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LOCAL HISTORY
Lansing
is located in mid-Michigan along the Grand and Red Cedar Rivers.
The city was founded in 1835 by two brothers from
New York, who
named the area
Biddle
Town.
After returning to
New York, the
brothers sold plots of land to settlers ready to move west.
Shortly after
Michigan became
the 26th state in 1837, the state constitution mandated
the state capital be relocated from
Detroit. At
that time, there was a threat of invasion from British-controlled
Canada,
and
Detroit’s
proximity to
Canada
was a concern. After much debate, the legislature agreed on
the
Lansing area for
the new capital. The state renamed the township after John Lansing,
a
New York
patriot and one of the official delegates to the
Constitutional Convention.
Lansing
grew economically, thus providing many opportunities for the
expanding population. In 1855, the
Michigan
Agricultural
College,
the first land grant institution, was established. The
Agricultural
College
and the
Michigan
Female
College
eventually combined to become
Michigan
State
University.
Other Lansing-based colleges and universities include:
Cooley
Law
School,
Davenport
University,
Great Lakes
Christian
College,
and
Lansing
Community College.
Lansing-based General Motors Corporation was the largest supplier of
goods during World War II. Founded by R. E. Olds in 1897 as the
Olds Motor Vehicle Company, GM produced airplanes, tanks, marine
diesel engines, trucks, machine guns, and shells. More than $12
billion worth of goods were delivered to the Allied forces from the
Lansing plants.
(source:
GMnext wiki))
http://history.gmheritagecenter.com/wiki/index.php/1942,_Production_Goes_to_War |
