Editing Detroit (section)

===Post-revolutionary period and 19th century===
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| image1            = Woodward av Detroit MI Barber 1865p361.jpg
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| image2            = The City of Detroit (from Canada Shore).jpg
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| image3            = The street railway review (1891) (14572207538).jpg
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| footer            = From top: [[Lower Woodward Avenue Historic District|Woodward Avenue shopping district]] in 1865; ''The City of Detroit (from Canada Shore)'', 1872, by A. C. Warren; the [[Belle Isle Park]] in 1891
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The [[Great Fire of 1805|Great Detroit Fire of 1805]] destroyed most of the city's wooden buildings, leaving only a stone fort, a river warehouse, and brick chimneys from former homes.<ref>[http://www.ste-anne.org/dempsey.html "Ste. Anne of Detroit"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927095234/http://www.ste-anne.org/dempsey.html |date=September 27, 2011 }}, St. Anne Church. Retrieved on April 29, 2006.</ref> Despite the extensive damage, none of Detroit's 600 residents perished.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/great-fire-1805|title=Great Fire of 1805 &#124; Detroit Historical Society|website=detroithistorical.org}}</ref> The aftermath of the fire left a lasting legacy on the city's heritage. Father [[Gabriel Richard]] coined the city motto, "Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus," as he surveyed the ruins.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RICHARD, FATHER GABRIEL |url=https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/richard-father-gabriel |access-date=June 16, 2024 |website=Detroit Historical Society}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=FLAG OF DETROIT |url=https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/flag-detroit#:~:text=Two%20Latin%20mottos%20read%20"Speramus,penned%20by%20Father%20Gabriel%20Richard. |access-date=June 16, 2024 |website=Detroit Historical Society}}</ref> The city seal, designed in 1827, directly depicted the fire by showing two women, one grieving the destruction while the other gestures toward a new city rising from the ashes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Flag of Detroit {{!}} Detroit Historical Society |url=https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/flag-detroit#:~:text=Two%20Latin%20mottos%20read%20%E2%80%9CSperamus,penned%20by%20Father%20Gabriel%20Richard. |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=detroithistorical.org}}</ref> The seal forms the center of Detroit's flag.

From 1805 to 1847, Detroit served as the capital city of the [[Michigan Territory]] and later became its first state capital in January 1837 after Michigan's admission to the Union. During the [[War of 1812]], Detroit became a focal point of conflict. U.S. Army commander [[William Hull]] surrendered [[Fort Detroit]] without a fight, underestimating the number of British forces. Later, the U.S. attempted to retake the fort and town during the [[Battle of Frenchtown]] in January 1813, a significant victory for the British. The battle is commemorated at the [[River Raisin National Battlefield Park]] near [[Monroe, Michigan]]. Detroit was eventually recaptured later that year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/rira/learn/historyculture/index.htm|title=River Raisin National Battlefield Park|website=Nps.gov}}</ref>

Detroit was officially incorporated as a city in 1815, and its urban design was influenced by the grand boulevards of Washington, D.C.<ref name=Woodford/> Michigan Territorial Chief Justice [[Augustus B. Woodward]], who played a key role in the city's development, designed a geometric street plan that included wide avenues and plazas.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metrotimes.com/the-scene/archives/2018/06/01/how-the-woodward-plan-for-greater-detroit-died-200-years-ago-today|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112015104/https://www.metrotimes.com/the-scene/archives/2018/06/01/how-the-woodward-plan-for-greater-detroit-died-200-years-ago-today|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 12, 2020|title=How the Woodward Plan for greater Detroit died 200 years ago today|first=Michael|last=Jackman|date=June 1, 2018|website=Detroit Metro Times}}</ref> In 1817, he founded the [[Catholepistemiad]], later evolving into the [[University of Michigan]] in [[Ann Arbor, Michigan]]. Detroit's growth continued as a center of education and culture for the Michigan Territory.

Before the [[American Civil War]], Detroit's position along the Canada-U.S. border made it a vital stop on the [[Underground Railroad]]. Thousands of enslaved African Americans escaped to Canada via the city.<ref name="Chadwick">{{cite book | last = Chadwick | first = Bruce | title = Traveling the underground railroad : a visitor's guide to more than 300 sites | publisher = Carol Pub. Group | location = Secaucus, NJ | page = [https://archive.org/details/travelingundergr00chad/page/272 272] | year = 1999 | isbn = 0806520930 | url = https://archive.org/details/travelingundergr00chad/page/272 }}</ref><ref name=Woodford/><ref>{{cite book | last = US Department of Interior, National Park Service, Denver Service Center | title = Underground Railroad | publisher = DIANE Publishing | page=168 |year = 1995}}</ref> Notable activists like [[George DeBaptiste]], [[William Lambert (abolitionist)|William Lambert]], and [[Laura Smith Haviland]] played key roles in assisting refugees.<ref>Tobin, Jacqueline L. ''From Midnight to Dawn: The Last Tracks of the Underground Railroad''. Anchor, 2008. p200-209</ref> Detroit's contributions to the Union effort were also significant, with many residents volunteering to fight. The city's [[24th Michigan Infantry Regiment]], part of the famous [[Iron Brigade]], suffered heavy casualties at the [[Battle of Gettysburg]].<ref>Rosentreter, Roger (July/August 1998). "Come on you Wolverines, Michigan at Gettysburg", ''[[Michigan History (magazine)|Michigan History]]''.</ref> The city's tensions over race, in tandem with national concerns over the draft, led to the [[Detroit race riot of 1863]], leaving some dead and over 200 Black residents homeless. This prompted the establishment of a full-time [[Detroit Police Department#History|police force]] in 1865.

In the late 19th century, Detroit grew as a hub for industry, particularly shipping and manufacturing. The city's wealth, driven by industrial magnates, led to the construction of opulent [[Gilded Age]] mansions along the grand avenues designed by Woodward. Detroit earned the nickname "Paris of the West" for its architectural beauty.<ref name=Woodford/> By 1896, [[Henry Ford]]'s first automobile was built in the city, and Detroit expanded its borders, annexing surrounding villages and townships as it solidified its place as a key player in the automobile industry.<ref>{{cite web|title=Why do Hamtramck and Highland Park exist inside the city of Detroit?|url=https://wdet.org/posts/2014/09/19/80119-why-do-hamtramck-and-highland-park-exist-inside-the-city-of-detroit/|access-date=January 14, 2021|date=September 19, 2014|website=Wdet.org|language=en}}</ref>