Ann Arbor: Recreation

Sightseeing

A number of museums and buildings of architectural significance are located on the University of Michigan campus. The Rackham Building, which covers two city blocks, is made of Indiana limestone, with bronze window and door frames, a copper-sheathed roof, and Art Deco interior. The University of Michigan Exhibit Museum of Natural History is devoted to Michigan's prehistoric past; it houses the state's largest collection of dinosaur bones, including a 15-foot-tall dinosaur that was the forerunner of the Tyrannosaur, and more than 200 species of birds native to Michigan. There are also exhibits on minerals and biology, Native American life, culture, and artifacts, a planetarium, and a hall of evolution. The most popular exhibit is the Michigan Mastodon, an elephant-like creature that became extinct more than 6,000 years ago.

The Kelsey Museum of Archaeology in Newberry Hall exhibits artifacts, statues, and glass discovered on university excavations in Egypt and Iraq. The Museum of Art in Alumni Memorial Hall is the state's second-largest fine arts collection and exhibits a diverse permanent collection that includes a number of works by James Abbott McNeill Whistler. The Burton Memorial Tower is the world's third-largest carillon and presents weekly concerts during the summer. On the steps of the Michigan Union building, in the heart of the campus, a plaque records the place where in 1962 President John F. Kennedy announced the formation of the Peace Corps.

The Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum displays more than 250 participatory exhibits on the sciences and arts; it is housed in a century-old former fire house. Matthaei Botanical Garden, the university's conservatory and outdoor garden, is a favorite winter oasis.

Domino's Farms is the world headquarters of Domino's Pizza, among several other corporations on a sprawling 217-acre campus in eastern Ann Arbor. The Prairie House headquarters building was based on a design by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The site also maintains a petting farm and a herd of American bison. Cobblestone Farm and Kempf House are among the area's other historical tourist attractions. Ann Arbor is rich in architectural history; among some of the city's distinctive buildings are St. Andrew's Church and several homes dating from the early to mid-nineteenth century.

Arts and Culture

The city of Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan offer a broad selection of music, dance, theater, and cinema. The university's Hill Auditorium is considered to rank with the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Carnegie Hall in New York City as one of the nation's premier performing arts facilities. Built in 1913 and designed by renowned architect Albert Kahn, the venue underwent a massive $40 million renovation before re-opening in 2004. Renovation included interior restorations and improved seating access, but also important infrastructure upgrades to the heating system and the addition, for the first time in its history, of air conditioning. Featuring excellent acoustics, Hill Auditorium houses the Henry Freize Pipe Organ, which was originally unveiled at the 1883 Chicago World's Fair. The University Musical Society, founded in 1879, has hosted virtually all of the world's great performers, conductors, and orchestras throughout its more than 100-year history. The Society schedules dozens of music and dance concerts each year at Hill and other local venues featuring international artists and performing groups.

The Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra plays a season of concerts at the renovated Michigan Theater, where the Ann Arbor Chamber Orchestra also presents a series of concerts of classical and contemporary music featuring young artists. The Comic Opera Guild is a local amateur company that is the only one of its kind to tour nationally. The university's Gilbert and Sullivan Society presents light opera productions in the spring and winter.

The University's drama and music departments stage several large and smaller productions at campus theaters throughout the year. The Ann Arbor Civic Theater, drawing on experienced local artists, stages 11 dramatic productions a season. The Young People's Theater, recruiting young people from across the country, is an outlet for students to write and perform their own works. Since 1954 the Ann Arbor Civic Ballet has programmed dance performances. The Performance Network is a local studio and theater space for original work by local artists creating theater, film, video, music, and dance. Ann Arbor supports several local art galleries and film theaters, including the Michigan Theater, which shows classic and contemporary films. In addition, several film societies are active in the city—virtually every night of the week there are a variety of classic films held in small theaters and university lecture halls throughout the city and campus area.

