Copies of family letters and photos. The collection includes one CD-ROM containing scanned images and transcribed documents and some paper copies.
William Upjohn was born June 10, 1770 in Shaftesbury, England. Upjohn was a surveyor, land agent, appraiser of timber, and Methodist lay preacher at St. Rumbold's Church in Shaston, England. He married Mary Standard in 1796 and together they had twelve children -- nine girls and three boys. In the mid 1820s, England was in the midst of an economic depression, so William sent two of his sons to America to investigate the possibility of moving there. After two years, one of his sons (Uriah Upjohn) returned to England with the recommendation that the entire family immigrate to America.
Upon their arrival in New York, William and his sons William and Uriah set out to examine farm and mill properties in the upper part of New York State. The family spent the winter of 1830-31 in Hyde Park, then moved to the town of Greenbush near Albany, ultimately settling in the Pittsford suburb of Rochester.
While in Pittsford, Uriah and the younger William attended the College of Physician and Surgeons at the New York Hospital, graduating in 1834. After spending a year working on their parents' farm, the two brothers moved to Michigan, eventually settling in Richland and Hastings.
The elder William died August 26, 1847. The younger William, in addition to his medical career, served as Regent of the University of Michigan (U-M). During the Civil War, he served as Surgeon-in-Chief of the First Brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division of the Army of the Potomac. He died August 2, 1887.
Uriah Upjohn propsered as a physician. Many of his children attended U-M and received degrees in medicine and related fields.
