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Antrim County, Michigan facts for kids

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Antrim County
U.S. county
Antrim County Courthouse
Antrim County Courthouse
Map of Michigan highlighting Antrim County
Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
Map of the United States highlighting Michigan
Michigan's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Michigan
Founded 1840 (authorized)
1863 (organized)
Named for County Antrim
Seat Bellaire
Largest village Elk Rapids
Area
 • Total 602 sq mi (1,560 km2)
 • Land 476 sq mi (1,230 km2)
 • Water 126 sq mi (330 km2)  21%%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 23,431
 • Density 50/sq mi (20/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 1st
Website https://www.antrimcounty.org/

Antrim County (/ˈæntrəm/ AN-trəm) is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,431. The county seat is Bellaire. The name is taken from County Antrim in Northern Ireland.

Antrim County is home to Torch Lake, Michigan's deepest and second-largest inland lake. Torch Lake, famous for its clear and blue waters, is part of the Chain of Lakes Watershed, most of which lies within Antrim County. The county is bordered to the west by Grand Traverse Bay, a bay of Lake Michigan.

History

1842 Leelenaw Omeena Negissee Wabbassee Okkuddo Shawwano counties Michigan
A detail from A New Map of Michigan with its Canals, Roads & Distances (1842) by Henry Schenck Tanner, showing Antrim County during the period when it was named Meegisee County, its name from 1840 to 1843. The name is misspelled as "Negissee" on the map. Several nearby counties are also shown with names that would later be changed.
Elk River Chain of Lakes Map US MI
Map of the Chain of Lakes, the watershed of which dominates much of western Antrim County.
See also: History of Northern Michigan

Meegisee County (/miːɡəsi/ mee-GƏ-see) was separated from Michilimackinac County as an unorganized county in 1840. It took its name from a Chippewa chief who signed the 1821 Treaty of Chicago and the 1826 Treaty of Mississinewas. Meegisee also derives from the Ojibwe migizi, meaning bald eagle. The county was renamed Antrim County in 1843, one of the Irish names given to five renamed Michigan counties at that time, supposedly in deference to the increasing number of settlers of Irish heritage in Michigan at that time. In the text of the 1843 legislative act, the name was misspelled as "Antim". In 1851, for governmental purposes, Antrim County was attached to Grand Traverse County.

Separate county government was organized in 1863. The county seat was originally located in Elk Rapids, but was moved to Bellaire in 1904 after 25 years of litigation. In 1950 its population was 10,721.

YMCA Camp Hayo-Went-Ha, the oldest American summer camp that sits on its original site, was opened on the shore of Torch Lake in Central Lake Township in 1904.

Antrim County, which has reliably elected Republicans, was in national headlines during the 2020 presidential election because the unofficial tally showed Biden surprisingly ahead on election night. When the County Clerk realized that it was caused by human error, she corrected the tally before submitting to the Secretary of State for certification. Nonetheless, this error and a related lawsuit have been cited in multiple election conspiracies.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 602 square miles (1,560 km2), of which 476 square miles (1,230 km2) is land and 126 square miles (330 km2) (21%) is water.

Antrim County is flanked to the west by Grand Traverse Bay, a bay of Lake Michigan. Most of the bodies of water within the Chain of Lakes, including Torch Lake, are within Antrim County.

Lakes

Rivers

Adjacent counties

By land

By water

Communities

Antrim County, MI census map
U.S. Census data map showing local municipal boundaries within Antrim County. The small red sections denote territory of the Grand Traverse Indian Reservation.