National touring musical acts stage concerts at Hill Auditorium and the University's 13,000-seat Crisler Arena. Smaller acts play any of a number of local clubs, including the Blind Pig and Bird of Paradise for jazz. The Ark is an internationally-recognized venue on the folk music circuit, and also features acoustic blues, rock, and bluegrass.

Festivals and Holidays

The Ann Arbor Folk Festival is one of the largest and most renowned events of its kind, held each January and in 2005 celebrating its 28th year of existence. The Ann Arbor Film Festival (43 years running in 2005) is a week-long event held in March. The juried Spring Art Fair brings together hundreds of artists in all media at the University of Michigan Track and Tennis Building on an early April weekend; a Winter Art Fair is held in October/November. More than 300 dealers gather at the Ann Arbor Antiques Market to sell antiques and collectibles every Sunday from April through November.

"Taste of Ann Arbor" on Main Street on a Sunday in June offers specialties from participating Ann Arbor restaurants. The Summer Festival, taking place over several weeks in June and July, presents mime, dance, music, and theater. The Ann Arbor Summer Art Fairs, which comprise one of the oldest and largest street art fairs in the country, bring artists from around the country to Ann Arbor to exhibit and sell their work in three separate fairs that spread throughout the entire city and run simultaneously for four days in July; more than a million people attend the Art Fairs. Edgefest, a three-day celebration of jazz and improvised music featuring world-class acts, is held in early October. One hundred fifty artists participate in the Christmas Art Fair at the University of Michigan Coliseum on Thanksgiving weekend.

Sports for the Spectator

The University of Michigan fields some of the country's finest college sports teams, which compete in the Big Ten athletic conference. The Michigan Wolverines football team is among the most storied and recognizable athletic traditions in the nation. Football Saturdays are like a statewide holiday and near-obsession in Ann Arbor during home games; more than 100,000 fans pack Michigan Stadium, the largest college-owned stadium in the country. The Wolverines strongly compete each season for the Big Ten championship and a berth in the Rose Bowl. The Michigan basketball program (home games at Crisler Arena) likewise has a long and celebrated tradition, and the Michigan hockey team (Yost Arena) has won more NCAA championships than any other institution. Other University of Michigan team sports include men's and women's teams competing in gymnastics, wrestling, softball, soccer, baseball, and swimming, golf, and other sports. Professional sporting events in nearby Detroit feature the Tigers (baseball), Pistons (basket-ball), Lions (football), and Red Wings (hockey).

Sports for the Participant

Among the popular participatory sports that can be enjoyed in Ann Arbor are cycling, running, ice skating, racquetball, paddleball, handball, roller skating, downhill and cross-country skiing, swimming, and tennis. Cycling lanes exist on many of Ann Arbor's main streets; paved paths for walking, running, cycling or skating run along the Huron River. The Ann Arbor Department of Parks and Recreation maintains the city's more than 147 parks and sponsors programs for all age groups. The Nichols Arboretum on the university campus is a 123-acre natural area that serves as a research area for the university and is open to the public for picnicking and hiking. There are more than 50 lakes in Washtenaw County, offering water sports and fishing. The Dexter-Ann Arbor Half-Marathon and 10-K Run is sponsored by the Ann Arbor Track Club and held on a Saturday in May. Ann Arbor is one of the ten best cycling cities in North America, and the Ann Arbor Bicycle Touring Society is the state's largest group for cyclists. The nearby Pinckney-Waterloo Recreation Area has several lakes and miles of trails for hiking and mountain biking. The Huron River can be fished and canoed, and golf is played at city, university-owned, and private courses.

