Ann Arbor, Michigan

Categories: 1911 Britannica | Ann Arbor, Michigan | Washtenaw County, Michigan | Cities in Michigan | University towns

Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 114,024, which includes about 30,000 students. Supposedly named for the spouses of the city's founders and for the stands of trees in the area, Ann Arbor is best known as the location of the main campus of the University of Michigan, which moved there from Detroit in 1837.

The city's economy, which once centered on the production of agricultural implements, carriages, furniture, pianos and organs, pottery and flour, is now dominated by education, high tech, and biotechnology. Average home prices and property taxes are well above the state and national medians. The city is also well known locally as a destination for dining out and entertainment, as it contains a wide and eclectic variety of restaurants and performance venues.

History

Main article: History of Ann Arbor, Michigan

Ann Arbor was founded in January 1824 by John Allen and Elisha Rumsey, both of whom were land speculators. There are various accounts concerning the origin of the settlement's name, but one states that Allen and Rumsey decided to name it "Annarbour," for their spouses, whose names were both Ann, and for the stands of burr oak in the 640 acres (2.6 km²) of land they had purchased for $800 from the federal government. The Native Americans of the region knew the settlement as Kaw-goosh-kaw-nick, after the sound of Allen's grist mill.

Ann Arbor later became the seat of Washtenaw County in 1827, and was incorporated as a village in 1833. The town set aside 40 acres (162,000 m²) of undeveloped land and offered it to the State of Michigan as the site of the state capitol, but it lost the bid to Lansing in 1836. In 1837 the unused land was sold to the University of Michigan, forever linking Ann Arbor and its history with the university. The town became a regional transportation hub in 1839 with the arrival of the Michigan Central Railroad. Ann Arbor was chartered as a city in 1851.

During World War II, Ford Motor Company's nearby Willow Run plant turned out B-24 Liberator bombers and the population of Ann Arbor exploded with an influx of military personnel, war workers, and their families.

The city gained a reputation as an important center for liberal and left-wing activism over the course of the 1960s and 1970s, becoming a locus for the American civil rights movement, the anti-Vietnam War movement, and the 1960s student movement. The first major meetings of the national left-wing campus group Students for a Democratic Society took place in Ann Arbor in 1960, and in 1965 the city was home to the first U.S. teach-in against the Vietnam War. Over the course of the ensuing fifteen years, a plethora of countercultural and New Left enterprises sprang up and developed strong constituencies within the city.

These influences washed into municipal politics during the early and mid-1970s when three members of the local, progressive Human Rights Party (HRP) won city-council seats on the strength of the student vote. During their time on council, HRP representatives successfully fought for measures ranging from pioneering antidiscrimination ordinances to measures decriminalizing marijuana possession to a rent-control ordinance – many of which remain in effect in modified form today.

Alongside these liberal and left-wing efforts, a small handful of conservative institutions were also born in Ann Arbor. These include Word of God (est. 1967), a charismatic Catholic movement of national scope; and the Thomas More Law Center (est. 1999), a leading religious-conservative advocacy group.

The economy of Ann Arbor underwent a gradual shift from a manufacturing base to a service and technology base over the course of the 20th century, a shift which accelerated in the 1970s and 1980s. At the same time, the downtown has transformed from one dominated primarily by retail establishments dealing in staple goods to one comprised mainly of eateries, cafés, bars and clubs, and specialty shops.

Over the past several decades, the city has increasingly found itself grappling with the effects of sharply rising land values and gentrification, as well as urban sprawl stretching far into the outlying countryside. On November 2, 2004, voters approved a greenbelt plan under which the city government would buy up the development rights to large swaths of land adjacent to Ann Arbor in order to prevent sprawling development. Since then, a vociferous local debate has hinged on whether, and how, to accommodate and guide development within city limits.

Geography and climate

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 27.7 mi² (71.7 km²). 27.0 mi² (70.0 km²) of it is land and 0.7 mi² (1.7 km²) of it is water. The total area is 2.42% water, much of it being part of the Huron River. Ann Arbor is approximately 40 miles (64 km) west of Detroit, a 45-minute car ride on I-94. Ann Arbor Charter Township is adjacent, on the city's north and east sides.

