Originally a trading post established in 1809 by aFrench-Canadian fur trader fromMontreal, a permanent settlement was established on the east side of theHuron River in 1823 by Major Thomas Woodruff. It was incorporated into theTerritory of Michigan as the villageWoodruff's Grove. A separate community a short distance away on the west side of the river was established in 1825 under the name "Ypsilanti", afterDemetrios Ypsilantis, a hero in theGreek War of Independence.[5] Woodruff's Grove changed its name to Ypsilanti in 1829, the year its namesake effectively won the war for Greek Independence at theBattle of Petra, with the two communities eventually merging. A bust of Demetrios Ypsilantis by Greek sculptor Christopher Nastos[6] stands between a Greek and a US flag at the base of the landmarkYpsilanti Water Tower.
Elijah McCoy lived in Ypsilanti with his family after moving from Canada following the Civil War. In Ypsilanti, racial barriers prevented him from working immediately as an engineer, so he took a position as a fireman and oiler for theMichigan Central Railroad while experimenting with machinery in a home workshop.[7] It was during this period in Ypsilanti that he developed his first automatic lubricator.[8] Today, Ypsilanti honors McCoy’s connection to the city with a Michiganhistorical marker at or near his former home and workshop.[9]
In the late 19th century, Ypsilanti became known for producing full-bodylong underwear calledunion suits, commonly referred to as “Ypsilanti suits.” The garments were made at the Hay & Todd woolen mill, later renamed the Ypsilanti Underwear Company, along the Huron River near Forest Avenue. The suits were displayed at the1893The World's Columbian Exposition, (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) inChicago and distributed internationally, earning the city a reputation for quality garment production.[10] The factory employed many workers, particularly women, and featured a large mural of a union suit visible to passing trains.[11] The company declined in the early 20th century, was sold to the Oak Knitting Company in 1907, and the mill buildings were demolished in 1933.[12] Surviving examples of *Ypsilanti* underwear are preserved at the Ypsilanti Historical Museum.[13]
Ypsilanti has played an important role in the automobile industry. From 1920 to 1922, Apex Motors produced the "ACE" car. The quarter mile stretch of land alongMichigan Avenue became a hub for car dealerships starting in 1912 when the first car dealership opened, and ending in the 1990s when the last dealership closed. This area has been referred to as "The Amazing Quarter Mile" and was eventually added to theYpsilanti Historic District. This site is part of a collection of parcels known as theWater Street Redevelopment Area. It was in Ypsilanti thatPreston Tucker (whose family owned the Ypsilanti Machine Tool Company) designed and built the prototypes for hisTucker '48. Tucker's story was related in the filmTucker: The Man and His Dream, directed byFrancis Ford Coppola.
In the early 1970s, the citizens reduced the penalty for the use and sale ofmarijuana to $5 (the Ypsilanti Marijuana Initiative; see also theHuman Rights Party).[14]
In 1979,Faz Husain was elected to the Ypsilanti city council, the firstMuslim and the first native of India to win elected office in Michigan.
In the 1990s, Ypsilanti became the first city in Michigan to pass aliving wage ordinance.[15]
On July 23, 2007, GovernorJennifer Granholm announced that Ypsilanti, along with the cities ofCaro andClio, was chosen by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) to take part in the Blueprints for Michigan's Downtowns program. The award provides for an economic development consultant to assist Ypsilanti in developing a growth and job creation strategy for the downtown area.[16]
On June 23, 2020, MayorBeth Bashert resigned after a controversial comment she made about race during aZoom meeting.[17]
1937 - Americanjazz musicianNat King Cole married singer and dancer Nadine Robinson at a private residence located at 370 First Avenue. The couple, who had met while performing in themusical revueShuffle Along, were married on January 29, 1937.[20][21]
1939–mid‑1940s –Phyllis Diller lived at 215 ½ Oakwood Street in Ypsilanti while her husband worked at the Willow Run bomber plant. Locals recall her singing in thePresbyterian Church choir and performing at community events. She also developed early comedic routines referencing neighborhood life, which she later incorporated into her professional comedy acts.[22][23]
1967–1969 – Ypsilanti residentJohn Norman Collins was linked to theMichigan Murders, a series of killings targeting female students at theUniversity of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University. He was arrested in July 1969 and convicted of one murder on August 19, 1970.[24]
1998 – The Michigan Firehouse Museum is established preserving a firehouse built in 1898.[25]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.47 square miles (11.58 km2), of which 4.29 square miles (11.11 km2) is land and 0.18 square miles (0.47 km2) (4.02%) is water.[1]
Ypsilanti, Michigan – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of the census[32] of 2010, there were 19,435 people, 8,026 households, and 2,880 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,488.5 inhabitants per square mile (1,733.0/km2). There were 9,271 housing units at an average density of 2,141.1 per square mile (826.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 61.5%White, 29.2%African American, 0.6%Native American, 3.4%Asian, 1.1% fromother races, and 4.3% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino residents of any race were 3.9% of the population.
There were 8,026 households, of which 18.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 19.7% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 64.1% were non-families. 42.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.92.
The median age in the city was 25 years. 14.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 35.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.3% were from 25 to 44; 16.6% were from 45 to 64; and 8.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.7% male and 50.3% female.
