Litchfield, Michigan Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Litchfield, Michigan
City
City of Litchfield
Downtown at the intersection of M-49 and M-99
Location within Hillsdale County
Litchfield, Michigan Location in Michigan Show map of Michigan Litchfield, Michigan Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Hillsdale
Settled	1834
Platted	1836
Incorporated	1877 (village) 1970 (city)
Government
• Type	Council–manager
Area
• Total	2.81 sq mi (7.28 km²)
• Land	2.78 sq mi (7.20 km²)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.10 km²)
Elevation	1,024 ft (312 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	1,399
• Density	503.96/sq mi (194.55/km²)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)	49252
Area code(s)	517
FIPS code	26-47980
GNIS feature ID	0630540

Litchfield is a city in Hillsdale County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,399 at the 2020 census.

The city is surrounded by Litchfield Township, but the two are administered autonomously.

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

History

The area was first settled by Henry Stevens in 1834. It was platted in 1836 by Hervey Smith and his son David, and the community was named Smithsville. Hervey became the first postmaster when the post office opened on February 3, 1837. The post office was named Columbus, and it was renamed to Litchfield on August 12, 1837. Stevens proposed the name after Litchfield, Connecticut, where many of the early settlers originated. Litchfield incorporated as a village in 1877. The village was part of Litchfield Township until it incorporated as a city in 1970.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.81 square miles (7.28 km²), of which 2.78 square miles (7.20 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) (1.42%) is water.

The St. Joseph River flows through the city. The North Country Trail also runs through the center of the city.

Major highways

M-49 (S. Chicago Street) enters the city from the south and has its northern terminus at M-99.
M-99 runs through the downtown area of the city.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	1,029	—
1890	601	−41.6%
1900	645	7.3%
1910	660	2.3%
1920	716	8.5%
1930	634	−11.5%
1940	717	13.1%
1950	882	23.0%
1960	993	12.6%
1970	1,167	17.5%
1980	1,353	15.9%
1990	1,317	−2.7%
2000	1,458	10.7%
2010	1,369	−6.1%
2020	1,399	2.2%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 1,369 people, 559 households, and 365 families living in the city. The population density was 547.6 inhabitants per square mile (211.4/km²). There were 616 housing units at an average density of 246.4 per square mile (95.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.9% White, 0.3% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 1.1% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.9% of the population.

There were 559 households, of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.6% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 7.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.7% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.99.

The median age in the city was 38.4 years. 25.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.4% were from 25 to 44; 27% were from 45 to 64; and 15% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.8% male and 50.2% female.