Ten most notable Ypsi events of ‘09

By Laura Bien
Jan. 5, 2010    ·    10:00 a.m.

New manufactory organized
Despite the recent “Banker’s Panic,” and the resulting economic crisis, Ypsilanti added a new manufactory this year to her long and varied history of local industry.

As the holder of several unique patents, the United States Pressed Steel Company made an auspicious start. It produces several pressed steel transportation-related products, tool boxes and assorted stampings.

Death of Edward Payson Allen
An Eastern Michigan University alumnus of the class of ’64, Allen served in the army for some time, earning the rank of captain. He received a law degree from the University of Michigan and set up practice in Ypsilanti.

After serving as internal revenue assessor and county prosecuting attorney, he was twice elected to the Michigan House of Representatives and twice elected to Congress. Allen also served two terms as city mayor.

In his late 50s, Allen served on Michigan’s Board of Agriculture, decades after his one-time childhood on a Sharon Township farm. He is remembered as Ypsilanti’s most successful politician.

Ypsilanti’s Centennial Celebration
The city proudly celebrated its earliest beginnings this year.

A local paper noted that the first settlement of the area was made by French traders, and that the area “was merely an Indian trading post for a decade.”

The paper went on to describe the town’s development and list its many pleasant features, emphasizing educational opportunities. Also highlighted was Ypsilanti’s outstanding fixed-route public transportation system, centered on the east side of town.

Death of beloved EMU professor
Arguably EMU’s best-remembered professor, Frederic Pease began his Ypsilanti career in ’59 as a local piano teacher.

After a year of intensive music training in Boston, in December of ’63 he was named professor of vocal music at our university, remaining there until his death.

Even while he helped elevate the school’s music department to one of the best in the state, he also taught at the Detroit Conservatory of Music, conducted the Bay View Assembly and conducted the Ypsilanti “Musical Union” and the music programs at several area churches.

Pease’s name was well known around town and he was fondly remembered when he died. Shortly after his death, the school built an auditorium, planning to call it Pierce Hall. When alumni protested, the name was changed to Pease Auditorium.

Attempted murder-suicide
The year began with the terrible news of the attempted murder of Emma Klavitter by her husband Adolph. On Jan. 1, she was found with a broken jaw and multiple facial wounds.

Said to be jealous of Emma’s fondness for parties and socializing, her husband was discovered dead the next day in a ditch near the Prospect Street railroad crossing. He had apparently walked out in front of a train. Klavitter’s body was found by Emma’s brother, who worked for the railroad.

Emma survived, and eventually remarried.
Poole murder
Only a few months after the Klavitter crime, the city was shocked again by the murder of Annie Poole by her husband.

The sole provider for her husband and eight children, Annie had been walking one morning down Summit Street toward the university, her place of work. Her husband, said to be a drunkard, accosted her on the street.

After an angry public exchange, he seized her and cut her throat from ear to ear with a straight razor. Her collapse was witnessed by a minister across the road sweeping snow from his sidewalk, who confronted Poole.

According to the papers, the man told the minister, “My wife won't stay at home and I have been trimming her.”

Poole walked off, turned himself in to police, and went to trial. Found guilty of murder, he was sentenced to life imprisonment at Jackson.

Foundation of Masonic Hall
A large gathering observed the laying of the cornerstone to the new Masonic Hall at 76 North Huron, at the side of the river.

The stone contained a $100 Confederate bill and a Masonic penny. This handsome building promises to provide a community gathering-space for years to come.

Standard Printing opens
Located near Depot Town, this in-town print shop provides a wide range of services for residents, ranging from bindery work to wedding invitations and business products.

Over time, the shop has successfully adapted to technological changes in the printing industry. Standard Printing offers a good opportunity to shop local for all of one’s design and printing needs.

Patent filed
Not unlike the steel company in displaying typical Ypsilantian ingenuity, city resident Julius Ferguson submitted a patent for his rodent enclosure.

The device lures rats or mice onto a platform where the animal’s weight trips a trapdoor that sends them into a holding cell which can be conveniently and safely removed.

Replacement of Cross Street Bridge
Residents breathed a sigh of relief when the aged bridge was replaced with a strong new one, whose three graceful arches reflect prettily in the river below.

The bridge provides a fitting symbol for the city’s transition into a new decade and, it is hoped, will do so for many decades to come.

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Author’s Note: Three sources disagree as to whether Standard Printing opened in 1909 or 1910; I chose the 1909 date for the sake of this article, but that is not definitive.