Ann Arbor is situated on the Huron River, in a productive agricultural and fruit-growing region. The landscape of Ann Arbor consists of rolling hills and valleys, with the terrain becoming steeper near the Huron River and more level elsewhere. The elevation ranges from about 750 feet (230 m) along the Huron River to about 900 feet (275 m) above sea level in southern and northeastern Ann Arbor.^[1] The elevation is about 839 feet (256 m) at Ann Arbor Municipal Airport, which is located at 42°13.38′ N 83°44.74′ W.

Cityscape

Ann Arbor's "Tree Town" moniker stems from the dense forestation of its parks and residential areas. The city holds almost as many trees as residents, with more than 50,000 trees sited along city streets and an equal number in city parks.^[2] In recent years, the emerald ash borer has destroyed most of the city’s approximately 10,500 ash trees, necessitating their replacement.

The city contains 147 municipal parks, ranging from neighborhood vest-pocket parks to large recreation areas, with several large city parks and a university park bordering sections of the Huron River. The largest are Argo Park, Riverside Park, and Gallup Park (near the Huron Parkway), while Fuller Recreation Area, near the University Hospital complex, contains sports fields, pedestrian and bike paths, and swimming pools. The University of Michigan's Nichols Arboretum (known locally as "The Arb"), a 123-acre (50 hectare) preserve near the city’s center, contains hundreds of plant and tree species.

Commercial zones include the downtown, the area of southern Ann Arbor surrounding Briarwood Mall, the area surrounding the I-94/M-14 juncture in the western part of the city, the southeastern area along Washtenaw Avenue and Carpenter Road, and the northeastern area along Plymouth Road. The downtown contains a mix of 19th and early 20th-century structures and modern-style buildings, as well as a farmers' market in the Kerrytown district. The city’s commercial districts are mostly comprised of two to four-story structures, although the downtown and the area near Briarwood Mall contain a growing number of high-rise buildings.

Ann Arbor's residential neighborhoods contain a range of architectural styles, from classic 19th and early 20th-century designs to ranch-style houses. More contemporary-style houses are located further from the downtown district. Surrounding the University of Michigan campus are houses and apartment complexes occupied primarily by student renters. The 19th-century buildings and streetscape of the Old West Side neighborhood have been preserved virtually intact; in 1972, the district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is further protected via city ordinances and a nonprofit preservation group.

Climate

Ann Arbor has a typically Midwestern temperate seasonal climate, which is influenced by the Great Lakes. There are four seasons, with winters being cold with moderate snowfall while summers can be warm and very humid. The area does experience lake effect primarily in the form of increased cloudiness during late fall and early winter.^[3] The highest average temperature is in July at 83 °F (28 °C) while the lowest average temperature is in January at 16 °F (−9 °C). However, summer temperatures can top 100 °F (37 °C), and winter temperatures can drop below 0 °F (−17 °C). Average monthly precipitation ranges from 2 to 4 inches (44 to 92 mm), with the heaviest occurring during the summer months. Snowfall, which normally occurs from November to April, ranges from 1 to 10 inches (3 to 25 cm) per month.^[4] The highest recorded temperature was 105 °F (40.6 °C) on July 24, 1934, while the lowest recorded temperature was −22.0 °F (−30 °C) on January 19, 1994.^[5]

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 114,024 people, 45,693 households, and 21,704 families residing in the city. About 30,000 university students are added to the population each September. The population density is 4,221.1/mi² (1,629.9/km²). There are 47,218 housing units at an average density of 1,748.0/mi² (675.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 74.68% White, 8.83% Black or African American, 0.29% Native American, 11.90% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.21% from other races, and 3.05% from two or more races. 3.34% of the population are Hispanic American or Latino of any race.

There are 45,693 households out of which 23.0% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.8% are married couples living together, 7.5% have a female householder with no husband present, and 52.5% are nonfamilies. 35.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 6.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.22 and the average family size is 2.90.