Shopping and Dining

Ann Arbor's Main Street area, consisting of several blocks of specialty shops, brew pubs, nightspots, and restaurants, forms the central commercial district. State Street, the university's major business district, consists of a cluster of retail stores, restaurants, coffee shops, and several record and book shops that include Shaman Drum, one of the nation's best independent book stores, and the original Borders Book Shop. Nickels Arcade, built in 1915 and modeled after a European arcade, houses shops and galleries. South University is a collection of shops and eateries anchoring the other end of central campus. Kerrytown and the Farmers' Market are three restored historic buildings in the Kerrytown district, just east of the Main Street downtown area, that contain more than 30 semi-enclosed shops and other stores offering farm-fresh produce, baked goods, and craft items. Briarwood Mall is anchored by the J.C. Penney and Marshall Field's department stores and has more than 130 stores. Ann Arbor and nearby Saline are considered antiques centers.

The presence of a major state university in Ann Arbor helps explain the city's many fine restaurants and varied cuisines. Hundreds of Ann Arbor restaurants, far more than what is offered in comparably-sized cities, make this a dining destination city. New American cuisine, traditional American fare, Northern Italian, French, Greek, Korean, Ethiopian, Indian, Japanese, Caribbean, Thai, Turkish, and other cuisines are represented here. A number of restaurants are located in historic or unusual buildings, such as a train depot. Cafe, deli, and pub settings are also popular choices. Zingerman's Delicatessen, near Kerrytown, is an Ann Arbor institution and recognized as one of the top delicatessens in the country. The small shop and its attendant bakery, mail-order business, and catering operations earned it the distinction as Inc. magazine's Coolest Small Company in America designation.

Visitor Information: Ann Arbor Convention and Visitors Bureau, 120 West Huron, Ann Arbor, MI 48104; telephone (734)995-7281; toll-free (800)888-9487; email a2info@annarbor.org

Ann Arbor: Economy

Major Industries and Commercial Activity

The University of Michigan is Ann Arbor's largest employer, accounting for nearly 10 percent of the work force. The majority of remaining jobs are split between manufacturing, health care, automotive, information technology, and biomedical research fields.

Ann Arbor is now the western anchor of high-technology corridors extending from Detroit along I-94 and M-14. Aiding the increase in firms involved in research, development, or testing is the proximity of the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, which provide technical resources and an educated workforce. In 2003 the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti region of Washtenaw County was named a SmartZone by the State of Michigan as one of ten high technology centers with the potential to create jobs of the future. This builds upon the 1999 designation of the Ann Arbor IT Zone. Together these organizations support the area's historically strong industries of information technology, networking and high-speed internet services, life sciences, nanotechnologies, and MEMS. Other high-technology industries include business services, computer and data processing, and instrument development. Ann Arbor's numerous software companies supply a significant amount of the computer programming and devices used in the auto industry.

Trade and information publishing are also strong industries in the region. The Borders Group began as a campus bookstore owned by two University of Michigan graduates and is now a worldwide chain and Fortune 500 company with its headquarters in Ann Arbor. The region is also strong in book printing and manufacturing.

Items and goods produced: books, software, computer technology and precision instruments, ball bearings, springs, baling presses, drill heads, tapping and reaming machinery, awnings

Incentive Programs—New and Existing Businesses

Local programs

The Washtenaw Development Council (WDC) is a centralized, free information source for expanding industrial, technological, and major commercial businesses. A public and private partnership, the WDC provides a one-stop source of information and services for new, existing, and relocating businesses in Washtenaw County. Services include company location as well as providing information on location space, financing, and workforce issues. The WDC also works with several industry groups in the county such as the Washtenaw County Manufacturers Council, the Ann Arbor IT Zone, the FastTrack Awards Program, and the Washtenaw Work/Life Consortium. Other areas of service include foreign initiatives, the Business Services Directory and the existing business call program. The WDC also provides community tours and introduction to key business leaders; listing of key resources for start-ups and expanding businesses; tax and financial incentives counseling; access to business, educational and community resources; and provision of business cost, demographic, and other statistical data.

