ANN ARBOR, MI - When Hillary Clinton visited Ann Arbor as first lady in 1996, it was a big deal for a lot of people, especially her fan club.

"It was big, big, big news here in town," recalls Janine Easter, coordinator of the Hillary Clinton fan club in Ann Arbor, who was instrumental in making the visit happen after meeting Clinton at the White House four months earlier.

"It was just amazing -- all the security that came accompanying Hillary, you know, and that line of people waiting in Borders and outside," Easter said in a recent interview, reflecting on Clinton's visit, now more than 20 years ago.

World's largest Hillary Clinton fan club chapter began in Ann Arbor 22 years ago

Watch video of first lady Hillary Clinton speaking in Ann Arbor in 1996

About 2,400 people, mostly women, braved a chilly drizzle and stood in line for hours for a chance to meet the first lady on Jan. 17, 1996.

It was a Wednesday. Some arrived at the Borders bookstore on Liberty Street downtown as early as 6:30 a.m. to stand in line.

Clinton wasn't expected to arrive until noon.

The first lady was promoting her new book, "It Takes A Village," and she stopped through Ann Arbor on a 10-city tour.

"The line was absolutely amazing," Easter said of the line of people on the sidewalk, which snaked up Liberty Street, then along State Street, down William to Maynard, and then back down the other side of William to State.

The Associated Press would later report that though polls showed Clinton's popularity slipping, there was no sign of that in Ann Arbor.

Supporters stood in line and in the street, which was closed off by police. Some held signs with messages such as "We Love You Hillary" and "Hillary Puts Children First." There also were some less-flattering signs as her visit attracted the attention of a handful of Republican protesters.

The Michigan Theater marquee across from Borders read, "Welcome Hillary," while the State Theatre marquee had a similar message.

Inside the Michigan Theater lobby, members of the local chapter of Clinton's fan club waited patiently for the first lady to make her way over for a private reception after she was done handing out signed copies of her book.

Before arriving at Borders, Clinton also spent an hour and a half with parents and young patients at the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor that morning.

Clinton, who donated profits from her book to children's hospitals, said she was pleased to make her first visit after years of hearing about Mott's reputation as an excellent children's hospital. Giant stuffed versions of Mickey Mouse, Barney the dinosaur and Cookie Monster served as the backdrop for her visit there.

Clinton later arrived at Borders in a black limousine and entered the building through a back door. She greeted fans in a secure area in the back of the store, and people had to be searched with metal detectors by the Secret Service and check bags and umbrellas at a table before going through.

Fan club members handed out cookies -- baked from Clinton's own recipe -- to people standing in line outside.

Easter said she got to meet Clinton at Borders during a small gathering with local female politicians. And then over at the Michigan Theater afterward, about 100 or so Clinton fan club members gathered for a private reception.

A burst of cheers echoed throughout the theater lobby as Clinton made her way across Liberty Street, escorted by Secret Service agents.

"I just remember her coming. We were so excited to see her," said Leah Gunn, one of the fan club members.

"Hillary's fans get their wish," read the front-page headline in The Ann Arbor News the next day, along with a package of stories documenting the visit.

"Once she arrived in the theater, the first lady was greeted with 15 minutes of thunderous applause," The News reported.

Clinton made her way to a microphone on the landing of the stairs leading to the theater balcony and gave a brief speech.

"I really cannot adequately express my appreciation," the first lady said as she looked out over the crowd. "You really cannot imagine what it's like to reach out and shake hands and see your face on a T-shirt."

Some members of the fan club, including Easter, wore shirts they made featuring a photo of Clinton.

Clinton thanked them for supporting what she said she and her husband were trying to do to make the world a better place.

As she shook hands after her brief speech, the crowd burst into a spontaneous chanting of "four more years."

And then before she stepped out the door, waving farewell to her cheering fans, the first lady gave Easter a big hug.

The News reported that two young sisters, 9-year-old Wendy and 12-year-old Rachel Constance of Ann Arbor, wore their Clinton fan club shirts that day and waited in line for more than three hours before getting into Borders.

"She would make a great woman president," Wendy said at the time.

Clinton made one other public appearance in Ann Arbor as first lady after that, when she returned two years later to speak at the University of Michigan.

The university invited her to give a speech to conclude the Year of the Humanities and Arts, the theme for the 1997-98 school year.

Clinton addressed a crowd of roughly 4,000 people, including U-M students, faculty and community members, at Hill Auditorium on April 28, 1998.

During a 40-minute speech, Clinton recalled how she met her husband at Yale Law School and how they went to a museum on their first date. She denounced consumerism while saying the antidote is supporting the arts and humanities.

She said she found it disheartening when Congress, local school boards and state governments decree public support of the arts is an unaffordable luxury.

"I believe it is a necessity that we must afford," she said, her words interrupted by applause.

The News wrote at the time that Clinton spoke eloquently and powerfully, barely looking at her notes. Clinton said she wondered how the country would survive as a democracy and retain a sense of citizenship when there was so much pressure on a daily basis to move toward a society of consumers.

Clinton applauded the university's interest in maintaining a diverse campus, while emphasizing the important role universities play in society.

"Universities have a special role to play in making sure we are all conscious of the importance of the arts and humanities because it is the university that provides a safe haven for unconventional ideas and thoughts, that gives space for people to exercise their imaginations, that are incubators of culture," she said. "These are the places where we can test our ideas, our emotions, our experiences and attitudes, which is why we do not need to do it in front of a mirror. We need to do it in a larger community which reflects back to us new ideas."

Ahead of her visit, a group called People With Moral Courage took out an ad in the newspaper and encouraged people to send notes voicing their disgust about Clinton's visit, so they could be shared with university officials.

Easter said a group of about 60 or so fan club members obtained a block of tickets for the event to show their support for the first lady.

"It was very funny, because we got to go sit in the front row, some of us. Other fans were in the back," she said. "And we were wearing our T-shirts. When she walked in ... we opened our jackets, and she just laughed seeing us. She loves to see us. It was nice for her to have us."

Easter added, "She's fond of Ann Arbor. She likes Ann Arbor."

There was a reception for Clinton at the Escoffier restaurant inside the Bell Tower Hotel on Thayer Street after the speech at Hill.

Easter said fan club members got a chance to meet with Clinton after the speech, and they took a group photo at the first lady's request.

Clinton hasn't made any public appearances in Ann Arbor in several years now, nor has she campaigned here this year during her run for president, though she has come close, stopping in Flint and Detroit. Surrogates from Madeleine Albright to Bernie Sanders have campaigned in Ann Arbor on her behalf recently, and Clinton's running mate, Tim Kaine, has stopped through Ann Arbor.

Easter said she would have liked to see Clinton campaign in Ann Arbor ahead of the Nov. 8 election and reconnect with her fan club here.

"But, you know, I think she's got Ann Arbor sewn up," she said. "Why would she come here?"