RECRUITING: About Ann Arbor | Recruiting Home Page

Downtown Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor Area
Population - Ann Arbor: 114,024 (Washtenaw County pop. - 322,895)
Size - 28.2 square miles
Average Age - 27.3 years (almost 25% of Ann Arborites are between 18 and 24)
Education - 64.2 percent have four years of college or more
Weather - averages 31.25 inches of precipitation and 37.3 inches of snow avg. high 58.1 degrees Fahrenheit / avg. low 39.4 degrees Fahrenheit

History
Ann Arbor was founded in 1824 when John Allen and Elisha Rumsey left Detroit on a one-horse sleigh and headed west to establish a new community. Originally registered as Annarbour, it is believed that the "Ann" honors their wives Ann and Mary Ann and "arbour" refers to a grove or shady opening found in the Michigan woods. Folklore also states that the two men named the city after seeing their two wives talking in the shade of a tree. Eventually the words were separated and the town became known as Ann Arbor – it remains the only city in the world with that name.

Rankings

Employment Review Magazine rated Ann Arbor the 10th best city in the nation to live and work in June, 2002.

The Princeton Review rated Ann Arbor the 10th best college town in the nation in September, 2001.

American Style Magazine named Ann Arbor the 22nd best Arts Destination in the nation, 2001.

U.S. News and World Report ranked the world class University of Michigan Medical Center #7 in the nation on their annual 2001 Best Hospital Honor Roll.

Seventeen Magazine rated Ann Arbor one of the top ten places to live in 1999 for teens calling it the “quintessentially cool college town.”

Intelliquest ranked Washtenaw County #1 in a quality of life comparison against such cities as Seattle, Austin, Atlanta and San Jose.

Money Magazine rated Ann Arbor as the 6th best medium-sized town in the Midwest in 1998.

Ladies Home Journal ranked Ann Arbor the #1 most woman-friendly city in the United States in both 1998 & 1999, #2 in 2000 and 2001, and #3 in 2002.

Reader’s Digest polled 1,000 parents and selected Ann Arbor as one of the best places in the country to raise a family in their 1997 survey.

Reliastar Financial Corporation rated Ann Arbor as the #1 city in the United States to earn and save money for 2000.

Outside Magazine ranked Ann Arbor in 1999 the best place to raise a family based on the high quality schools and the numerous activities available for families.

Ladies' Home Journal ranked Ann Arbor in 1998 the best place for women to live – based on crime rates, education, job opportunities, health and child care, the presence of women in government and the strength of the local economy.

Kerrytown

** Information courtesy of U-M Admissions and City of Ann Arbor websites

Related Links

About Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor Convention and Visitors Bureau)

Ann Arbor Events Calendar (Arborweb)

Ann Arbor Visitor Information (Arborweb)

Ann Arbor News (MLive)

Ann Arbor Fun Facts (AACV)

Main Street