Stevens T. Mason.

• Position: People & Politics - Brief article

Stevens T. Mason, Michigan's "boy governor" and the youngest governor in American history, has not rested in peace since his death at 31 in 1843. He was appointed the state's acting territorial secretary at 19 and then acting territorial governor at 22. Influential in moving Michigan to statehood, Mason was elected the state's first governor in 1835 at age 24. As governor he established the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and initiated an ambitious state improvement plan that included three railroads and a canal. But he retired from politics and moved to New York City to start a law practice. When he died of pneumonia, he was buried in New York. In 1905, his remains were moved to Detroit...