May, James, 1756-1829

Marshal of the Michigan Territory.

James May (1756-1829) was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Wayne County (Mich.) and, later, Chief Justice. Arrest warrants and legal papers he signed may be found in the F. Navarre papers and Charles I. Walker Papers in the Clarke Historical Library. Hull served as Governor of Michigan, 1805-1813, and Griswold was Secretary of Michigan, 1805-1808. (For further information on Hull and Griswold see Michigan Biographies.).

Judge James May; native of Birmingham, England; chief justice of the common pleas; adjutant-general of militia for the territory of Michigan; supervisor of the township of Hamtramck in 1821; superintendent of the jail, 1817; prominent in civic affairs; died Jan. 19, 1829.

b. 1756; d. 1829. Chief Justice of the Court of common Pleas (Michigan).

James May was born in Birmingham, England in 1756. He came to Detroit in 1778, engaging in trade and manufacturing. As an early pioneer of Detroit, may lived under French, English and U.S. rule, and saw the change of flag at Detroit five times. May became a U.S. citizen in 1796, at which time he served as chief justice of the Court of Common Pleas. May built a stone house which became the Mansion House Hotel in 1836. James May died in Detroit on January 19, 1829.