State programs

Incentives on the state level include tax abatements, tax-exempt revenue bonds, public loans, and grants. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation provides a one-stop business assistance resource for any company already in Michigan or considering a location in the state. Professional account managers work with consultants, utilities, associations and local economic development agencies to match businesses with the best opportunities in Michigan. Free services include new business recruitment, business retention, information on the state and its industries, site location and selection, business incentives and financial assistance, employee recruitment and training, permit assistance, and other resources and services.

Job training programs

Michigan offers a coordinated job training system using federal, state, and local resources to provide a highly productive and trained workforce. Grants can provide funding for activities that increase worker productivity. The training itself is done through the institution of the company's choice. Free recruitment and screening services are available for new and expanding employers through the Michigan Employment Security Administration's job service and also through several local school districts. State-sponsored job training programs offered through the Michigan Adult Education Training Initiative include the Job Training Partnership Act, summer youth employment programs, and pre-college programs in engineering and sciences. The Michigan Economic Development Corp. administers a $1.2 million Training Incentive Fund, which provides assistance to employers wishing to upgrade the skills of their current work force. Other programs include Targeted Jobs Tax Credits, and adult and vocational education.

Economic Development Information: Washtenaw Development Council, 3135 South State Street, Suite 205, Ann Arbor, MI 48108; telephone (734)761-9317; fax (734)761-9062

Development Projects

While high-paying automotive manufacturing jobs seem to be disappearing from Ann Arbor as they are throughout the region and, to a lesser extent, from the United States, several automakers continue to invest heavily in new research and development facilities in the area. In 2004 Korean automaker Hyundai broke ground on a new 190,000 square foot Hyundai America Technical Center in nearby Superior Township, a facility that will eventually employ 400. The world's largest pharmaceutical firm, Pfizer, purchased several acres of land in the early 2000s as part of an $800 million expansion and consolidation of its facilities in Ann Arbor. In 2004 Pro Quest, an information publisher, announced plans to sign a 15-year, $35 million lease with a southern Ann Arbor office complex, with plans to build an additional 110,000 square foot facility on the same site. The firm employs 900 workers in the Ann Arbor area.

Commercial Shipping

Air cargo service is available locally at Willow Run Airport, the nation's largest on-demand air charter freight airport. Detroit Metropolitan Airport is a 15-minute drive to the east off I-94. Conrail and three other railroads provide rail freight shipping, and the city is served by six trucking companies. Within a 50-minute drive are the international port facilities of Detroit and Monroe.

Labor Force and Employment Outlook

Ann Arbor employers draw on a pool of well-educated, highly skilled workers. These workers include University of Michigan graduates reluctant to leave the city after graduation and willing to work for less money in exchange for the high quality of life in a small-town setting experienced there.

Still, the number one problem faced by Ann Arbor businesses is the inability to find qualified employees. The city's labor market boasts unemployment rates well below national and state averages, quashing any hopes businesses have of expanding. This problem is coupled with a shortage of land for business. Manufacturing jobs have been on a steady decline that is expected to continue. Additionally, Ann Arbor businesses must increasingly compete with firms located in Detroit and its western suburbs, which have become attractive to Ann Arbor residents willing to commute for higher-paying jobs.

The following is a summary of data regarding the Ann Arbor metropolitan area labor force, 2004 annual average:

Size of non-agricultural labor force: 201,900

Number of workers employed in . . .

mining and construction: 5,700

manufacturing: 23,100

trade, transportation and utilities: 27,400

information: 3,800

financial activities: 5,800

professional and business services: 26,900

educational and health services: 22,400

leisure and hospitality: 14,400

other services: 6,200

government: 66,000

Average hourly earnings of production workers employed in manufacturing: $25.64 (Detroit metropolitan area)

Unemployment rate: 4.7% (February 2005)

Cost of Living

Ann Arbor residents enjoy the relative quiet and sophistication of a college town while being afforded tremendous cultural amenities (both in town and within an hour's drive in Detroit)—but all of that does come at a price. A 2004 study placed Ann Arbor housing at $40,000 above the national average. With little available land left within the city limits, homebuyers are increasingly looking to the nearby communities of Chelsea, Dexter, Pinckney, and Superior Township, where construction of new homes boomed throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. Health care costs in Ann Arbor are above the national norm, a reflection of the high-cost, high-technology care available at the University of Michigan Medical Center.

