Grand Rapids Michigan History

The Hopewell Indians, known for their large burial mounds, originally occupied the Grand River Valley. About 300 years ago, the Ottawa Indians moved into the area and lived in several villages along the river. When the British and French arrived, the Ottawa traded fur pelts for European metal and textile goods.

One French trader named Louis Campau established a trading post there in 1826. Campau became perhaps the most important settler when, in 1831, he bought what is now the entire downtown business district of Grand Rapids from the federal government for $90.

By 1838 the settlement had incorporated as a village encompassing an area of approximately three-quarters of a mile. In 1881, the country's first hydro-electric plant came to life on the City's west side, and in 1945 Grand Rapids led the nation becoming the first city in the United States to add fluoride to its drinking water. During the late 1920s streetcars were the main mode of transportation in downtown Grand Rapids.