William W. Hannan

William Washington Hannan (July 4, 1854 – December 24, 1917) was a real estate developer and the first president of the National Association of Real Estate Exchanges (now National Association of Realtors).

Early years Hannan was born in Rochester, New York in 1854. He moved to Dowagiac, Michigan, at age two. He graduated from Dowagiac High School in 1873 and enrolled at the preparatory school at Oberlin College in Ohio from 1874-1876. While attending Michigan, Hannan won a reputation as one of the university's best athletes and "made an especially good record as a sprinter." and for the first intercollegiate football team to represent the University of Michigan, as a "rusher" for the 1879 Michigan Wolverines football team. While studying law at Michigan, he also worked as the "engrossing and enrolling clerk" in the lower house of the Michigan State Legislature. Hannan net founded the Hannan Real Estate Exchange, which he operated for more than 30 years. By 1891, Hannan had established himself at "the top of the list" among Detroit's real estate men. The Hannan Exchange handled many of the Detroit's large real estate transactions. He was involved in the sale of land at Griswold and Congress Streets where the new owners built the 23-story Ford Building, which was considered "one of the finest office structures in the city," The Medbury's-Grove Lawn Subdivisions Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

Hannan also became known as one of the leading builders of apartment buildings west of New York. a list of buildings and locations across the United States in danger of demolition or damage due to neglect. In May 2005, the building was demolished by its owner Ilitch Holdings to make room for a parking lot. The Pasadena, an early example of upper-class, multi-unit housing, at 2170 East Jefferson Avenue, still exists and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

In 1909, Hannan served as the first president of the National Association of Real Estate Exchanges (now National Association of Realtors). Hannan was also a member of the Detroit Board of Estimates and the Detroit Board of Commerce, one of the founders of the Detroit Athletic Club,

Family and death In 1881, he married Luella Greene Beaman. Hannan had no children, and, in 1915, his nephew Guy S. Greene assumed leadership of the Hannan Exchange. Hannan died in December 1918. At the time of his death, Hannan's estate was estimated at more than $4 million. He left two-thirds of his estate to Detroit charities, including the Children's Aid Society.