The following is a summary of data regarding several key cost of living factors in the Ann Arbor area.

2004 (3rd Quarter) ACCRA Average House Price: Not reported

2004 ACCRA Cost of Living Index: Not reported

State income tax rate: 3.9% (2005)

State sales tax rate: 6.0%

Local income tax rate: None

Local sales tax rate: None

Property tax rate: $47.36 per $1,000 of assessed value (2004)

Economic Information: Washtenaw Development Council, 3135 South State Street, Suite 205, Ann Arbor, MI 48108; telephone (734)761-9317; fax (734)761-9062

Ann Arbor: Education and Research

Elementary and Secondary Schools

The Ann Arbor School District serves the city of Ann Arbor and parts of 8 surrounding townships covering an area of 125 square miles. The district's two conventional high schools, Pioneer and Huron, are among the highest-rated in the state of Michigan. In 2004 the district formulated a plan to build a third high school, an $85 million project to be completed in fall 2007. The alternative high school, Community High near the University of Michigan campus, enjoys tremendous popularity and places students through a lottery program. The Ann Arbor school district is administered by a nine-member non-partisan board that appoints a superintendent. The major emphasis of the system is on early childhood education, mathematics, science, and technology.

The following is a summary of data regarding the Ann Arbor public schools as of the 2003-2004 school year.

Total enrollment: 16,724

Number of facilities elementary schools: 20

junior high schools: 6

senior high schools: 5 (2 comprehensive and 3 alternative)

other: 1 preschool

Student/teacher ratio: 16:1

Teacher salaries median salary: $48,083

Funding per pupil: $11,125

The Ann Arbor area is also served by several private and religiously affiliated schools.

Public Schools Information: Ann Arbor Public Schools, 2555 South State Street, South, Ann Arbor, MI 48104; telephone (734)994-2200

Colleges and Universities

In Ann Arbor education extends to all facets of life: social, cultural, and economic. The city is home to the University of Michigan, Washtenaw Community College, Concordia College, and Cleary College; located in neighboring Ypsilanti is Eastern Michigan University.

At the heart of the Ann Arbor community is the University of Michigan, recognized as one of the nation's foremost public institutions of higher learning. According to a 2005 survey by U.S. News & World Report, the University of Michigan ranked 2nd among U.S. public universities and 22nd among all national universities. The university enrolls about 36,000 students and offers a complete range of programs leading to associate, baccalaureate, master's, and doctorate degrees in 17 schools and colleges. Primary areas of study include liberal arts, architecture and planning, art, business administration, education, engineering, music, natural resources, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, law, medicine, information and library studies, public health, and social work. Rankings vary from year to year, but several schools, namely law, medicine, business administration, and engineering routinely rank among the top programs in the nation.

Concordia College, affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, provides associate and undergraduate programs in such fields as business management, education, and theology. Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti is a full-scale state university with an enrollment of 24,000 students. The school is known for its Education program, as well as the colleges of Technology and Business. Washtenaw Community College specializes in vocational and technical training and is the site of a Robotics Repair Program. The school enrolls more than 20,000 annually and has transfer programs with the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, and University of Michigan Dearborn.

Libraries and Research Centers

Approximately 25 libraries and research centers, maintained by a variety of organizations and agencies, are located in Ann Arbor. The Ann Arbor District Library maintains holdings of more than 425,000 materials, including more than 394,000 books and 28,000 CDs, cassette tapes, and books on tapes. There are also more than 315 CD-ROMs for checkout in the collection. In addition to the main Downtown Library, the system operates three branches (Creek, Northeast, and West), with a fourth (Pittsfield) to open soon, plus a bookmobile. In 2005 wireless internet access was added to the Downtown branch, with plans to add it to all branches; all branches currently have wired internet access through a T-1 line.

