Schoolcraft, Michigan
Schoolcraft, Michigan | ||
---|---|---|
FIPS code 26-71860[2] | | |
GNIS feature ID | 0637419[3] |
Schoolcraft is a
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.98 square miles (2.54 km2), all land.[4] Schoolcraft is located on a prairie, and much of the land outside of the village is used as farm land, with the primary crops being corn and soybeans.
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1870 | 932 | — | |
1880 | 951 | 2.0% | |
1890 | 836 | −12.1% | |
1900 | 859 | 2.8% | |
1910 | 816 | −5.0% | |
1920 | 731 | −10.4% | |
1930 | 833 | 14.0% | |
1940 | 823 | −1.2% | |
1950 | 1,078 | 31.0% | |
1960 | 1,205 | 11.8% | |
1970 | 1,277 | 6.0% | |
1980 | 1,359 | 6.4% | |
1990 | 1,517 | 11.6% | |
2000 | 1,587 | 4.6% | |
2010 | 1,525 | −3.9% | |
2020 | 1,466 | −3.9% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[5] |
2010 census
As of the
There were 616 households, of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.7% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.3% were non-families. 28.9% 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 2.48 and the average family size was 3.05.
The median age in the village was 38.1 years. 26.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.1% were from 25 to 44; 28% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.
2000 census
As of the
There were 615 households, out of which 38.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.9% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were non-families. 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the village, the population was spread out, with 29.6% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $45,380, and the median income for a family was $54,205. Males had a median income of $37,500 versus $27,639 for females. The
History
Euro-American settlement in the Schoolcraft area dates to 1828 (nine years before Michigan's admission to the Union), when Bazel Harrison moved his family from Ohio to present-day Prairie Ronde Township, becoming the first settler in the future Kalamazoo County. The village itself was established in 1831 by surveyor (and future statesman) Lucius Lyon, who had first visited the area as a surveyor under government contract in 1823. Recorded on October 5, 1831, Schoolcraft was the first town in Kalamazoo County. Lyon named the village for his friend Henry Schoolcraft. Schoolcraft was a key member of the 1820 Cass Expedition, organized by territorial governor Lewis Cass to explore the Michigan Territory; the expedition played an important role in encouraging settlement of the territory.[7]
Territorial roads from Schoolcraft to the mouth of the Black River were approved in 1833 and to Edwardsville in 1834. State roads to Edwardsburg, St. Joseph were approved by the Michigan legislature in the 1835–36 session. By Act of State Legislature March 14, 1840, two state roads from Schoolcraft were approved for construction. One road was to be built to Abscota (also found as Abscot), a post office in Calhoun County, Township 4 South, Range 7 West at the corners of Section 5, 6, 7, 8. John Kelly and E.L. Brown of Kalamazoo and Salmon Walker of Calhoun County were appointed to oversee this route. Another road was to be built from Schoolcraft to Albion with E. Larkin Brown and Albert E. Bull of Schoolcraft and Jesse Crowel of Albion as commissionors to lay out and establish said road. In 1844, a state road from Battle Creek to Schoolcraft was authorized. In 1845, a state road from Schoolcraft connecting to the Territorial Road was authorized.
Schoolcraft was incorporated as a General Law Village on January 4, 1866. It was reincorporated March 12, 1869 and received its new charter in 1875.[8]
Local Historic Sites
The Schoolcraft home of Dr. Nathan Thomas served as a "station" on the
The Schoolcraft
Cooper's Island is an approximately 23-acre (93,000 m2) woodland located about 1/4 mile west of U.S. Route 131 on West Eliza St. Containing a rich and rare assortment of mesic forest plants and trees, the woods are the remnant of the Big Island on Prairie Ronde, an island of forest in the midst of prairie at the time of settlement. Famous as the setting for James Fenimore Cooper's 1848 frontier novel The Oak Openings, Cooper's Island is a listed Michigan Historical Site.[12]
The Schoolcraft Ladies Library (at 163 Hayward St.), built in 1896, is also a state listed site. The Ladies Library Association had been founded in 1879 to provide educational opportunities to women in the community (there were no state educational institutions in the area until Western Normal College, now Western Michigan University, was established in Kalamazoo in 1903).[13]
Schools
There are four schools in the Schoolcraft Community Schools school district.
Schoolcraft Early
Schoolcraft Upper
Schoolcraft
Schoolcraft
- School Mascot: Eagle, or the Schoolcraft Eagles
- School Colors: Purple and Gold
Schoolcraft High School Michigan High School Athletic Association State Team Champions
- Boys' Track: 1959
- Girls' Cross-country: 1992 (Class D)
- Boys' Golf: 1996, 1998, 2002 (Division 4)
- Football: 1988 (Class D), 1989 (Class C), 2001 (Division 6)
- Girls' Volleyball: 2008 (Class C)
- Boys' Basketball: 2011 (Class C)
Notable people
- Benjamin H. Southworth – Physician, surgeon and American football player.
See also
References
- ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
- ^ a b "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
- ^ Swartz (1990), p. 44.
- ^ Swartz (1990), p. 130-131.
- ^ Swartz (1990), p. 84.
- ^ Nathan M. Thomas House, Michigan historic preservation object.
- ^ Swartz (1990), p. 85.
- ^ Cooper's Island, Michigan historic preservation object.
- ^ Schoolcraft Ladies Library, Michigan historic preservation object.
Sources
- Swartz, Mary Jane (1990). So I'm Told: The Nineteenth Century in Schoolcraft, Michigan. Berrien Springs, MI: Hardscrabble Books. p. 240. ISBN 0-915056-22-4.