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- Michigan Tech would have never become the prestigious university it is without element 29. So it's only right to give tribute to the man that laid the groundwork for Michigan Tech to stand today, Douglass Houghton, the father of American copper mining.
Douglass Houghton was born the son of Jacob Houghton, a lawyer, and Mary Lydia Douglass on Sept. 9th, 1809 in Troy, New York. From an early age, Houghton exhibited an interest in the natural world, which led him to entering the Rensselaer Institute in Troy where he received his Bachelor of Arts in 1829.
Following graduation, he was asked to remain as a faculty member, which he accepted and in 1830 was made the associate professor of natural history and chemistry. This position lead him to Detroit in order to present lectures on various scientific subjects. Although he was fresh from his teenage years, the charisma he delivered while giving his lectures made him one of the most popular figures in Detroit.
Following his lecture series, Houghton returned to his boyhood home in Fredonia, New York and got licensed as a physician. Shortly after he returned to Motown and was appointed to be part of a federal expedition in 1831 to find the source of the Mississippi River as a surgeon and botanist. While on the trip, Houghton learned of the copper deposits in the Keweenaw Peninsula, a nugget he would store in the back of his mind for later use.
In 1833, Houghton decided to settle down as a physician in Detroit and marry childhood friend Harriet Stevens. By 1836 the doctor life was largely set aside by Houghton though as he opted more for real estate speculation.
On Jan. 26, 1837 the territory of Michigan became the state of Michigan and by the time the sun set the governor had appointed Douglass Houghton to become the first state geologist a title he held until his death. This appointment opened many doors for the still young Houghton, as by the time he turned 30 in 1839 he was a professor at the University of Michigan- Ann Arbor in the fields of geology, mineralogy and chemistry.
In 1840, Houghton came to the Keweenaw Peninsula, after obtaining information about black peroxide of copper on the shores of Lake Superior. After landing in Copper Harbor, Houghton and his team did a survey of the peninsula, which led Houghton to come across the copper depositories that litter the area.
His discovery led to one of the first major mining booms in American history and added the title of "Father of copper mining in the United States" to his already impressive resume. The resume was not quite complete though until 1842 when Houghton was elected to the first of his two terms as mayor of Detroit.
The sky seemed to be the only limit for Houghton. That was at least until Oct. 13, 1845 when Houghton was camping at Eagle Harbor with his team while doing another geological survey of the Lake Superior region. Despite the pleas of his crew, Houghton decided to have the team canoe to Eagle River. The storm that blew that day turned Lake Superior into its normal spirited self and resulted in the boat capsizing and Houghton's untimely demise.
Thus ended the life of Douglass Houghton but he will forever be memorialized as the namesake of the small Upper Peninsula town and county where Michigan Tech resides.
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