Missaukee County, Michigan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Missaukee County
U.S. county
Missaukee County Courthouse in Lake City
Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
Michigan's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Founded	1840 (created) 1871 (organized)
Seat	Lake City
Largest city	Lake City
Area
• Total	574 sq mi (1,490 km2)
• Land	565 sq mi (1,460 km2)
• Water	9.1 sq mi (24 km2)  1.6%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	15,052
• Density	26/sq mi (10/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	1st

1842 map, showing Missaukee County, then existing only on paper.

Missaukee County (/mɪˈsɔːki/ mih-SAW-kee) is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,052. The county seat is Lake City.

Missaukee County is part of the Cadillac, MI micropolitan statistical area. The county is considered to be part of Northern Michigan.

History

Missaukee County was partitioned from Mackinac County, on April 1, 1840, due to expected population growth. In 1851, the county was attached to Grand Traverse County for legal purposes. It was subsequently attached to Manistee County in 1855 and Wexford County in 1869, before being organized in its own right in 1871.

Etymology

Missaukee County may be named after a prominent Ottawa chief, Nesaukee, who signed the treaties of 1831 and 1833. However, it is also said that "Nesaukee" could be interpreted as 'large mouth of the river.'

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 574 square miles (1,490 km²), of which 565 square miles (1,460 km²) is land and 9.1 square miles (24 km²) (1.6%) is water.

Lakes and rivers

There are 33 natural freshwater lakes in Missaukee County. The largest of these, Lake Missaukee, has a surface area of 1,800 acres (730 ha). The lakes and streams in much of the county drain into the Muskegon River, which flows generally north to south through its eastern tier of townships. The 51.1-mile-long (82.2 km) Clam River, a tributary of the Muskegon, flows generally west to east through the county. The Reedsburg Dam is located within Missaukee County. The Manistee River also flows southwesterly through the extreme northwest of the county.

Major highways

• M-42 is a short east–west route in the northwest of the county, connecting M-66 near Lake City to US Highway 131 at Manton.
• M-55 is an east–west route traversing the Lower Peninsula.
• M-66 is a north–south route running from the Indiana border to US Highway 31 in Charlevoix.

Adjacent counties

• Kalkaska County - north
• Crawford County - northeast
• Roscommon County - east
• Clare County - southeast
• Osceola County - southwest
• Wexford County - west
• Grand Traverse County - northwest

Communities

U.S. Census data map showing local municipal boundaries within Missaukee County. Shaded areas represent incorporated cities.

Cities

• Lake City (county seat)
• McBain

Civil townships

Census-designated place

• Falmouth
• Jennings

Other unincorporated communities

Demographics

At the census of 2000, there were 14,478 people, 5,450 households, and 4,043 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 inhabitants per square mile (10/km²). There were 8,621 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile (5.8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.50% White, 0.20% Black or African American, 0.50% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. 1.17% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 24.6% were of Dutch, 18.3% German, 10.8% American, 10.0% English and 7.4% Irish ancestry. 97.9% spoke English and 1.1% Spanish as their first language. By 2020, the county had a population of 15,052, and its racial and ethnic makeup was predominantly non-Hispanic white.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $35,224, and the median income for a family was $39,057. Males had a median income of $30,565 versus $20,905 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,072. About 8.20% of families and 10.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 10.40% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

The Christian Reformed Church in North America was the biggest denomination in the county with 2,010 members and 7 congregations, almost 50% of the counties population adhere to the CRCNA, followed by the Reformed Church in America with 3 congregations and 830 members, the third is the United Methodist Church with 3 churches and 500 members, the PC(USA) has 2 congregations and 200 members, but the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, the Lutherans (ELCA), baptists are also represented with 1 congregations each. Missaukee County is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord and has 1 congregations and 800 members. There is an Amish community in the county, founded in 2000, with two church districts in 2013.

Education

The Wexford-Missaukee Intermediate School District, based in Cadillac, services the school districts in the county. The intermediate school district offers regional special education services and technical career programs to students of its districts. Missaukee County is served by two regular public school districts, Lake City Area School District and McBain Rural Agricultural Schools. Missaukee County has one private school, Northern Michigan Christian School.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Missaukee para niños