Farwell, Michigan Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Farwell, Michigan
Village
Village of Farwell
Looking east along Main Street (M-115)
Location within Clare County
Farwell, Michigan Location in Michigan Show map of Michigan Farwell, Michigan Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Clare
Township	Surrey
Settled	1870
Incorporated	1879
Government
• Type	Village council
Area
• Total	1.41 sq mi (3.65 km²)
• Land	1.37 sq mi (3.55 km²)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.10 km²)
Elevation	928 ft (283 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	880
• Density	644.22/sq mi (248.77/km²)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)	48622
Area code(s)	989
FIPS code	26-27500
GNIS feature ID	0625851

Farwell is a village in Clare County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 880 at the 2020 census. The village is located within Surrey Township about 4.0 miles (6.4 km) west of the city of Clare.

Geography
- Major highways
History
Demographics
- 2010 census
Education
Images for kids
See also

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.41 square miles (3.65 km²), of which 1.37 square miles (3.55 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) (2.84) is water.

The south branch of the Tobacco River flows through the village and contains the Mill Pond reservoir.

Major highways

M-115 (Main Street) runs west–east through the center of the village.

History

The George and Martha Hitchcock House was built in 1885. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is also a Michigan State Historic Site.

Farwell was founded in 1870 by Edmund Hall, John Van Riper, and George Hitchcock. The Farwell post office opened on January 20, 1871, with George Hitchcock serving as the first postmaster. It was informally platted in 1871 and officially platted the following year by Josiah Littlefield of Ann Arbor. The Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad had plans of expanding into the area on a new route connecting Saginaw to Ludington, which was completed by the end of the decade. The new community was named after New York native Samuel Farwell, who had an interest in the railroad and was a construction contractor. In 1871, Farwell became the first county seat of Clare County but lost the seat of government to Harrison in 1879 after the Farwell courthouse burned down two years earlier. Farwell incorporated as a village in 1879.

In 1982, the Rock Road massacre occurred to the west of Farwell in Garfield Township. Due to its proximity to the village, it became known as the "Farwell Murders" and brought national attention to the area.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	521	—
1890	584	12.1%
1900	535	−8.4%
1910	522	−2.4%
1920	449	−14.0%
1930	422	−6.0%
1940	538	27.5%
1950	694	29.0%
1960	737	6.2%
1970	777	5.4%
1980	804	3.5%
1990	851	5.8%
2000	855	0.5%
2010	871	1.9%
2020	880	1.0%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 871 people, 373 households, and 229 families residing in the village. The population density was 645.2 inhabitants per square mile (249.1/km²). There were 411 housing units at an average density of 304.4 per square mile (117.5/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.8% White, 0.6% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.1% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.8% of the population.

There were 373 households, of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.3% were married couples living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.6% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.85.

The median age in the village was 40.4 years. 22% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.6% were from 25 to 44; 27.2% were from 45 to 64; and 18.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48.2% male and 51.8% female.

Education

Farwell is served by its own school district, Farwell Area Schools, which is centralized in the village and also serves several adjacent townships in both Clare and Isabella County.