Mount Pleasant, MI

Mount Pleasant is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 34,913 at the 2010 census. It is a suburb of Detroit and part of the Detroit metropolitan area. Mount Pleasant is home to several large shopping malls, including The Mall at Troy and The Village at Troy, as well as two professional sports teams: the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The city's economy has been based on retail sales and services since its inception; however, with suburbanization throughout Metro Detroit over recent decades, Mount Pleasant has seen an increase in residential development as well. According to Forbes magazine, Mount Pleasant was ranked No. 2 on its list of "America's Best Places for Business and Careers" in 2018.

Mount Pleasant began as a small farming community in 1818 when General William Hull purchased land from local Native Americans for $1 per acre. Hull named his farm " Oakland", after the oak trees that grew abundantly on his property. In 1825, Hull sold his farm to John Ransom who built a sawmill on what would become Main Street (now Michigan Avenue). In 1835, Ransom sold Oakland to James McMillan who built a gristmill near what is now Park Avenue South and McMillan Road (now McNichols Road). By 1840, there were three mills operating in Oakland Township: a flour mill operated by James McMillan & Sons; a sawmill operated by John Ransom & Sons; and a carding mill operated by Archibald Kennedy & Sons.

In 1851, Elijah Hough founded Houghton Mifflin Company in Boston which published textbooks used throughout America's public schools until 1994 when it was merged into Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publishers Incorporated which remains headquartered in Mount Pleasant today with approximately 1,000 employees across six divisions including education publishing which includes McGraw-Hill Education which acquired Houghton Mifflin from Reed Elsevier for $2 billion USD on January 27th 2019 . In 1865 Elijah Hough moved his company from Boston to Mt Pleasant where he established its first manufacturing plant - initially producing schoolbooks - employing 50 people by 1870 . By 1880 Houghton Mifflin had grown to 300 employees with plants producing books , stationery , toys , cigars , wallpaper , carpets and other household items . In 1896 MtPleasant became incorporated as a village . Today there are more than 100 businesses located within city limits reflecting MtPleasant’s diverse economy including technology companies like Quicken Loans Inc., automotive companies like Ford Motor Company LLC., healthcare providers like McLaren Health Care LLC., financial institutions like Fifth Third Bank NA and retailers such as Macy’s Inc., Sears Holdings Corporation and JCPenney Co.. With so many businesses located here it’s no wonder Forbes rated MtPleasant #2 on their list of “America’s Best Places for Business And Careers!”