The Washtenaw County Library is the headquarters of the Huron Valley Library System. The library operates as a traditional public-use facility, and also, through its Library Learning Resource Center, as a center for organizational development to be used for training sessions, meetings, workshops and special events for County government and affiliated organizations. With holdings of more than 40,000 volumes, the library houses a facility for the blind and the physically handicapped; special services include a low-vision center, various aids for the handicapped, homebound service, volunteer taping, and a video library.

The Gerald R. Ford Library contains materials pertaining to the life and career of Gerald R. Ford, former President of the United States. Ford is a University of Michigan alumnus and grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where the library's affiliated Gerald R. Ford Museum is located. The non-circulating collection, which is open to the public, includes 9,000 books, 21 million pages of memos, meeting notes, and other documents, plus papers relating to the war in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, which were released to the public in April 2000.

The University of Michigan library system, consistently ranked among the top 10 research libraries in the country, includes facilities for all colleges within the university as well as for individual academic departments. Holdings of the 19 University Libraries total more than 7 million volumes; nearly 40 special collections include such subjects as American, British, and European literature, radical protest and reform literature, manuscripts, theater materials, and United States and Canadian government documents. In 2005 the library's Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive was launched, making available 52,000 digitized copies of videotaped testimonies to the persecution of the Nazi regime from nine worldwide Holocaust survivor and Nazi experience groups. The University of Michigan School of Business Administration maintains the Kresge Library; among the nine facilities within the Kresge Library system are the Law Library, the Bentley Historical Library, and the Transportation Institute Library.

Other libraries in Ann Arbor are affiliated with Washtenaw Community College, and corporations, hospitals, and churches.

Research centers are associated primarily with state and federal government agencies. Among the major research centers are the Environmental Research Institute of Michigan, the Institute for Social Research Library, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Institute for Fisheries Research Library, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, and the Van Oosten Library of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

Public Library Information: Ann Arbor Public Library, 343 South Fifth Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48104-2293; telephone (734)327-4200; fax (734)327-8309

ANN ARBOR

ANN ARBOR , city in Michigan, U.S. The present-day Jewish community of Ann Arbor – comprising over 3,000 family units in 2005 – traces its roots to the turn of the century with the arrival of the Lansky family in 1895 and Mr. Osias Zwerdling, furrier, in 1904. Although the Lanskys had heard that Jews had previously lived in the area, there were no signs of the existence of an earlier community. It was not until 1980 – with the serendipitous discovery of a tombstone, beautifully engraved in Hebrew script and dated 1858, and the efforts to determine its original resting place – that the picture of a viable Jewish life in Ann Arbor from the 1840s to the 1880s began to emerge. These first Jews of Ann Arbor, the Weils and their extended family members and friends, arrived from Bohemia and began their lives as farmers and peddlers, then traded furs and skins and finally opened a successful tannery business.

As a result of the information garnered during this discovery process, it was possible to ascertain that the first Jewish cemetery in the state of Michigan existed at the northeast corner of the grounds of what today is the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies at the University of Michigan. Dedication of a Historical Marker, commemorating the establishment of the first organized Jewish community in Michigan, took place in 1983. Appropriately, this site also became the location for the Holocaust Memorial sculpture by Leonard Baskin that was dedicated in 1994.