In the city the population is spread out with 16.8% under the age of 18, 26.8% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 17.3% from 45 to 64, and 7.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 28 years. For every 100 females there are 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 96.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $46,299, and the median income for a family is $71,293. Males have a median income of $48,880 versus $36,561 for females. The per capita income for the city is $26,419. 16.6% of the population and 4.6% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 7.3% of those under the age of 18 and 5.1% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Government and politics

Ann Arbor has a mayor-council form of government. The mayor, who is elected every even-numbered year, is the presiding officer of the City Council and has the power to appoint all Council committee members as well as board and commission members, with the approval of the City Council. The City Council has ten members, two from each of the city's five wards, with the mayor wielding the tie-breaking vote. Council members serve two-year terms, with half the council elected in annual elections.

Ann Arbor is located in the 15th Congressional district, and is represented by Representative John Dingell (D), the longest-serving member of the U.S. House. On the state level, the city is in the 18th district in the Michigan Senate. In the Michigan State House of Representatives, the city of Ann Arbor is in the 53rd district, while northeastern Ann Arbor and Ann Arbor Township are in the 52nd district. As the seat of Washtenaw County, the city is the location of the county's trial, civil, and criminal courts. Ann Arbor is also the site of a United States district court, whose downtown building also houses a post office.

Left-wing politics have been particularly strong in municipal government since the 1960s – an orientation evident in the passage of rent-control and strong antidiscrimination ordinances as well as voter-approved charter amendments that have lessened the penalties for possession of marijuana (1974) and that aim to protect access to abortion in the city should it ever become illegal in the state of Michigan (1990). In 1974, Kathy Kozachenko's victory in an Ann Arbor city-council race made her the country's first openly gay or lesbian candidate to win public office. In 1975, Ann Arbor became the first U.S. city to use instant-runoff voting for a mayoral race. Adopted through a ballot initiative sponsored by the local Human Rights Party, which feared a splintering of the left/liberal vote, the process was repealed in 1976 after use in only one election. As of 2005, Democrats hold the mayorship and control the council by a 9–1 majority.

The city of Tübingen in Germany is Ann Arbor's sister city. Other sister cities include Belize City, Belize; Hikone, Japan; Peterborough, Ontario, Canada; Juigalpa, Nicaragua; and Dakar, Senegal.

Economy

The University of Michigan plays a major role in shaping Ann Arbor's economy, both through its role as the city's largest employer (with approximately 15,000 workers plus an additional 6,000 at its medical center), and by attracting companies through its graduates and research and development work. Aside from education, high tech, health services and biotechnology are major components of the city's economy, with numerous medical offices, laboratories, and associated companies located within the city. Companies associated with the automobile industry, such as General Motors, Ford, and Visteon, also employ a large number of residents. Nevertheless, the city's economy remains relatively stable due to the major presence of the University of Michigan.

There are a number of high-tech companies located in the city. Ann Arbor Terminals, during the 1980s, was the manufacturer of the famous video-display terminal, the Ann Arbor Ambassador. Other high-tech companies in the area include Arbortext (provider of XML-based publishing software), Harris&Baseview (provider of newspaper publishing software and ASP services), and ProQuest, which includes UMI.

Websites and online media companies located in the city include All Media Guide, Everything2, and the Weather Underground. Ann Arbor is also the site of the Michigan Information Technology Center (MITC), whose offices also house Internet2 and the Merit Network, a nonprofit research and education computer network.

Pfizer operates a large pharmaceutical research facility on the northeast side of town. It was previously operated by Warner-Lambert and, before that, Parke-Davis. The city is the home of other research and engineering centers, including those of General Dynamics and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Other research centers sited in the city are the Environmental Protection Agency's National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory and the Toyota Technical Center.

Ann Arbor serves as the headquarters to several major companies. The original Borders Books was opened on Ann Arbor's State Street in 1971 by brothers Tom and Louis Borders, and began operating other outlets around the region beginning in 1985. The Borders chain is still based in the city, as is its flagship store (although not in its original location). A little-known fact is that dogs are allowed inside the flagship store, and the cashiers have a stock of doggy treats for canine visitors. Domino's Pizza's headquarters are in Ann Arbor on Domino's Farms, a massive 271-acre, Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired complex in the northeastern portion of the city. Another major pizza company, Cottage Inn, opened in Ann Arbor in 1948 and is still headquartered in the city. Flint Ink Corp., another Ann Arbor-based company, was until recently the world's largest privately held ink manufacturer (in October 2005 it was acquired by Stuttgart-based XSYS Print Solutions).

