Kalkaska County, Michigan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kalkaska County
U.S. county
Kalkaska County Government Offices in Kalkaska
Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
Michigan's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Founded	1840 (established) 1871 (organized)
Seat	Kalkaska
Largest village	Kalkaska
Area
• Total	571 sq mi (1,480 km2)
• Land	560 sq mi (1,500 km2)
• Water	11 sq mi (30 km2)  1.9%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	17,939
• Estimate  (2023)	18,490
• Density	31/sq mi (12/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	1st

Kalkaska County (/kælˈkæskə/ kal-KASS-kə) is located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, its population was 17,939. The county seat is Kalkaska.

Kalkaska County is part of the Traverse City metropolitan area. Although it is located on Michigan's Lower Peninsula, Kalkaska County is considered part of Northern Michigan.

History

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

Kalkaska County, originally named Wabassee County, was separated from Michilimackinac County in 1840, renamed in 1843. In 1851, Kalkaska County was attached to Grand Traverse County for legal purposes. The first settler in Kalkaska County was William Copeland, from England, who purchased land in the northwest corner of the county in 1855. Kalkaska County was organized in its own right on January 27, 1871. Crawford County was then temporarily attached to Kalkaska County for legal purposes.

Etymology

The county's name is a pseudo-Native American word coined by Henry Schoolcraft, a Michigan geographer and ethnologist. The name is thought to be a Chippewa word meaning flat or burned-over country. An alternative theory is that this is a neologism or neonym created by Henry Schoolcraft, originally spelled Calcasca. Some theorists suggest this is word play. Schoolcraft's family name had been Calcraft, and the Ks may have been added to make the name appear more like a Native American word.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 571 square miles (1,480 km²), of which 11 square miles (28 km²) (1.9%) are covered by water.

Kalkaska sand, the state soil of Michigan, was named after the county because of the large amounts deposited in the area from glaciers in the Ice Age.

Kalkaska County has over 80 lakes and 275 miles (443 km) of streams and rivers. Much of the county is marshland. County elevation ranges from 595 feet (181 m) to about 1,246 feet (380 m). This makes it one of the more uneven counties in the Lower Peninsula.

The Pere Marquette State Forest covers much of the county. Glaciers shaped the area, creating a unique regional ecosystem. A large portion of the area is the Grayling outwash plain, a 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.

Lakes

Rivers

Major highways

• US 131 – runs NE through the western part of the county. Enters at 4 miles (6.4 km) north of SW corner; exits into Antrim County near midpoint of north county line.
• M-66 – runs north–south through west-central part of county. Passes Kalkaska.
• M-72 – runs east and ESE through middle portion of county. Passes Kalkaska.

Adjacent counties

Communities

U.S. Census data map showing local municipal boundaries within Kalkaska County

Village

• Kalkaska (county seat)

Civil townships

Former townships

• Glade Township
• Wilson Township

Census-designated places

• Bear Lake
• Manistee Lake
• Rapid City
• South Boardman

Unincorporated communities

Demographics

At the 2010 United States census there were 16,571 people, 6,428 households, and 4,634 families residing in the county. The population density was 30 inhabitants per square mile (12/km²). There were 10,822 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (7.3/km²). By the 2020 census, its population was 17,939.

In 2010, the racial makeup of the county was 98.44% White, 0.21% Black or African American, 0.78% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, 0.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.6% were of German, 12.4% English, 10.4% Irish, 10.0% American, 6.3% Polish and 5.1% French ancestry. 98.8% spoke English as their first language.

Events

The National Trout Festival is an annual festival since 1936, held in April. It notes the heritage and sportsmanship of Kalkaska.

Education

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

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

• Excelsior Township School District #1
• Forest Area Community Schools
• Kalkaska Public Schools

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Kalkaska para niños