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Crawford County, Michigan
Crawford County Building (Michigan)
Crawford County Building in Grayling
Map of Michigan highlighting Crawford County
Location in the state of Michigan
Map of the U.S
Michigan's location in the U.S.
Founded 1840[1]
Named for William Crawford
Seat Grayling
Largest city Grayling
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

563 sq mi (1,458 km²)
556 sq mi (1,440 km²)
7.0 sq mi (18 km²), 1.2%
Population
 - (2020)
 - Density

12,988
25/sq mi (10/km²)
Congressional district 1st
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website www.crawfordco.org

Crawford County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. Its population was 12,988 as of the 2020 census.[2] The county seat of Crawford County is Grayling, the county's only incorporated community.[3]

Crawford County is located in the Northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It contains land within three of Michigan's largest watersheds, belonging to the Au Sable, Manistee, and Muskegon rivers.

History[]

1842 Negissee Okkuddo Cheonoquet Wabbassee Shawwano Oscoda counties Michigan

A detail from A New Map of Michigan with its Canals, Roads & Distances (1842) by Henry Schenck Tanner, showing Crawford County as "Shawwano" (a misspelling of Shawono, the county's name from 1840 to 1843.[4]) Several nearby counties are also shown with names that would later be changed.

The county is named for Col. William Crawford,[5] a Revolutionary War soldier killed in 1782 while fighting Native Americans in Ohio. It was created by the Michigan Legislature in 1840 as Shawono County, then renamed Crawford County in 1843. "Shawono" was derived from an Ojibwe word, zhaawanong, meaning "from the south".[6] The county was administered by a succession of other Michigan counties prior to the organization of county government in 1879.[4][1]

Geography[]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 563 square miles (1,460 km2), of which 556 square miles (1,440 km2) is land and 7.0 square miles (18 km2) (1.2%) is water.[7] The county is part of Northern Michigan.

The county is part of the Au Sable State Forest, specifically the Grayling FMU (Alcona, Crawford, Oscoda, and northern Iosco counties). Glaciers shaped the area, creating a unique regional ecosystem. A large portion of the area is the so-called Grayling outwash plain, which consists of broad outwash plain including sandy ice-disintegration ridges; jack pine barrens, some white pine-red pine forest, and northern hardwood forest. Large lakes were created by glacial action.[8]

Major highways[]

  • I-75 I-75
  • Business Loop 75 BL I-75
  • Business Loop 75 BL I-75
  • US 127 US 127
  • M-18 M-18
  • M-72 M-72
  • M-93 M-93
  • County F-32 F-32
  • County F-97 F-97
  • County Highway 612

Adjacent counties[]

National protected area[]

  • Huron National Forest (part)

Demographics[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1880 1,159
1890 2,962 155.6%
1900 2,943 −0.6%
1910 3,934 33.7%
1920 4,049 2.9%
1930 3,097 −23.5%
1940 3,765 21.6%
1950 4,151 10.3%
1960 4,971 19.8%
1970 6,482 30.4%
1980 9,465 46.0%
1990 12,260 29.5%
2000 14,273 16.4%
2010 14,074 −1.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[9]
1790-1960[10] 1900-1990[11]
1990-2000[12] 2010-2020[2]

As of the census[13] of 2000, there were 14,273 people, 5,625 households, and 4,038 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 people per square mile (10/km2). There were 10,042 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (7/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.38% White, 1.50% Black or African American, 0.60% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 1.05% from two or more races. 0.99% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.8% were of German, 12.5% English, 10.1% American, 8.9% Irish, 7.4% Polish and 5.9% French ancestry. 97.7% spoke English and 1.5% Spanish as their first language.

There were 5,625 households, out of which 30.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.60% were married couples living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.20% were non-families. 24.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.50% under the age of 18, 6.30% from 18 to 24, 26.60% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 16.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 104.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,364, and the median income for a family was $37,056. Males had a median income of $31,504 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,903. About 10.00% of families and 12.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.60% of those under age 18 and 7.60% of those age 65 or over.