Many cooperative enterprises were founded in the city during the 1960s and 1970s; among those that survive today are the People's Food Co-op and the Inter-Cooperative Council at the University of Michigan, a student-housing cooperative. There are also three cohousing communities located just outside the city limits to the west.

Education

The University of Michigan is the dominant institution of higher learning in Ann Arbor, providing the city with a distinctly college-town atmosphere. Much of the campus is adjacent to and intermixed with the city's downtown district. Because the campus and the city expanded side-by-side, there is often no firm divide between the two, with university buildings scattered through much of the city center.

Other colleges and universities located in the city are Cleary University, a private business school; Concordia University, a Lutheran liberal-arts institution; and Washtenaw Community College. Ave Maria School of Law, a Catholic institution established by Domino's Pizza cofounder Tom Monaghan, opened in northeastern Ann Arbor in 2000. There were plans to establish Ave Maria University on land occupied by Domino's Farms. However, due to conflicts with local zoning authorities, the new campus is under construction near Naples, Florida.

The Ann Arbor Public School District – which enrolls a total of 16,724 students as of 2005 – consists of twenty-one elementary schools, five middle schools, and four high schools (two traditional, two alternative including Community High). Due to overcrowding problems at the two traditional high schools (Pioneer and Huron), a third major high school is under construction as of fall 2005. Students in the district participate in the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) and other standardized tests.

Culture

Main article: Culture in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Ann Arbor has a number of cultural attractions and events, many sponsored by the University of Michigan. Numerous performing arts groups and facilities are located on the university's campus, as are museums dedicated to art, archaeology, and natural history and sciences (see Museums at the University of Michigan).

The Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, located in a historic downtown fire station, contains more than 250 interactive exhibits featuring science and technology. Artrain, located on North Main Street, bills itself as the nation's only traveling art museum on a train. A number of other art galleries exist in the city, notably in the downtown area and around the University of Michigan campus.

Near the State Street area are three major theaters: the Michigan Theater, a renovated 1920s movie palace now hosting live performances, independent films, and classic movies, and serving as home base for the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra; the State Theater; and the University's Hill Auditorium. In the Main Street area, the Ark hosts folk and acoustic music, while a number of smaller venues and nightclubs serve up jazz and other live music. The Main Street area, as well as South State Street and South University Avenue, is also the center of a large restaurant scene in the city.

Performing arts groups not associated with the university include the Ann Arbor Civic Theatre; the Arbor Opera Theater; the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra; the Ann Arbor Ballet Theater; the Ann Arbor Civic Ballet (est. 1954), which was Michigan's first chartered ballet company ^[6]; and Performance Network, which operates a downtown theater offering frequent new or nontraditional plays.

Among U.S. cities, Ann Arbor ranks first in the number of booksellers and books sold per capita.^[7] The Ann Arbor District Library, named Library Journal's national "Library of the Year" in 1997, has three branch outlets in addition to its main downtown building. The city is also home to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.

Ann Arbor is known for college sports, notably at the University of Michigan, a member of the Big Ten Conference. Several well-known college sports facilities exist in the city, including Michigan Stadium (whose seating capacity rivals the entire population of Ann Arbor), Crisler Arena, and Yost Ice Arena. Concordia University, a member of the NAIA, also fields sports teams.

Events

A number of annual events – many of them centered on performing and visual arts – draw visitors to Ann Arbor from around the state and the region. The Ann Arbor Folk Festival, an annual benefit concert held in late January for the Ark, features many of the world's best-known folk musicians. The Ann Arbor Film Festival is held for six days in March at the Michigan Theater. EdgeFest is a multi-venue festival of avant-garde and progressive jazz, held each autumn since 1997.

More unorthodox annual events include the Hash Bash and the Naked Mile. Held on the first Saturday of April since 1971, the Hash Bash is an event in support of the reform of marijuana laws, and includes speeches, live music, street vending, and occasional civil disobedience. Since 1986, the notorious Naked Mile has featured students running naked through the streets in late April to celebrate the end of the winter semester. Originally police blocked off the streets to allow the run, but beginning in 2000, a crackdown by University and city police citing safety concerns has forced participants to adapt, with the event appearing in various reduced forms since.^[8]

Many large-scale events occur during the summer months. These include the Taste of Ann Arbor, a one-day event held during the first week of June in the heart of downtown; and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, a three-and-a-half-week series of concerts, plays, and films typically held from mid-June through early July at the Power Center and atop the adjacent parking structure, which is host to the free "Top of the Park" events.