Villages

Civil townships

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Ghost towns

  • Antrim City
  • Chestonia
  • Comfort
  • Creswell
  • Elgin
  • Essex
  • Green River
  • Wetzel

Indian reservations

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1860 179 —
1870 1,985 1,008.9%
1880 5,237 163.8%
1890 10,413 98.8%
1900 16,568 59.1%
1910 15,692 −5.3%
1920 11,543 −26.4%
1930 9,979 −13.5%
1940 10,964 9.9%
1950 10,721 −2.2%
1960 10,373 −3.2%
1970 12,612 21.6%
1980 16,194 28.4%
1990 18,185 12.3%
2000 23,110 27.1%
2010 23,580 2.0%
2020 23,431 −0.6%
2023 (est.) 24,409 3.5%
US Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2018

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 23,580 people, 9,890 households, and 6,925 families in the county. By 2020, its population was 23,431.

Education

The Northwest Educational Services, based in Traverse City, services the students in the county along with those of Benzie, Grand Traverse, Leelanau, and Kalkaska. The intermediate school district offers regional special education services, early education and English learner programs, and technical career pathways for students of its districts.

Antrim County is served by the following regular public school districts:

  • Alba Public Schools
  • Bellaire Public Schools
  • Boyne City Public Schools
  • Boyne Falls Public School District
  • Central Lake Public Schools
  • Charlevoix Public Schools
  • East Jordan Public Schools
  • Elk Rapids Schools
  • Ellsworth Community Schools
  • Gaylord Community Schools
  • Mancelona Public Schools

Antrim County has the one private school, the Ebenezer Christian School (Christian).

Transportation

Torch Lake Antrim County (July 2019)
View of Torch Lake.
M-88 Intermediate River Bridge
M-88 bridge over the Intermediate River in Bellaire.

State-maintained highways

  • US 31 is a north–south highway that runs along the shore of Grand Traverse Bay in western Antrim County, passing through the communities of Elk Rapids, Torch Lake, Eastport, and Atwood. South of Antrim County, US 31 enters Traverse City, and continues further south along the Lake Michigan, passing cities such as Manistee, Ludington, Muskegon, Grand Haven, Holland, and Benton Harbor. North of Antrim County, US 31 passes through Charlevoix and Petoskey before terminating at Interstate 75 south of Mackinaw City.
  • US 131 in Antrim County follows a largely southwest–northeast route in the pastoral east of the county, passing through the communities of Mancelona and Alba. Following a north–south route further inland than US 31, the highway passes through cities to the south such as Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids and Cadillac. North of Antrim County, the highway terminates at US 31 in Petoskey.
  • M-32 is an east–west highway in northeastern Antrim County. The highway begins at East Jordan, just north of the Antrim County line, and continues east toward Elmira, Gaylord, Atlanta, Hillman, and Alpena. In Antrim County, M-32 shares a brief concurrency with US 131.
  • M-66 is a north–south highway that runs through central Antrim County. The highway enters from the south via a concurrency with US 131. At Mancelona, M-66 takes on an independent route, running north to East Jordan before terminating at US 31 at Charlevoix. South of Antrim County, M-66 runs through communities such as Sturgis, Battle Creek, Ionia, Lake City, and Kalkaska.
  • M-88 is an s-shaped highway, signed as an east–west route, that runs entirely within Antrim County. The highway serves to connect Antrim County's interior villages, Bellaire and Central Lake, with US 31 at Eastport and US 131/M-66 at Mancelona.
Elk Rapids, Michigan (July 2019)
Downtown Elk Rapids.

County-designated highways

  • C-38 serves as an easterly extension of M-88. The highway begins at US 131/M-66 in Mancelona, and continues east to Otsego County.
  • C-42 serves as a cutoff between US 131 at Alba and M-32 west of Gaylord in Otsego County.
  • C-48 is an east–west route in northwest Antrim County, connecting US 31 near Atwood to the village of Ellsworth and M-66 at East Jordan.
  • C-65 is a north–south route in northern Antrim County, connecting Ellsworth to US 31 in Charlevoix County.
  • C-73 is a short route in northeastern Antrim County, serving as a direct route between M-32 and M-75 near Boyne City.

Airports

  • Antrim County Airport - county-owned public-use airport, northeast of Bellaire, for general aviation. One paved runway. No airline service.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Antrim (Míchigan) para niños

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