Elba Township, Lapeer County, Michigan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Elba Township, Michigan
Civil township
Location within Lapeer County
Elba Township, Lapeer County, Michigan Location in Michigan Show map of Michigan Elba Township, Lapeer County, Michigan Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Lapeer
Area
• Total	34.0 sq mi (88.1 km2)
• Land	32.8 sq mi (84.9 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3.1 km2)
Elevation	850 ft (259 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	5,235
• Density	153.97/sq mi (59.42/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	48446 (Lapeer), 48455 (Metamora)
FIPS code	26-25160
GNIS feature ID	1626222

Elba Township is a special kind of local government area called a civil township. It's located in Lapeer County within the U.S. state of Michigan. In 2020, about 5,235 people lived here.

History of Elba Township

Elba Township was officially created in the year 1838. It has been a part of Michigan for a long time.

Communities in Elba Township

Elba Township is home to a few different communities. Some are small towns, while others are parts of bigger cities.

The Community of Elba

• Elba is a small, unincorporated community within the township. This means it's a recognized place but doesn't have its own separate local government like a city or village.
• The first European settlers arrived here in 1835. They were Hozial Howland and his son Ira, who came from Rhode Island.
• The community of Elba itself was founded later, in 1871.
• A post office opened in Elba on December 26, 1871. John Winship was the first person in charge of it.
• This post office served the community for many years before closing on September 30, 1941.
• Elba was also a stop on the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, which helped connect it to other places.

Nearby Cities and Services

• The city of Lapeer is located just northeast of Elba Township.
• Some land from Elba Township is actually part of Lapeer.
• The Lapeer post office, with its ZIP code 48446, provides mail service to almost all of Elba Township.
• The village of Metamora is found to the southeast.
• The Metamora post office, with ZIP code 48455, also serves a small part of southeastern Elba Township.

Geography of Elba Township

Elba Township covers a total area of about 34.0 square miles (which is 88.1 square kilometers).

• Most of this area, about 32.8 square miles (84.9 square kilometers), is land.
• The rest, about 1.2 square miles (3.1 square kilometers), is water. This means about 3.56% of the township is covered by water, like lakes or rivers.

People of Elba Township

Let's look at who lives in Elba Township.

Population and Households

• According to a census taken in 2000, there were 5,462 people living in the township.
• These people lived in 1,940 different homes, called households.
• Out of these households, 1,550 were families.

Diversity and Backgrounds

• Most people in Elba Township are White.
• There are also smaller groups of African American, Native American, and Asian people.
• Some residents are of Hispanic or Latino background.
• An interesting fact is that many people in Elba Township have Czech or Slovak roots. About 9% are of Czech descent and 7% are of Slovak descent. This makes Elba one of the largest Czech/Slovak communities in Michigan based on population percentage.

Age Groups

• The population in Elba Township includes people of all ages.
• About 26.1% of the people are under 18 years old.
• About 30.5% are young adults between 25 and 44 years old.
• Around 9.3% of the population is 65 years old or older.
• The average age in the township in 2000 was 38 years.