The Ann Arbor Art Fairs, a set of four concurrent juried fairs held on downtown streets, began in 1960. Scheduled on Wednesday through Saturday in the third week of July, the fairs draw upward of half a million visitors from across the nation. The oldest and most competitive of the four fairs, the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, was dubbed the country's top art fair by American Style Magazine in October 2004.

Other summertime events include the Blues and Jazz Festival (est. 1969), which is usually held in mid-September at Gallup Park. The Dexter-Ann Arbor Run is a running race from Dexter, Michigan to downtown Ann Arbor along the Huron River. In late August is the Shopping Cart Race, an unofficial and somewhat underground competition held since 1998 as part of the annual Seize the Week series of events (known through 2004 as "Punk Week").

Media

The Ann Arbor News, owned by the Michigan-based Booth Newspapers chain, is the major daily newspaper serving Ann Arbor. Other established publications in the city include the Ann Arbor Observer – a monthly magazine with features covering local culture, politics, family life, business and history – along with the Current, an entertainment guide, and the Ann Arbor Paper, a free monthly with columns, fiction, humor, reviews and profiles. The campus area is served by a variety of student publications, including the independent Michigan Daily.

The three major Ann Arbor–based AM radio stations are WAAM 1600, a news and talk station; WLBY 1290, an Air America Radio affiliate; and WTKA 1050, which is primarily a sports station. The city's FM stations include NPR affiliate WUOM 91.7; country station WWWW 102.9; adult-alternative station WQKL 107.1; and WCBN 88.3, a noncommercial, student-run station with eclectic music and public-affairs programming. The city has more public radio broadcasters available on its airwaves than any other U.S. listening area, including NPR affiliates from Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, East Lansing, Detroit and Toledo, and a CBC affiliate from Windsor, Ontario.

WPXD channel 31, an affiliate of the i television network, is licensed to the city. Community Television Network (CTN) is a city-provided cable television channel with production facilities open to city residents and nonprofit organizations. Detroit-area radio and television stations also serve Ann Arbor.

Terminology

A person from Ann Arbor is called an "Ann Arborite." The city itself is often called A2 ("A two") or A² ("A-squared"), and less commonly Tree Town (or, usually tongue-in-cheek, The People's Republic of Ann Arbor). Recently, some youth have taken to calling Ann Arbor Ace Deuce or simply The Deuce.

Infrastructure

Health and medicine

The University of Michigan Medical Center, the preeminent health facility in the city, is the world's largest university medical center and is considered one of the nation's best hospitals, taking the #11 slot in the 2005 U.S. News & World Report rankings. The University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) includes University Hospital, C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and Women's Hospital in its core complex. UMHS also operates out-patient clinics and facilities elsewhere in the city. The area's other major medical centers include a large facility operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Ann Arbor, and Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital in nearby Ypsilanti.

Transportation

The city is served by three highway-grade roadways: I-94 (which runs along the southern portion of the city), US 23 (which primarily runs along the eastern edge of Ann Arbor), and M-14 (which runs along the northern edge of the city).

The streets in downtown Ann Arbor conform to a grid pattern, though this pattern is less apparent in the surrounding areas. Several major roads branch out from the downtown district like spokes on a wheel to the highways surrounding the city. Some of the major surface arteries lead to the I-94/M-14 juncture in the west, US 23 in the east, and the city's southern areas. Also, a large and expanding network of bike paths crisscrosses the city.

The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA), which brands itself as "The Ride," operates public bus services throughout Ann Arbor and nearby Ypsilanti. A separate free bus service operates within the University of Michigan campuses. Plans have been floated several times to operate a trolley service between downtown and Briarwood Mall along disused rail tracks, although these have not come to fruition as of 2005. For out-of-town bus service, a downtown bus depot is served by Greyhound Lines, and is the city's only remaining example of the Streamline Moderne architectural style.

