Ypsilanti: A History in Pictures

In the latter half of the 19th century, the city of Ypsilanti went through a rapid transition from a small farming community to a center of education and business. By 1900, Ypsilanti was nationally known for three things: the Michigan Central Gardens, the mineral wells, and underwear. The gardens were designed by famed landscape gardener John Laidlaw, who studied gardening in his native Scotland before coming to the United States. Beginning in the 1880s, people came from miles away to bathe...