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Zachariah Chandler
1813–1879 · merchant, mayor of Detroit, U.S. senator
Detroit merchant and abolitionist who backed the Underground Railroad, served as mayor in 1851 and became Michigan's Radical Republican boss in the U.S. Senate.
- Born
Bedford, New Hampshire- Died
Chicago, Illinois
aged 65- Detroit years
- 1833–1879
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Zachariah Chandler came to Detroit from New Hampshire in 1833, when the town was still the capital of Michigan Territory, and opened a general store. Through trade, banking and land deals he became one of the richest men in Michigan, and he quietly financed Detroit's Underground Railroad network, which helped freedom seekers cross the river to Canada. Elected mayor in 1851 as a Whig, he served one year and ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1852. He was among the founders of the Republican Party in 1854 and in 1857 succeeded Lewis Cass in the U.S. Senate, where he became a leader of the Radical Republicans, pushing for vigorous war against the Confederacy and rights for freed people. He later served President Grant as secretary of the interior. He died in Chicago in 1879, the morning after a campaign speech, and was brought home for burial at Elmwood Cemetery.
Highlights
- Mayor of Detroit, 1851
- Financial backer of Detroit's Underground Railroad
- U.S. senator from Michigan, 1857–1875 and 1879
- U.S. secretary of the interior, 1875–1877
- A founder of the Republican Party
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Buried here · 1879
Elmwood Cemetery
His grave is in Detroit's historic Elmwood Cemetery.