1807 treaty between the US and several Native American peoples of Michigan and Ohio
Established the boundary ceding a large portion of Southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio lands from four Native American nations to the United States.
Key Facts
- Date signed
- November 17, 1807
- U.S. representative
- William Hull, Governor of Michigan Territory
- Native nations party to treaty
- Ottawa, Chippewa, Wyandot, Potawatomi
- Southern boundary start
- Mouth of Maumee River at Toledo, Ohio
- Surveying legacy
- North-south line became the Michigan Meridian
- Northern boundary point
- White Rock in Lake Huron
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following U.S. expansion into the Northwest Territory, the federal government sought to extinguish Native American land titles in the Great Lakes region. Pressure to open lands in present-day Southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio for American settlement prompted negotiations with the Ottawa, Chippewa, Wyandot, and Potawatomi nations, who held traditional claims to the territory.
On November 17, 1807, William Hull, governor of the Michigan Territory and superintendent of Indian affairs, signed the Treaty of Detroit with the Ottawa, Chippewa, Wyandot, and Potawatomi nations. The treaty defined a detailed boundary beginning at the mouth of the Maumee River, running along the Auglaize River, northward to Lake Huron, and eastward to the international boundary with Upper Canada, ceding the enclosed lands to the United States.
The treaty transferred a large tract of Southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio to the United States, opening the region to American settlement and survey. The north-south boundary line established in the treaty was later designated the Michigan Meridian, which became a foundational baseline for the systematic surveying and legal description of lands throughout Michigan.
Political Outcome
Four Native American nations ceded Southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio lands to the United States.
Ottawa, Chippewa, Wyandot, and Potawatomi nations held territorial claims to Southeast Michigan and northwest Ohio
United States held sovereignty over the ceded region, enabling settlement and survey