Joseph Campau

Joseph Campau (February 20, 1769 – May 13, 1863[a]) was among the leading citizens and wealthiest landowners in Detroit, Michigan, at the beginning of the 19th century.

Campau was a Roman Catholic until he was excommunicated for selling whiskey to Native Americans and having joined the Masons.

Jacques sold furs, grains, and bread at "one of the finest merchant stores" in Detroit by the 1740s, according to Clarence M.

He purchased goods from Boston, the first person to do so in Detroit, and sold them at his store on Atwater.

[6] Campau was the first in the city's real estate industry to sell and lease houses that had been built on vacant lots.

[5] He was sometimes considered a "slum lord" who was likely to charge late fees with high interest rates to delinquent tenants.

[10] Campau bought a nine-year-old African boy in Montreal as a slave who was to be freed at 21 years of age.

[2] The Masons held the largest funeral in the city's history until that time for Campau.

[3] Joseph Campau Street in Hamtramck and Detroit was named for him,[2] and by association, Jos.

Campau lived in a log house on the south side of Jefferson Avenue, between Shelby and Griswold, that was built after the fire of 1805.

[1] One of the oldest residences in Detroit, it was built on land that was originally part of the Joseph Campau farm.