Ann Arbor Municipal Airport is a small aircraft general aviation facility located south of I-94. Detroit Metropolitan Airport, the area's large international airport, is located about 28 miles (45 km) east of the city, in Romulus. Additionally, Willow Run Airport in nearby Ypsilanti serves freight, corporate, and general aviation clients.

The city was a major rail hub, notably for freight traffic between Toledo and ports north of Chicago from 1878 to 1982, though the Ann Arbor Railroad also sold 1.1 million passenger tickets in 1913 alone.^[9] The city was also served by the Michigan Central Railroad starting in 1837. Currently, Amtrak provides passenger rail service from Ann Arbor to Detroit and Chicago, Illinois via the Ann Arbor Train Station; the present-day station neighbors the city's old Michigan Central Depot, which was renovated as a restaurant in 1969. There have been plans to build a commuter rail link between Ann Arbor and Detroit, with the U.S. federal government providing $100 million to enable its development.^[10]

Utilities

The city provides sewage disposal and water supply services, with water coming from the Huron River and groundwater sources. There are two water-treatment plants, one main and three outlying reservoirs, four pump stations, and two elevated tanks. These facilities serve the city, which is divided into five water districts. Along with these facilities, the city's water department also operates four dams along the Huron River, two of which provide hydroelectric power.^[11] The city also offers waste management services, with recycling being handled by Recycle Ann Arbor. Other utilities are primarily provided by private entities. Electrical power and gas are provided by DTE Energy, Consumers Energy, and MichCon. SBC Communications, the successor to Michigan Bell and Ameritech, is the primary telephone service provider for the area. Cable service is primarily provided by Comcast.

Notes

1. ^ Information obtained from TopoZone.com.
2. ^ Fun Facts (2005). Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitor's Bureau. Access September 6, 2005.
3. ^ Ann Arbor. MichiganVacations.com. Accessed August 18, 2005.
4. ^ Average High/Low Temperatures for KYIP. Weather Underground (wunderground.com). Accessed August 17, 2005.
5. ^ Records and Averages - Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor Weather Forecasts on Yahoo! Weather. Accessed August 31, 2005.
6. ^ City Guide - Dance. arborweb.com. Accessed August 18, 2005.
7. ^ Ann Arbor Guide 2003-4. Ecurrent.com. Accessed August 17, 2005.
8. ^ Naked Mile Data Page. goodspeedupdate.com.
9. ^ Michigan's Ann Arbor Railroads - Building the Ann Arbor. Central Michigan University - Clarke Historical Library. Accessed September 1, 2005.
10. ^ Mulcahy, John (August 28, 2005). Is commuter rail finally on fast track? Federal grant gets Ann Arbor-Detroit link moving. Ann Arbor News. Accessed September 1, 2005.
11. ^ Water Treatment (2005). City of Ann Arbor. Accessed September 7, 2005.

References

• This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, which is in the public domain.

• Pictorial History of Ann Arbor (2003). Ann Arbor District Library
• Encyclopedia of Michigan. (1999). St. Clair Shores, MI: Somerset Publishers.
• Marwil, Jonathan. (1990). A History of Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
• Michigan Gazetteer. (1991). Wilmington, DE: American Historical Publications.
• Schmittroth, Linda (Ed.). (1994). Cities of the United States (4th ed.). Detroit: Gale Group.

External links

• City's official website
• Ann Arbor / University of Michigan Guide
• Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitor's Bureau
• Arborweb.com - Contains listing of events in Ann Arbor
• Ann Arbor Paper - Web version of the music, art and commentary magazine
• Ann Arbor is overrated.com - Irreverent blog on the city's foibles and shortcomings
• ArborBlogs - Index of popular Ann Arbor community weblogs
• The Huron Valley Community Network - Nonprofit informational network for Washtenaw County
• Ann Arbor Wikitravel guide - Similar in format to this article, but with a more casual, less encyclopedic emphasis

• Maps and aerial photos
  • Street map from Google Local or Yahoo! Maps
  • Topographic map from TopoZone
  • Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
  • Satellite image from Google Local or Microsoft Virtual Earth

de:Ann Arbor es:Ann Arbor eo:Arbaro de Ana, Miŝigano fr:Ann Arbor hi:ऐन आबर् pl:Ann Arbor sv:Ann Arbor, Michigan zh:安娜堡