Government[]

United States presidential election results for Crawford County, Michigan[14]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 5,087 64.71% 2,672 33.99% 102 1.30%
2016 4,354 63.62% 2,110 30.83% 380 5.55%
2012 3,744 54.95% 2,994 43.94% 76 1.12%
2008 3,561 49.61% 3,441 47.94% 176 2.45%
2004 4,017 55.52% 3,126 43.21% 92 1.27%
2000 3,345 52.56% 2,790 43.84% 229 3.60%
1996 2,157 37.70% 2,666 46.60% 898 15.70%
1992 2,193 37.01% 2,252 38.01% 1,480 24.98%
1988 3,097 62.28% 1,825 36.70% 51 1.03%
1984 3,303 67.46% 1,558 31.82% 35 0.71%
1980 2,652 53.42% 1,826 36.78% 486 9.79%
1976 2,359 54.82% 1,889 43.90% 55 1.28%
1972 1,953 61.98% 1,143 36.27% 55 1.75%
1968 1,266 55.04% 845 36.74% 189 8.22%
1964 696 32.22% 1,464 67.78% 0 0.00%
1960 1,464 65.04% 783 34.78% 4 0.18%
1956 1,380 71.50% 547 28.34% 3 0.16%
1952 1,331 72.53% 490 26.70% 14 0.76%
1948 849 63.93% 455 34.26% 24 1.81%
1944 797 58.82% 550 40.59% 8 0.59%
1940 873 52.53% 777 46.75% 12 0.72%
1936 580 38.85% 876 58.67% 37 2.48%
1932 559 41.81% 755 56.47% 23 1.72%
1928 776 76.30% 237 23.30% 4 0.39%
1924 840 72.92% 163 14.15% 149 12.93%
1920 726 64.42% 361 32.03% 40 3.55%
1916 409 46.21% 450 50.85% 26 2.94%
1912 257 34.97% 185 25.17% 293 39.86%
1908 590 67.82% 237 27.24% 43 4.94%
1904 587 73.56% 190 23.81% 21 2.63%
1900 440 62.59% 252 35.85% 11 1.56%
1896 350 49.65% 350 49.65% 5 0.71%
1892 300 48.62% 306 49.59% 11 1.78%
1888 436 47.14% 479 51.78% 10 1.08%
1884 304 56.72% 223 41.60% 9 1.68%



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: Sierra Koch
  • Sheriff: Shawn M Kraycs
  • County Clerk/Register of Deeds: Sandra M. Moore
  • County Treasurer: Kate Wagner

(information as of June 2019l)

Communities[]

Crawford County, MI census map2

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

City[]

  • Grayling

Charter township[]

  • Grayling Charter Township

Civil townships[]

  • Beaver Creek Township
  • Frederic Township
  • Lovells Township
  • Maple Forest Township
  • South Branch Township

Unincorporated communities[]

  • Babbits Resort
  • Collens Landing
  • Danish Landing
  • Deerheart Valley
  • Eldorado
  • Five Corners
  • Forbush Corner
  • Frederic
  • Ishaward
  • Lake Margrethe
  • Louis Cabin Landing
  • Lovells
  • McIntyre Landing
  • Rasmus
  • Skyline Village
  • Wildwood

Ghost towns[]

  • Bucks
  • Deward
  • Pere Cheney

Historical markers[]

There are six recognized Michigan historical markers in the county:[15]

  • Beginning of State Reforestation
  • Chief Shoppenagon / Shoppenagon's Homesite
  • The Douglas House / Thomas E. Douglas
  • Michigan Grayling
  • Officer's Club
  • 32nd Red Arrow Division

See also[]

  • List of counties in Michigan
  • List of Michigan State Historic Sites in Crawford County, Michigan
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Crawford County, Michigan

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Bibliography on Crawford County". Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University. https://www.cmich.edu/library/clarke/AccessMaterials/Bibliographies/MichiganLocalHistory/Pages/crawford.aspx. 
  2. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/crawfordcountymichigan/POP010220. 
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  4. ^ a b Newberry Library. "Michigan: Individual County Chronologies". http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/documents/MI_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm. 
  5. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off.. pp. 95. https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ. 
  6. ^ "zhaawanong (adv loc) | The Ojibwe People's Dictionary". https://ojibwe.lib.umn.edu/main-entry/zhaawanong-adv-loc. 
  7. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_26.txt. 
  8. ^ "NPWRC :: Regional Landscape". usgs.gov. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/habitat/rlandscp/s7-2-2.htm. 
  9. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  10. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  11. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/mi190090.txt. 
  12. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  13. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov. 
  14. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS. 
  15. ^ "Michigan Historical Markers". michmarkers.com. http://www.michmarkers.com/Frameset.htm. 

External links[]

Template:Crawford County, Michigan Template:Northern Michigan

Coordinates: 44°41′N 84°37′W / 44.68, -84.61

This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Crawford County, Michigan. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.
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