Charles Christopher Trowbridge (December 29, 1800 – April 3, 1883)James V. Cambell
"Biographical Sketch of Charles C. Trowbridge," read June 3, 1883, published in ''Pioneer Collections: Report of the Pioneer Society of the State of Michigan,'' 1907, pp. 478 - 491 was an explorer, politician, businessman, and ethnographer of Native American cultures who lived in Detroit during the 19th century.Charles Trowbridge House
from the city of Detroit He was one of the first businessmen who emigrated to what was then the

Michigan Territory The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit w ...

Early life

Charles Trowbridge was born on December 29, 1800, in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

; the youngest of six children born to Luther Trowbridge and Elizabeth Tillman Trowbridge. His father was a Revolutionary War veteran who had fought at the battles of Lexington and Saratoga, among others. Luther Trowbridge died in 1802, and Charles grew up with his mother. In 1813, Charles apprenticed to the businessman Horatio Ross of Owego, New York, who trained him as a merchant. In 1818, economic troubles bankrupted Ross, and Trowbridge, then not quite eighteen, was charged with closing up the business. Trowbridge continued independently in the merchant trade, but quickly decided to move west. In 1819, he secured a position with Major Thomas Rowland of Detroit as Deputy United States Marshal and deputy Clerk of the Court.

Early career in Detroit

Rowland encouraged Trowbridge to study law, and the young man quickly picked up a great deal of legal knowledge, and assisted in recording the

1820 census The United States census of 1820 was the fourth census conducted in the United States. It was conducted on August 7, 1820. The 1820 census included six new states: Louisiana, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama and Maine. There has been a d ...

. In 1820, Trowbridge served on the Lewis Cass expedition, led by

Lewis Cass Lewis Cass (October 9, 1782June 17, 1866) was an American military officer, politician, and statesman. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He w ...

, that officially explored the section of the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

between the

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and the headwaters of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

. Cass was impressed by Trowbridge, and made him his private secretary. In 1821, Trowbridge helped negotiate a treaty between the

US government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...

and the

Winnebago Winnebago can refer to: * The exonym of the Ho-Chunk tribe of Native North Americans with reservations in Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin ** Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, a federally recognized tribe group in the state ** The Winnebago language of the ...

and Menominee Indians. With this experience, and his knowledge of the

Cherokee language 200px, Number of speakers Cherokee or Tsalagi ( chr, ᏣᎳᎩ ᎦᏬᏂᎯᏍᏗ, ) is an endangered-to-moribund Iroquoian language and the native language of the Cherokee people. ''Ethnologue'' states that there were 1,520 Cherokee speaker ...

, Trowbridge was appointed assistant secretary in the local Indian department, and soon after was also made interpreter. Around this time, Trowbridge was made secretary of the Board of Regents of the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. In 1823, Trowbridge was tasked with determining the relationships among the languages and customs of the indigenous tribes in the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

. He worked at this, as well as his interpreter duties, through 1825, when he resigned his post in favor of becoming cashier of the newly established Bank of Michigan. In 1826, Trowbridge married Miss Catherine Whipple Sibley, oldest daughter of Solomon Sibley. That same year, he built his own home, the

Charles Trowbridge House The Charles C. Trowbridge House is located at 1380 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest documented building in the city of Detroit;

, on Jefferson Avenue on what was then farmland far from the heart of the city. At the time, it was considered to be the finest frame house in the Michigan territory. Trowbridge lived in this house for over 50 years, and it currently still stands as likely the oldest existing home in the city of Detroit. Trowbridge lived in the house until his death in 1883.

Later career

In 1831, Lewis Cass was appointed Secretary of War, and invited Trowbridge to accompany him to Washington, D.C.. After much soul-searching, Trowbridge declined, preferring to stay in the private sector. He engaged in other enterprises over the next few years, including extensive land purchases. He was one of the original platters of the village of Allegan, Michigan. In 1833, Trowbridge became an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

of the city of Detroit, and briefly served as Mayor during the

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

epidemic of 1834, resigning his position soon after. In 1837, he ran as the Whig candidate for governor of Michigan, and was defeated by

Stevens T. Mason Stevens Thomson Mason (October 27, 1811 – January 4, 1843) was an American politician who served as the first governor of Michigan from 1835 to 1840. Coming to political prominence at an early age, Mason was appointed his territory's ...

. Thereafter, he did not seek public office again. In 1844, he became president of the Michigan State Bank, leading that institution until its dissolution in 1853. He became secretary-treasurer, and later president, of the Detroit and Milwaukee Railway Company and was one of the directors of the

Detroit and St. Joseph Railway Company Detroit ( , ; , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the Canada–United States border, United States–Canada border, and the County seat, seat of gov ...

. Trowbridge also served on the boards of several charitable institutions, including as president of the Board of Public Charities, various bible and missionary societies, and the Historical and Algic Societies. He died in Detroit on April 3, 1883.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trowbridge, Charles Christopher 1800 births 1883 deaths Politicians from Albany, New York Detroit City Council members Mayors of Detroit Regents of the University of Michigan United States Marshals Michigan Whigs 19th-century American politicians History of Detroit

Early life

Early career in Detroit

Later career

See also

References