Missaukee County, Michigan: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 05:00, 30 January 2025

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File:1842 Manistee Kawtawwabet Missaukee Mickenauk Ogemaw Kanotin Notipeskago Aishcum Unwattin Kaykakee Gladwin Arenac counties Michigan.jpg

1842 map, showing Missaukee County, then existing only on paper.

Missaukee County (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell) is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,052.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref> The county seat is Lake City.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref>

Missaukee County is part of the Cadillac, MI micropolitan statistical area. The county is considered to be part of Northern Michigan.

History

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Missaukee County was partitioned from Mackinac County, on April 1, 1840,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> due to expected population growth. In 1851, the county was attached to Grand Traverse County for legal purposes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was subsequently attached to Manistee County in 1855 and Wexford County in 1869, before being organized in its own right in 1871.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Etymology

Missaukee County may be named after a prominent Ottawa chief, Nesaukee, who signed the treaties of 1831 and 1833.<ref name="Clark" /><ref>Michigan History, Arts and Libraries on sources of County names. Template:Webarchive</ref> However, it is also said that "Nesaukee" could be interpreted as 'large mouth of the river.' <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (1.6%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Lakes and rivers

There are 33 natural freshwater lakes in Missaukee County.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The largest of these, Lake Missaukee, has a surface area of Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The lakes and streams in much of the county drain into the Muskegon River, which flows generally north to south through its eastern tier of townships. The Template:Convert<ref name=NHD>U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Template:Webarchive, accessed November 21, 2011</ref> Clam River, a tributary of the Muskegon, flows generally west to east through the county. The Reedsburg Dam is located within Missaukee County. The Manistee River also flows southwesterly through the extreme northwest of the county.

Major highways

Template:Jct is a short east–west route in the northwest of the county, connecting M-66 near Lake City to US Highway 131 at Manton.
Template:Jct is an east–west route traversing the Lower Peninsula.
Template:Jct is a north–south route running from the Indiana border to US Highway 31 in Charlevoix.

Adjacent counties

Kalkaska County - north
Crawford County - northeast
Roscommon County - east
Clare County - southeast
Osceola County - southwest
Wexford County - west
Grand Traverse County - northwest

Communities

File:Missaukee County, MI census map.png

U.S. Census data map showing local municipal boundaries within Missaukee County. Shaded areas represent incorporated cities.

Cities

Lake City (county seat)
McBain

Civil townships

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Census-designated place

Other unincorporated communities

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Demographics

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At the census<ref name="GR2">Template:Cite web</ref> of 2000, there were 14,478 people, 5,450 households, and 4,043 families residing in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 8,621 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 97.50% White, 0.20% Black or African American, 0.50% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. 1.17% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.6% were of Dutch, 18.3% German, 10.8% American, 10.0% English and 7.4% Irish ancestry. 97.9% spoke English and 1.1% Spanish as their first language. By 2020, the county had a population of 15,052, and its racial and ethnic makeup was predominantly non-Hispanic white.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $35,224, and the median income for a family was $39,057. Males had a median income of $30,565 versus $20,905 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,072. About 8.20% of families and 10.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 10.40% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

The Christian Reformed Church in North America was the biggest denomination in the county with 2,010 members and 7 congregations, almost 50% of the counties population adhere to the CRCNA,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> followed by the Reformed Church in America with 3 congregations and 830 members, the third is the United Methodist Church with 3 churches and 500 members, the PC(USA) has 2 congregations and 200 members, but the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, the Lutherans (ELCA), baptists are also represented with 1 congregations each.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Missaukee County is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord and has 1 congregations and 800 members.<ref name="Diocese of Gaylord">Template:Cite web</ref> There is an Amish community in the county, founded in 2000, with two church districts in 2013.<ref>Joseph F. Donnermeyer and David Luthy: Amish Settlements across America, 2013, page 115.</ref>

Education

The Wexford-Missaukee Intermediate School District, based in Cadillac, services the school districts in the county. The intermediate school district offers regional special education services and technical career programs to students of its districts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Missaukee County is served by two regular public school districts, Lake City Area School District and McBain Rural Agricultural Schools.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Missaukee County has one private school, Northern Michigan Christian School.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Government and politics

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

Prosecuting Attorney: David DenHouten
Sheriff: Wilbur "Wil" Yancer
County Clerk/Register of Deeds: Jessica Nielsen
County Treasurer: Lori Cox
Road Commissioners: Jack McGee; Larry Norman; Lonny Lutke

(information as of February 2021)

Election history

Missaukee County is one of Michigan's most strongly Republican counties, and one of the most consistently Republican in the nation since that party was founded. No Democratic presidential candidate has ever won Missaukee County since it was organized:<ref>Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of U.S. Presidential Elections, 1868-2004, pp. 223-227 Template:ISBN</ref> even Lyndon Johnson in 1964 when he swept the Northeast received no more than 42 percent of the county's vote,<ref>Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections; 1964 Presidential General Election Data Graphs – Michigan</ref> which made Missaukee Barry Goldwater’s strongest county north or east of the Great Lakes. No Democrat since has received more than Barack Obama's 38 percent in 2008. In 2004, Republican George W. Bush received 68.1% in Missaukee County, his second highest percentage among Michigan's 83 counties. In 2008, Republican candidate John McCain was held down to below 60 percent, the only time and it has happened since 1964 without a strong third-party showing (Ross Perot in both 1992 and 1996) and just the second time since 1936. Regardless, it was still his second-strongest county in Michigan after Ottawa County, as he won by 21 points while Barack Obama carried the state by 16.5 points.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2016, 2020, and 2024, the county was Donald Trump's strongest in Michigan as he won it all three times by more than 50 points. In 2002, Republican gubernatorial nominee Dick Posthumus received 66.1% in Missaukee, which also ranked it as the #2 most Republican county in the state.

Despite its strong Republican leanings, Missaukee County has voted for Democratic gubernatorial candidates on two rare occasions, those being for James Blanchard in 1986 and William B. Fitzgerald Jr. in 1978.

References

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Bibliography

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External links

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