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161:A.S. DePeyster
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155:Personal life
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729:. Retrieved
722:the original
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471:September 8,
469:. Retrieved
465:the original
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288:, Volume 8;
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120:Fort Niagara
112:
109:
100:Fort Detroit
95:
74:
56:Fort Niagara
43:
42:
29:Fort Detroit
25:ribbon farms
817:1785 deaths
133:town criers
811:Categories
731:October 8,
699:October 6,
252:References
212:See also:
209:cemetery.
71:Early life
445:Dunn 2001
433:Dunn 2001
393:Dunn 2005
366:Dunn 2005
330:Dunn 2005
27:flanking
191:measles
172:John R.
796:
775:
672:
180:French
79:Career
61:Joseph
725:(PDF)
718:(PDF)
219:Notes
794:ISBN
773:ISBN
733:2016
701:2016
670:ISBN
473:2010
124:lake
758:170
633:231
512:370
102:by
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