Politics / Business & brands
Henry Ledyard
1812–1880
· diplomat, businessman, mayor of Detroit
Lewis Cass's son-in-law and diplomatic aide who managed Cass's Detroit property, promoted Elmwood Cemetery and Michigan's first plank road, and was mayor in 1855.
- Born
New York City, New York- Died
London, England
aged 68- Birth name
- Henry Brockholst Ledyard
- Also known as
- Henry Brockholst Ledyard Sr.
- Detroit years
- 1844–1857
- Field
- Politics, Business & brands
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Henry Ledyard, a Columbia-educated New Yorker from a distinguished family, accompanied Lewis Cass to Paris in 1836 when Cass became minister to France, and rose to chargé d'affaires of the legation. In 1839 he married Cass's daughter Matilda. Returning in 1844, he settled in Detroit to manage his father-in-law's extensive land holdings and threw himself into city-building: he helped found the State Savings Bank, was one of the original promoters of Elmwood Cemetery, organized Michigan's first plank-road company to link Detroit with the interior, and served on the Board of Education and the first Board of Water Commissioners. After terms as alderman, he was elected mayor for 1855 and state senator in 1857, but resigned to follow Cass to Washington as assistant secretary of state. He later lived in Newport, Rhode Island, and died in London in 1880. His son Henry B. Ledyard Jr. became president of the Michigan Central Railroad.
Highlights
- Mayor of Detroit, 1855
- One of the original promoters of Elmwood Cemetery
- Organized Michigan's first plank-road company
- Assistant secretary of state under Lewis Cass (1857–1861)
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Founded · 1846
Elmwood Cemetery
He was one of the original promoters of this rural cemetery, where his father-in-law Lewis Cass is buried.