Royal Oak

Stories describe Michigan's first territorial governor, Lewis Cass, signing a treaty with the Chippewa in 1818 and resting nearby with companions under a swamp oak a few miles north of Detroit. Cass told the story of Prince Charles II, who took refuge in 1651 under a might oak tree after the Battle of Worcester and lived to be crowned king. Cass later designated the locality, including the southernmost townships in Oakland County, as Royal Oak. This sector became a village in 1891 and a cit...