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 22,362 people, 8,551 households, and 3,377 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,081.5 inhabitants per square mile (1,962.0/km2). There were 9,215 housing units at an average density of 2,094.0 per square mile (808.5/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 61.40%White, 30.58%African American, 0.44%Native American, 3.18%Asian, 0.07%Pacific Islander, 1.32% fromother races, and 3.01% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino residents of any race were 2.47% of the population. 13.6% were of German ancestry, 6.8% Irish, 6.4% English and 5.5%Polish heritage according toCensus 2000.
There were 8,551 households, out of which 19.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.0% were married couples living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 60.5% were non-families. 40.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the city, 15.9% of the population was under the age of 18, 38.2% was from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 12.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.0% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $28,610, and the median income for a family was $40,793. Males had a median income of $30,328 versus $26,745 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,692. About 16.9% of families and 25.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.1% of those under age 18 and 15.3% of those age 65 or over.
TheMartha Washington Theatre opened in 1915. It was initially operated by Florence W. Signor, who was the only woman theatre operator in Michigan at the time. It was sold toW. S. Butterfield Theatres in 1925. It was converted to an adult theatre in 1971, then to a strip club in 1982.[33] It closed in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and was damaged in a fire three months later.[34]
Domino's Pizza was founded in Ypsilanti in 1960 near the campus of Eastern Michigan University.[35]
By 1963, Clara Owens established the Ypsilanti Greek Theater in Ypsilanti, Michigan for the performance of Greek theater productions.[36]
Since 2013, Ypsilanti has participated inFirst Fridays, an arts and culture-based monthly event that features a self-guided tour of participating businesses highlighting local artists, food and drink.[37]
Ypsilanti City Council is composed of a mayor and six council members elected from three voting wards.[49] The city uses acouncil–manager government.[49] The mayor is Nicole Brown.[50]
A college town, Ypsilanti is the location ofEastern Michigan University, founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School. Eastern Michigan University had over 10,000 undergraduate and more than 2000 graduate students in 2025.[54]
Ypsilanti is served by daily newspapers from Detroit. Ypsilanti once had its own daily newspaper, theYpsilanti Press, but that paper closed June 28, 1994, after 90 years in business.[55] Upon closing, the Press sold its masthead, archives and subscriber list toThe Ann Arbor News, which then began publishing an Ypsilanti edition.The Ann Arbor News ceased publication on July 23, 2009; it was replaced by a new Internet-based news operation,AnnArbor.com, which also produces print editions on Thursdays and Sundays. A weekly newspaper, theYpsilanti Courier, is published every Thursday by Heritage Media from theirSaline, Michigan offices. The only newspaper currently operating in Ypsilanti isEastern Michigan University's independent newspaperThe Eastern Echo.
John Burton (1910–1992), first African-American mayor and one of three African-American mayors elected in 1967 prior to which none had served in Michigan[66]
Colby Keller – visual artist, blogger and pornographic film actor
Mike Kennedy – United States Congressman, raised in Ypsilanti and attended Ypsilanti High School.[71]
Charles S. Kettles – retired United States Army lieutenant colonel and a Medal of Honor recipient.
Carolyn King – one of first girls to playLittle League baseball; centerpiece of landmark lawsuit in 1973 that led to Little League dropping boys-only policy[72]
Janae Marie Kroc – record-setting powerlifter and transgender model
Lowell Perry – NFL football player, first African American hired to be assistant coach in the NFL
Iggy Pop – rock star, "Godfather of Punk" – grew up in the Coachville trailer park, lot 963423, on Carpenter Road inPittsfield Township (near Ypsilanti) during his teenage years at the start of his music career.[77]
Queen Naija – American R&B singer and YouTuber active from the 2010s through the 2020s; rose to prominence through social media and reality television before achieving mainstream success in contemporary and adult R&B.
Bob Schneider – American singer-songwriter active from the 1990s through the 2010s, working in pop/rock and roots rock; notable for extensive solo output and earlier work with bands including The Ugly Americans.
^"How Did Michigan Cities Get Their Names? Part 7".State of Michigan. March 9, 2012. RetrievedJanuary 31, 2013.Like Pigeon, Ypsilanti wasn't always known by the name it has today. The city was originally a trading post set up in 1823 and called Woodruff's Grove after Major Thomas Woodruff. The name was later changed to Ypsilanti in 1829 in honor of Demetrius Ypsilanti. Ypsilanti was a hero in the Greek War of Independence from the Ottoman Empire.
^Kvaran, Einar Einarsson,An Annotated Inventory of Outdoor Sculpture in Washtenaw County, Independent Study/Masters Thesis, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, MI, 1989
^Galbraith, Stuart (1994).Motor city marquees: a comprehensive, illustrated reference to motion picture theaters in the Detroit area, 1906-1992. Jefferson (North Carolina) London: McFarland. p. 170.ISBN978-0-89950-915-0.
Bien, Laura (2010).Tales of the Ypsilanti Archives. Charleston, S. C.: The History Press.
Bien, Laura (2011).Hidden History of Ypsilanti. Charleston, S. C.: The History Press. Archival stories on many topics giving insight into Ypsilanti's history in the 19th and 20th centuries.