MOUNT CLEMENS

A short history of Mount Clemens

Mount Clemens was first surveyed in 1795 after the Revolutionary War by Christian Clemens, who settled there four years later. Clemens was the son of a Pennsylvanian Mennonite farming family Clemens and his friend Oliver Wiswell purchased a distillery built in 1797 by John Brooks, which attracted workers and customers, helping to settle the area. Brooks and Clemens platted the land, and the town was named after Clemens in 1818. It received a post office in 1821, with John Stockton as the first postmaster. Christian Clemens is buried at Clemens Park, located just north of downtown.

Indian mounds were in the vicinity, more specifically just north of the Clinton River near the present location of Selfridge Air National Guard Base.

The settlement filed for incorporation as a village in 1837, but this was not acted upon by the legislature until 1851. It was incorporated as a city in 1879. It became the seat of Macomb County on March 11, 1818.

The Mount Clemens Public Library opened in 1865 by Professor Silas Wood on the third floor of the Union School (now Alexander Macomb School). The next expansion site for library space existed downtown in 1890 in the basement of the courthouse (present site of the Macomb County Building). By 1895 it yet again outgrew its location and was relocated temporarily to the Chamber of Commerce Building (current site of N. Walnut street and New Street corner). Eager use by citizens and mineral bath tourists necessitated further growth supplemented by philanthropist support. Andrew Carnegie was solicited for donations to fund a new building for the library at the (present) corner of Southbound Gratiot Avenue and Macomb Pl in 1902. From 1904 to 1968 the public library operated out of the Carnegie building until it became the Art Center in 1970 (presently the Anton Art Center). The Mount Clemens Public Library currently sits opposite from Mount Clemens High School on Cass and Mack avenues.

Historically, Mount Clemens' largest industry for more than 100 years, from 1873 to 1974, was tourism related to the mineral baths, drawn from springs that were scattered throughout the city. Such mineral baths were very popular and were tourist destinations. At the peak of the industry, the city had 11 bathhouses and several hotels related to this trade. The first bathhouse was built in 1873 and was known as "The Original"; it was located on the corner of Jones and Water streets. The bathhouse burned in 1883, but it was rebuilt even larger the following year to accommodate the crowds of customers. Over the years, noted visitors such as film actors Clark Gable and Mae West, athletes Babe Ruth and Jack Dempsey, news magnate William Randolph Hearst, and the wealthy Vanderbilt family vacationed in the city to take advantage of the mineral springs baths.

As of 1998, the only remaining bathhouse building from this era is St. Joseph's Sanitarium and Bath House. It has recently been renamed as Select Specialty Hospital and is owned by Select Medical Corporation. This last bath house is in danger of being demolished, but the Friends of Historic Preservation are working with the city to preserve it.

Throughout the late 20th century, the suburban expansion of metropolitan Detroit and its exurbs affected the city of Mt. Clemens as well as its surrounding townships.

Adapted (trimmed) from the Wikipedia article Mount Clemens, Michigan, revision 1377772799 by its contributors, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.