Toledo War

Some of you may ask, why is there a post regarding the Toledo War, during OSU/Michigan Football week? History shows that the rivalry between these two states started before the idea of football was even conceived.

The Toledo War (1835-1836), also known as the Ohio-Michigan War, was a boundary dispute between the two states. Based on conflicting state and federal legislation, both states claimed the Toledo Strip, near the commercially strategic Maumee Bay This became a problem when Michigan applied for statehood in the 1830s, and it attempted to include the disputed Toledo Strip. Ohio was able to temporarily stop Michigan's admission into the Union. Starting in 1835 the states passed legislation and formed militias to penalize citizens that submitted to the other state's authority. The militias were dispatched, but it amounted to mostly taunting and no casualties were reported, although it was claimed that shots were fired. Finally in 1836 President Andrew Jackson and Congress pressured Michigan to surrender the strip of land in exchange for statehood and three quarters of the Upper Peninsula. At the time, it appeared Michigan had received the short end of the stick, but later minerals such as copper and timber were discovered in large quantities in the UP.

Research assisted by web resources, including wikipedia.