I often wondered how cities named their streets and about the original names of institutions. For instance the city of Detroit, most of the streets are named after political figures in Michigan. Such as, Bagley, Pingree, Groesbeck, and Cass were all governors of Michigan. Streets named Mack Avenue, Van Dyke, Couzens, Lodge and Jefferies freeways wre named after mayors of Detroit. I still wonder if this was the norm for many cities.
That brings us to name's of institutions we are familiar with that had a entirely different name when they were first established. As an example, lets look at Michigan colleges. Here are some great examples of how their names have changed over the years. I will give you their original name and how it is known today. Michigan Agricultural College ( Michigan State University), The Michigan School of Mines ( Michigan Technology University), and General Institute of Flint (Kettering University). Isn't it amazing how progress and the maturity of a state affects the name of institutions? Stay tuned for the next post. You will be surprised.
Until next time,
Cinda
Cinda,
ReplyDeleteThis post was very interesting. I knew that streets were named after political figures but I was unaware about how the college names have changed. It is very amazing that our state's progress over the years has such an impact on these certain topics. I would be curious to know if this is still how they determine street names. I also wonder if there have been any other colleges that have changed their name over time that we are unaware of. Great post!