People have moved to Michigan for various reason, but it all comes down to survival. At the time thousands of slaves used the underground railroad, which lays in the south of Michigan, to escape being used and abused. People want to be treated like people, but in the 1800’s African Americans freedom lied within their owner’s hands as if they were property. Henry Bibb wrote to his capture William Gatewood in 1844 from the underground railroad after he escaped the torture. He escaped America’s harsh ways going from the railroads to Canada, which opened the opportunity of freedom. George Cannon’s opportunity also sprung in Michigan, where he set out a voyage with many other men to the Copper Country eager to find cooper. This voyage lasted a couple