William and Hattie Lansky originally had set up a grocery/general store and, as the Jewish community began to grow, it was this family that undertook a leadership role. The Lanskys were joined in this endeavor by Osias Zwerdling, who served as president of Beth Israel Congregation from 1918 to 1958. By 1902, the landmark Lansky junkyard was established and, as extended family members joined the early pioneers, more Jewish families were attracted to the area: Abraham Levy, shoemaker; Thomas Cook, who made his mark by establishing a foundry business with an African-American partner; Israel Friedman, scrap iron business; Jacob Ingber, auto parts; Mark Ross, furniture store; and Joseph Lampe, retired carpenter, who crafted the aron kodesh for Beth Israel Congregation that still exists in its small chapel. His son, Isadore Lampe, was among the first Jewish faculty members at the University of Michigan Medical School. Following his studies, in 1936, Dr. Lampe was named director of the Division of Radiation Therapy, the first full division in the country. His lasting legacy was the training of over 200 radiation oncology physicians, many of whom went on to leadership positions in other universities. Also on the faculty, from 1913 to 1954 in the Department of Economics, was I. Leo Sharfman who became chair in 1928. Prof. Sharfman, uncle of Mike *Wallace, a u-m graduate himself, enlisted William Haber to the department in 1936, and he later became chair and subsequently dean of the College of Literature, Science and Arts. Additional early faculty members of note include Kasimir Fajans, physical chemist, renowned for his pioneering work on radioactive isotopes; Reuben Kahn, originator of the Kahn Test for syphilis; and Jonas *Salk, developer of the polio vaccine. Another famous graduate of the university's College of Architecture and Design was Raoul *Wallenberg, in 1935. In his honor, the College holds an annual Wallenberg Lecture series. Additionally, an endowment was established at the university by members of the Jewish and non-Jewish communities to fund an annual Lecture and Medal series. Invited guests are those who personify the Wallenberg ideals of bravery, stamina and integrity, and who imbue in the students the fact that one person can make a difference.

As the University of Michigan grew, so grew the influx of Jewish faculty – in all disciplines. In the 1950s and 1960s, with the population growth, a split developed between town and gown. At that time, Beth Israel was the only formal congregation in the city. A new B'nai Brith Hillel-Beth Israel building was dedicated in 1951 and Beth Israel changed its name to Beth Israel Community Center. In 1964, bursting at the seams, Beth Israel embarked on a fundraising campaign to build its own building. Subsequently, a faction of the membership broke off and began the Reform congregation, Temple Beth Emeth. The Conservative Beth Israel returned to its former name and remained joined in the Hillel Building until its own new facility was built in 1978 under the leadership of Rabbi Allan D. Kensky, spiritual leader of the congregation from 1971 to 1988. Membership in the two congregations, led by Rabbi Robert Dobrusin at Beth Israel since 1988, and Rabbi Robert Levy at Beth Emeth since 1984, comprised over 1,200 family units. The rift between town and gown was bridged at the outbreak of the Six-Day War, when the community came together in support of Israel, and was cemented at the time of the Yom Kippur War. The thriving Jewish community today, in addition to the aforementioned congregations and Hillel, includes Congregation Chabad, led by Rabbi Aharon and Esther Goldstein since 1975, the Jewish Cultural Society, the Ann Arbor Orthodox Minyan, and the Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Havurah. There is a Jewish Community Center, Jewish Federation, Jewish Family Services organization, Hadassah and Women's American ort chapters, a Yiddish group and Hebrew Day School.

The most recent wave of major Jewish influx in Ann Arbor began in 1979 with the arrival of the first "New Americans," refugees from the Former Soviet Union. Their population today approximates 200 families, and most of them have become involved in various aspects of the Jewish community.

