In 1820, the Indian land was ceded to the U.S. government and was made available to settlers at a cost of $1.25 per acre. Such a bargain was attractive to Eastern land owners who wished to expand their holdings. One such Easterner was Arthur Power of Farmington, New York.
In 1823, Power came to Michigan to survey the available land. He liked what he saw in the Farmington area; he purchased a large amount of acreage bounded by what is now Eleven Mile Road and Power to Alameda Road.
After returning to Farmington, New York to finish out the growing and harvesting season, Power, his two sons John and Jared, together with a hired hand and friends, David Smith and Daniel Rush, left for Michigan on February 1, 1824. After crossing the Niagara River, the party traveled by horse and sleigh to Windsor, where they arrived on February 15. Leaving Detroit by the Saginaw Detroit Trail (now Woodward Avenue) they passed through the towns of Hamilton's (Birmingham) Jenks, Sly, Durkee and Baker, finally reaching their destination on March 8, 1824.
The Power group set to work, first building a small log cabin and clearing the land of the many trees. Nine acres were cleared for wheat, six for corn. After three weeks, Daniel Rush, overcome by homesickness, set off on foot for Detroit and home.
Seven weeks after the Power group arrived, George Collins and his wife Cynthia, the first white woman in the area, came to Farmington. Shortly thereafter, Cynthia gave birth to the first white baby born in Farmington, son John W. The Collins located on unbroken land, built a log house and improved the land. They later moved to the village and opened a general store.
Dr. Ezekiel Webb, the first physician in what was then known as "Quakertown" was a friend of Arthur Power. He became the first Postmaster in 1825, but left the area a few years later, leaving his postmaster duties to George Collins.
In 1825, Seth Warner and his family arrived in Farmington, when son P. Dean was three years old. P. Dean left Farmington at age fourteen for nine years, to work as a clerk and study in Detroit. In 1845 he returned and went into the merchandising business. Later he was elected to the State House of Representatives where he served as Speaker of the House. Warner had married Rhoda Botsford. Because the couple could have no children of their own, they adopted a boy and a girl. This son, Fred Warner, went on to become a State Representative and later the first Michigan Governor to serve three terms. Local historian Jean M. Fox documented Governor Warner's influence on public policy in her 1988 biography, I Went to the People: Fred Warner, Progressive Governor. |
