Grand Traverse County, Michigan

History

In 1840 it was separated and originally named Omeena County. Grand Traverse County was organized by an act of the state legislature on April 7, 1851. Grand Traverse is derived from a French phrase meaning "long crossing" and the county is so named because it is situated at the Grand Traverse Bay. The first permanent settlement in the county was the mission now known as Old Mission.

Historical markers

There are twelve recognized Michigan historical markers in the county: They are:

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 601 square miles (1,560 km²), of which 464 square miles (1,200 km²) is land and 137 square miles (350 km²) (23%) is water. Grand Traverse County is considered to be part of Northern Michigan.

Adjacent counties

Rivers

Air service

Grand Traverse County is served by Cherry Capital Airport, which is located near Traverse City. Grand Traverse County also has three smaller unpaved airports: Yuba Airport, Green Lake Airport, and the Acme Skyport

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 77,654 people, 30,396 households, and 20,730 families residing in the county. The population density was 167 people per square mile (64/km²). There were 34,842 housing units at an average density of 75 per square mile (29/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.51% White, 0.40% Black or African American, 0.93% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.54% from other races, and 1.09% from two or more races. 1.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.1% were of German, 11.3% English, 10.7% Irish, 8.4% American and 7.4% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.4% spoke English and 1.6% Spanish as their first language.

There were 30,396 households out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.70% were married couples living together, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.80% were non-families. 25.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.40% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 13.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $43,169, and the median income for a family was $51,211. Males had a median income of $34,796 versus $24,139 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,111. About 3.80% of families and 5.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.30% of those under age 18 and 5.90% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

Grand Traverse County is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gaylord.

Government

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

(information as of November 2008)

Politics

Grand Traverse County predominantly supports the Republican Party, particularly at the federal level.

In the 2008 presidential election, Republican candidate John McCain received 24,716 votes in the county (50.60% of the total) to Democrat Barack Obama's 23,258 (47.62%), even as Obama carried the state of Michigan by a double-digit margin. McCain's margin of victory in the county was narrower than usual for a Republican candidate.

In 2004, Republican president George W. Bush received 27,446 votes in the county (59.42%) to Democrat John Kerry's 18,256 (39.52%).

In 2000, Bush received 22,358 votes in the county (58.48%) to Democrat Al Gore's 14,371 (37.59%).

Education

Grand Traverse county has five school districts:

TCAPS is by far the largest district in the county, with 19 total schools, whereas Kingsley has 3, Woodland has 2, and Elk Rapids and the Children's House have 1 (Elk Rapids Area are mostly in Antrim County, and Forest Area is based in Kalkaska County). Below is a list of schools

City

Villages

Census-designated places

Charter townships