A Place in Common

Rethinking the History of Early Detroit

Karen L Marrero editor Andrew K Sturtevant editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Michigan State University Press

Published:1st Mar '25

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A Place in Common cover

At the turn of the eighteenth century, Indigenous nations designated Detroit as a “common bowl” and a crucial nexus where they shared resources, made compromises, and coexisted. As the century unfolded, Detroit continued as a polyglot community in the face of expanding Euro-American settlement. The region became a highly charged space where the rituals of political negotiation grew in importance alongside a constant threat of violence. British political and economic systems continued to operate long after the end of the American Revolution, creating a shared cultural border at the end of the eighteenth century that would endure even as the American Empire reestablished rule on the north side of the river. Both Anishinaabe and Wyandot people set aside land for future occupation of their people, re-creating another transnational space in the region. A hundred years later, issues of race, economic development, political partisanship, and overlapping national claims continued to resonate as the city commemorated and mythologized its origins. This book considers how larger watershed occasions impacted the Detroit region and how, in turn, the unique particularities of local custom impacted regional and national trade and politics and the very nature of how the city continues to view its past.

“This insightful collection of essays vividly illuminates the dilemmas and creativity of the diverse peoples who made early Detroit a pivotal nexus of Native peoples and imperial projects.” —Alan Taylor, author of American Civil Wars: A Continental History, 1850–1873


“In A Place in Common, Karen L. Marrero and Andrew K. Sturtevant have produced an edited volume that builds upon the recent flowering of scholarly histories of early Detroit, even as it encourages us to be inspired by the city’s capacity to reinvent itself as it moves forward. It is time for us to practice diversity and inclusion in our historical perspectives, and I suggest we start by situating ourselves in Detroit so we might understand the ‘borderlands legacies’ of this region and the ‘geopolitical complexity of North America.’ In short, let the study of American history start in Detroit! Read about Sally Ainse, Nain Rouge, John Askin, and Pontiac (Obwandiyag), then stay for the stories behind the histories as these brilliant scholarly writers probe the ‘politics of collective memory.’” —Jay Gitlin, Yale University, author of The Bourgeois Frontier: French Towns, French Traders, and American Expansion


“The cutting-edge research of this volume provides a necessary corrective to previous scholarship about the early history of Detroit. This volume situates Detroit as a place of long-standing economic, diplomatic, and cultural significance, and offers a new foundational history for understanding Detroit as a place of continual reinvention–thus offering hope for its future resurgence. Highly readable and insightful articles make this a must-read volume for anyone interested in new perspectives on both the history of this region and for understanding how Indigenous nations and European settler colonists shaped the future of the United States and Canada.” —Susan Sleeper-Smith, emerita professor, history department, Michigan State University, and author of Indigenous Prosperity and American Conquest: Indian Women in the Ohio River Valley, 1690–1792

ISBN: 9781611865172

Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 20mm

Weight: 454g

254 pages