Ransom Sheldon

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Ransom Sheldon was the founder of Houghton, a city in the county of Houghton, Michigan. Around 1850, Sheldon bought land near Portage Lake and later opened a store on southern side. (Ten years later he would build Pewabic House, the oldest still-extant building in Hancock, Michigan.[1])

An investor in several lumber yards, in 1871 he was elected as president of the town, a position he held for seven years until his death. The main street of Houghton, variously called "Sheldon Street," (inaccurately) "Shelden Avenue" and "Sheldon Avenue," was named in Sheldon's honour, as was the "Sheldon Center".