Enriching the community is the Samuel and Jean Frankel Center for Judaic Studies, established at the University of Michigan in 1988, co-directed by Professors Zvi Gitelman and Todd *Endelman. The Center superseded the University's Program in Judaic Studies, established in 1971 with a grant from the Jewish Welfare Association in Detroit. The Program was co-directed by Professors Zvi Gitelman and Edna Coffin, and it brought Professor Yehuda Reinharz, now president of Brandeis University, to the Ann Arbor campus to teach Jewish history. In 2005, Stanley and Judy Frankel, son and daughter-in-law of Samuel and Jean, donated $20 million to the University of Michigan to establish the Frankel Institute for Advanced Judaic Studies. The Frankel Center coordinates programs and teaching; the Frankel Institute will have 15 faculty members, 40 courses, and 10–14 visiting scholars, teaching 800–1,200 students per year. The total population at the University numbers 36,000, of which 24,000 are undergraduates; it is estimated that ⅓ of the student body is Jewish. Thus, two percent of all Jewish students in North America study at the University of Michigan and the Jewish community of Ann Arbor swells while the university is in session. The students are served by the B'nai Brith Hillel Foundation, the second largest student organization at the University of Michigan, whose modern, new facility was built in 1989, under the leadership of its long-time and current executive director, Michael Brooks. The University of Michigan is a major feeder school for the Hebrew Union College, Jewish Theological Seminary, and aipac's Young Leadership Cabinet.

[Helen Aminoff (2^nd ed.)]

Ann Arbor: History

Easterners Found Settlement; Industry Attracts Immigrants

By some accounts, Virginians John and Ann Allen and New Yorkers Elisha and Ana Rumsey arrived in the southeastern Michigan Territory in 1824 at a place named Allen's Creek. The men built an arbor for the wild grapevines they found there and named their settlement Anns' Arbor in honor of their wives. According to an unsubstantiated story, however, the settlement was named after a mysterious young woman guide named Ann D'Arbeur who led parties from Detroit westward into the wilderness as early as 1813. Local Native Americans called the settlement "Kaw-goosh-kaw-nick" after the sound of John Allen's gristmill. Settlers from Virginia and New York and immigrants from Ireland and Germany soon arrived as other mills, a tannery, and a general store were opened. Ann Arbor was made the seat of Washtenaw County in 1827; it was incorporated as a village in 1833 and chartered as a city in 1851. Ann Arbor's strategic location on the Huron River, the Territorial Road, and the Michigan Central Railroad contributed to its development as a trading center.

City Becomes Site of Major American University

The most significant event in the city's history was the relocation of the University of Michigan from Detroit to Ann Arbor in 1841 by the new state legislature after Ann Arbor citizens effectively lobbied for the move. But it was not until 1852 that the university's first president, Henry Philip Tappan, was appointed. President Tappan broke from academia's traditional classical curriculum and introduced a scientific program and elective courses. Erastus Otis Haven, the university's second president, secured an annual state subsidy to bring the institution's finances under control, and President James Burrill Angell's administration added new buildings and programs during a 38-year tenure. Today the University of Michigan is regarded as one of the nation's top public universities, noted for its undergraduate education, research and graduate programs, and athletic teams that compete in the Big Ten Conference.

The university has been the site of historically significant political announcements. Senator John F. Kennedy introduced his plan for a Peace Corps on the steps of the university's Student Union during his 1960 presidential campaign, and President Lyndon Baines Johnson unveiled his Great Society program at commencement exercises there in 1964. A high proportion of Michigan graduates have become astronauts; in fact, during the Apollo 15 flight a flag was planted on the moon in recognition of University of Michigan alumni astronauts. The influence of the University of Michigan is such that Ann Arbor is the highest-ranked community in the United States for the educational and medical facilities available to its residents.

High-technology research and development has contributed to the growth in Ann Arbor's population, which also includes an increasing number of residents who commute to work in the Detroit area. Ann Arbor combines big-city amenities with a small-town atmosphere to produce a desirable quality of life. Multi-cultural influences can be seen in the city's shops, restaurants and arts offerings. The arts are a flourishing and integral part of the community, in part fueled by the university.

Historical Information: Kempf House Center for Local History, 312 S. Division, Ann Arbor, MI; telephone (734)994-4898. U of M Bentley Historical Library, 1150 Beal Ave., Ann Arbor, MI; telephone (734)764-3482 (re-search facility on U of M's North Campus that contains the Michigan Historical Collections)