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The History of River RougeDr. Northrupwas the first physician to live inRii'er Rouge. lie later became thesecond village president, succeedinghenry J'isger.The seeds of River Rouge were sownin the late 1700's when French residents ofDetroit purchased land along the RougeRiver for a pittance. The Indians didn'tknow the value of the land and sold it forvery small sums of money and goods.The Visger family bought a private tracton the banks of the river for "two quarts ofwhiskey and other valuable considerations."In addition, there were several other familiesincluded in the original land purchases; someof these were the Riopelle's, Ferguson's,Labadie's, and the Godfrey's. These familiesbought strip farms along the river. Thesetracts fronted on the river and extendedsouth to what is now Southfield Road. Evenby today's standards those were huge piecesof land.Pioneering families built their homesnear the river with gardens and fruit treesbehind the houses and farm/grazing landbeyond. The farms were built this way toprotect the families that settled there. Allhomes being on the river assured every familyof water, a transportation route, as well asan escape route if Indians attacked. Homeswere only hundreds of feet apart to allowfamilies the ability to aide each other in timeof need. Early homes were built of logs;these later were rebuilt of clapboard andpainted white and were surrounded by thetraditional white picket fence.After the War of 1812, the danger of Indianattack was reduced and the settlers continuedto move inland into the woodlands.As time passed, fathers divided their landamong their sons, who redivided amongtheir sons, reducing the size of landholdings. In 1808 the census showed 30families at "River Rouge".

The first bridge spanning the Rouge River.- _•____ -.4_ -.6 IIIn 1817 a wooden toll bridge was constructed over the RougeRiver at River Road (Jefferson Avenue). The bridge had to beopened and closed by manpower: eight men on each side, who weresent out from the sawmills which occupied the area. In the spring ofthe year, the wooden bridge caused flooding because debris and icegot caught on its moorings. This bridge was replaced in 1890 by alarger swing bridge made of steel requiring only one man with a keyto operate it. In 1922 it was replaced by a draw bridge which madethe river navigable for lake freighters en route to the Ford RougePlant in Dearborn.River Rouge, before 1886, was best known as a stopping placefor farmers and travelers on their way to Detroit. As the trailsbecame more worn, horse and wagon were used for transportationas well as the Detroit River. The social life in the community wascentered around a picnic area located where the municipalbuildings now stand on the corner of Coolidge Highway (DearbornRoad) and Jefferson (River Road); where dances and other activitieswere held.

Dr. Henri Be/anger• . . a French settler whobecame an expert at treatingthe typhus epidemic thatoccurred eiery spring.On November 30, 1899, River Rouge organized and became afunctioning political unit. Their first goal was to become an independentvillage, ending a 72-year period of being considered aspart of Ecorse Township. The first president of the Village wasHenry Visger. The Village Hall was where the Burke Buildingstands today on Jefferson at Coolidge Highway. The major problemfacing the village at this time was health conditions. The inhabitantsof the village had to get water from open wells becausethe high sulphur content of drilled well water could not be used.The open wells caused serious illness every spring (typhoid fever).Dr. Belanger, one of the community's first physicians, became anexpert at detecting and treating typhus.Theophile Be/angerThe i'illages first druggist.Working isit/1 his brotherhenri helped sore the livesof moor ear/i' citizens. Hispharmaci' it-as located onJefferson.—I

--I MapOfEcorse To wnsh IPb/7610 •----- - j__— Cf.' --.14-L26. sq/ - --p - ---r apo74-". 'tf"iThis map shows the early land owners of RiverRouge as Ecorse Township. River Rouge became asovereign township on November 30, 1899,9e p rr1 irLJiL/ i'1'!•1 11, 1,11101I •i. '3'' 'IjI, 11 a 1 , , I L.II\.11 'p h • c,jI7••570 j,F1:1'I I I i i' ftp' 1 ,l , i, i,; 4,ii ft ' ' I— -- - - -- -- ,-- -- --- --.- -zidl ft' 1 1))(((----

The growth of the village increased rapidly after the turn of thecentury. The Talbot Brothers' Company established a factory tomake cedar blocks and erected a brickyard. The village began togrow industrially when the Great Lakes Engineering Works built aplant on the Detroit River.During this same period, the village fathers negotiated a landswap with the neighboring village of Ecorse. At the time it was agood deal. They traded a large section of swampland along theDetroit River for several blocks of residential area, extending theRiver Rouge border from Cora to Florence. Today, that worthlessswampland is occupied by Great Lakes Steel Corp., Nicholson Terminaland Dock Company, and the Murray Body Company. (Itshould be noted that the village fathers later redeemed themselvesby acquiring Zug Island from Ecorse; the time of this transaction isunknown. This land is now occupied by several large and diver -sified corporations, such as the Hanna Furnace Company andGreat Lakes Steel.)Other industries came to River Rouge at this time; one of thesewas Anchor Barrel Works. At one time, many citizens wanted tochange the village name to Anchorville after the company.The first electric plant was built in 1903. The first fire departmentwas an eight-man volunteer unit headed by Chief Marrowt.The first policeman was William Osborn.During the First World War, Henry Ford moved his plant tothe Rouge River banks in Dearborn causing a second populationboom in the village and leading to a vote incorporating it as a city in1921.Workers at (;rea, lakes Engineering Works.4 complete ship being launched at (;rea,Lakes Engineering Works.

H. C. BurkeFounder and 1st president of theRiver Rouge Savings Rank.From a small settlement of 30 familiesto a city of more than 20,000, RiverRouge has grown and business flourished,starting with the sawmills in the early1800's through the turbulent early 1930'swhen the State of Michigan declared abanking holiday. The first bank in theState to offer depositors 100 10 return oftheir savings was the River Rouge SavingsBank, extablished in 1906. The Bank andseveral other businesses and corporationshave made River Rouge one of thestrongest communities in southeasternMichigan. In 1972 the assessed value ofRiver Rouge, including Zug Island, was190 Million Dollars.The citizens of River Rouge should bejustly proud of their city.The original site of the RiverRo,ige Savings flank.

E. A. Cheff began photographing River Rouge at the age ofthirteen and continued throughout the First World War period. Atthat time photography was in it's pioneering stage of development,it was the "baby" of the art world.rThe technique used bears little resemblance to photography today.The equipment then used was very heavy and cumbersome andthe development processes were both painstaking and dangerous. Ihave an above average respect for Mr. E. A. Cheff and his work. Itis men of his caliber that made this community what it is today.

NGRiver Rouge Savings Bank10474 West Jefferson Ave.1789 Coolidge Hwy.River Rouge, Michigan 48218