Lucius Lyon

"Senator Lyon" redirects here. For other uses, seeSenator Lyon (disambiguation).

Lucius Lyon
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMichigan's2nddistrict
In office March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1845
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	John S. Chipman
United States Senator fromMichigan
In office January 26, 1837 – March 3, 1839
Preceded by	Himself (Shadow Senator)
Succeeded by	Augustus S. Porter
United States Shadow Senator from theMichigan Territory
In office November 10, 1835 – January 26, 1837
Preceded by	Seat established
Succeeded by	Himself (U.S. Senator)
Delegate to theU.S. House of Representatives fromMichigan Territory'sat-largedistrict
In office March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1835
Preceded by	Austin Eli Wing
Succeeded by	George Jones
Personal details
Born	(1800-02-26)February 26, 1800 Shelburne, Vermont,U.S.
Died	September 24, 1851(1851-09-24)(aged 51) Detroit,Michigan,U.S.
Political party	Democratic

Lucius Lyon(February 26, 1800 – September 24, 1851) was a U.S.statesmanfrom the state ofMichigan.Along withLouis Campau,Lucius Lyon is remembered as one of the founding fathers ofGrand Rapids, Michigan,the state's second-largest city. ADemocrat,he served as a Delegate to the U.S. House from Michigan Territory (1833–1835), a U.S. Senator from Michigan (1837–1839), and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's second congressional district (1843–1845).

Early life

Lyon was born inShelburne, Vermont,on February 26, 1800, a son of Asa Lyon and Sarah (Atwater) Lyon.He received a common school education in Shelburne and then worked with his father on the family farm.At age 18, Lyon began attendance at academies in Shelburne andBurlington,and he taught school in between academy terms.He studied engineering and surveying with John Johnson of Burlington, and moved toDetroit,Michigan Territory, in 1821.Lyon initially worked in Michigan as a teacher, then took upsurveying,and was eventually appointed Deputy Surveyor General ofMichigan Territory.

Early career

During the summers of the mid-1820s, Lyon surveyed areas that are now parts of Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa. In the winters, he often visited family in Vermont and studied scientific subjects including geology atMiddlebury College.These studies enabled him to develop superior knowledge of Michigan Territory, including land and lakes, flora and fauna, and natural resources.In 1829, he was commissioned to rebuild theFort Gratiot Lighthouseat the entrance to theSt. Clair RiverfromLake Huron.In the 1830s, he surveyed a portion of what would become the boundary betweenIllinoisandWisconsin.Lyon placed the initial point of theFourth Principal Meridianon December 10, 1831. He also participated in the survey parties which established thebaselineandmeridianused to definetownshipsin Wisconsin. His field notebooks recorded considerable detail about the land he surveyed, providing a rich source of information for later researchers.

When Michigan applied for statehood in the 1830s, action was delayed in Congress because Ohio objected to surrendering theToledo Strip,which resulted in a conflict known as theToledo War.Lyon's detailed knowledge of Michigan's geography enabled him to make a persuasive argument to residents of Michigan that accepting theUpper Peninsulain lieu of the Toledo Strip was an equitable solution.The compromise caused Ohio to withdraw its objections to Michigan statehood, and Michigan joined the Union in 1837.

Continued career

Lyon was elected as a non-voting Delegate to theU.S. Congressfor theMichigan Territory,serving from 1833 to 1835. On December 11, 1833, he presented a formal petition to Congress requesting Michigan's admission into the Union. Congress delayed consideration of statehood, in part due to a dispute withOhioover theToledo Stripand also in part due to opposition from southern states to admit anotherfree state.

From May 11 to June 24, 1835, he was a member of the convention that drafted the firstMichigan Constitution,which voters adopted in October, 1835. In November 1835, Lyon was elected asU.S. Senator.However Michigan's delegation to Congress was seated as "spectators", pending Michigan's admission as a state. Upon Michigan's admission as a state on January 26, 1837, Lyon served as a full U.S. Senator until 1839.

On March 28, 1836, Lyon was a witness to theTreaty of Washington of 1836,in which theOttawaandChippewanations of Indians ceded much of the land in the northern portion of theLower Peninsula of Michigan.He was also witness to a separate treaty on May 9, 1836, with the Chippewa in which additional land was ceded.

He did not run for reelection in 1839 and moved toGrand Rapids, Michigan.He was a member of theBoard of Regentsof theUniversity of Michiganfrom 1837 to 1839, and was appointed Indian commissioner atLa Pointe, Wisconsin,in 1839. He was elected as aDemocratfrom the newly formed2nd districtin Michigan to the28th Congress,serving one term from March 4, 1843, to March 3, 1845. He was the first person to represent Michigan in both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House. In both houses of Congress he served on theCommittee on Public Lands.He did not run for reelection to the U.S. House in 1844.

Later career

After leaving Congress, Lyon was appointed by PresidentJames K. Polkas U.S. Surveyor General forOhio,Indiana,andMichigan.He moved the office for this post fromCincinnati, Ohio,toDetroit, Michigan,and served from 1845 to 1850.

Lyon was also a major financial backer of Hiram Moore, an inventor and a founder of the village ofClimax, Michigan.Moore reportedly invented a working farm machine in the 1830s and 1840s that "combined" the functions of athreshing machineand areaper,decades beforecombineswere commonly available.Moore's designs were allegedly copied byCyrus McCormickand despite many years of legal wrangling, Moore was unsuccessful in pursuing hispatentclaims.

He also owned a large tract of land inGrand Rapids, Michigan,and engaged in a feud over platting the area with the other major land owner,Louis Campau.Lyon wanted to call it the village of Kent rather than Grand Rapids. Lyon is also remembered in Grand Rapids for attempting to commercialize salt deposits in the city by boring a hole and extracting salt from the brine water below.

Lyon professed theSwedenborgianreligious faithand was an active advocate fortemperanceuntil he later became affiliated with theWashingtonian movement,which advocated the total abstinence from consuming alcohol.

Death and burial

Lyon never married, and had no children.He died at the Detroit home of his nephew George W. Thayer on September 24, 1851.Lyon was buried atElmwood Cemeteryin Detroit.

Legacy

The Michigan localesSouth Lyon;Lyon Township, Oakland County;Lyon Township, Roscommon County;Lyon Lake;andLyons Townshipare all named after Lyon. Notably, in 1836, Lucius Lyon purchased much of the property in a small village inIonia County, Michigan,and renamed itLyons.He platted the village, established the first post office and installed his brother, Truman, as the first postmaster, although he never lived in the village.

Lyon Street and Lyon Square, both located in downtownGrand Rapids, Michigan,are named after him. In 2008, city leaders erected a bronze statue of Lyon's likeness downtown, as part of a "Community Legends" initiative intended to pay tribute to pivotal figures in Grand Rapids history.

External links

• United States Congress."Lucius Lyon (id: L000544)".Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• The Political Graveyard
• U.S. General Land Office Surveyors' Field NotesArchived2004-01-22 at theWayback Machinefrom Wisconsin Historical Society
• Important Dates in Michigan's Quest for Statehood
• The Grain Harvester and the Kalamazoo Connection
• Grand Rapids or Kent?
• David Rumsey Map Collection: Lyon Field Notes

Further reading

• Lucius Lyon: An Eminently Useful Citizenby Kit Lane; Publisher: Pavilion; Published Date: 1991;ISBN1-877703-21-4
• Works by or about Lucius LyonatInternet Archive
• Lucius Lyon papersWilliam L. Clements Library
• Lucius LyonatFind a Grave