New Buffalo Township, Michigan
Encyclopedia
New Buffalo Township is a civil township
of Berrien County
in the U.S. state
of Michigan
. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 2,468.
When Berrien County was first established in 1831, New Buffalo was a part of Berrien Township
. New Buffalo Township was established by an act of the state legislature on March 12, 1836. Five days later the village of New Buffalo was incorporated. The township originally included what are now Three Oaks Township
and Chikaming Township. Three Oaks and Chikaming were set apart in 1856.
The township is part of a region
sometimes referred to as Harbor Country
.
in 1675, he reported seeing the Miami people in his travels down the nearby St. Joseph River
. Four years later, the exploration party of René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle reported that the Miami were being displaced by the Potawatomi
.
In 1834, one of the first permanent white settlers to the area, Captain Wessell Whittaker, ran his schooner Post Boy aground near what is now the village of Grand Beach
. The captain and crew found shelter a bit south of there at the present day Michigan City
, Indiana
. While traveling north to St. Joseph
to report the ship's loss to its underwriters, Whittacker was so struck by the beauty of the area and the natural harbor that he filed claim to a large tract of land around the mouth of the Galien River. Whittacker named it after his hometown of Buffalo
, New York
.
After laying out plans for the city and gaining partners to develop the area, the value of land rapidly increased in a period of land speculation. This lasted until the Panic of 1837
, which brought an abrupt end to most speculative land development in the area for several years. Followed soon after by a severe winter in 1841, the area struggled economically. The western terminus of the Michigan Central Railroad
in New Buffalo was completed in 1849. The harbor was improved and the economy flourished briefly until the railroad connection to Chicago
was completed in 1853, after which the use of the harbor for shipping declined.
Around the turn of the century, the area began to be recognized for its vacation and resort potential, resulting in summer cottages, camps and hotels. 1921 saw the opening of the Golfmore Hotel, rated as one of the finest resorts on the Great Lakes
. Unfortunately, the hotel was destroyed by fire in 1936. Like much of the country, the area struggled through the Great Depression
, followed by booming growth after world War II
.
During the 1970s and 1980s nightclubs just north of the Indiana
state line in New Buffalo Township were popular destinations for young adults from Illinois
and Indiana
who were under age 21. Both of those states had minimum drinking ages of 21 whereas Michigan
's minimum drinking age was 18.
, the township has a total area of 20.3 square miles (52.5 km²), of which, 20.2 square miles (52.4 km²) of it is land and 0.05% is water.
Due to the Lake Michigan
shoreline on the west and the Indiana
border to the south, New Buffalo Township has an irregular triangle shape and is one of the smallest townships in Michigan. Most survey township
s are 36 square miles (93.2 km²). However the townships along the Michigan side of the Indiana border are truncated so that they are only six miles wide by about three and a half miles tall. The village of Michigan within New Buffalo Township consists of the partial section 24 of survey township T8S R22E, the westernmost portion of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan
. The rest of the township consists of the several partial and whole sections of T8S R21E as well as the western row of sections from T8S R20E, section 31 of T7S R20E, and section 35 and 36 of T7S R21E.
of 2000, there were 2,468 people, 1,093 households, and 718 families residing in the township. The population density
was 121.9 per square mile (47.1/km²). There were 2,139 housing units at an average density of 105.6 per square mile (40.8/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 93.88% White, 3.65% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races
, and 1.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.62% of the population.
There were 1,093 households out of which 20.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples
living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.74.
In the township the population was spread out with 18.0% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 33.4% from 45 to 64, and 20.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.6 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $46,991, and the median income for a family was $58,333. Males had a median income of $46,411 versus $27,639 for females. The per capita income
for the township was $33,587. About 3.5% of families and 6.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.5% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.
Civil township
A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to, and geographic divisions of, a county. Specific responsibilities and the degree of autonomy vary based on each state. Civil townships are distinct from survey townships, but in states that have both,...
of Berrien County
Berrien County, Michigan
Berrien County is a county located in the extreme southwest of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 156,813. The county seat is St. Joseph....
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 2,468.
When Berrien County was first established in 1831, New Buffalo was a part of Berrien Township
Berrien Charter Township, Michigan
Berrien Township is a civil township of Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 5,075.- Communities :...
. New Buffalo Township was established by an act of the state legislature on March 12, 1836. Five days later the village of New Buffalo was incorporated. The township originally included what are now Three Oaks Township
Three Oaks Township, Michigan
Three Oaks Township is a civil township of Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan on the border with the state of Indiana. The population was 2,949 at the 2000 census.The Village of Three Oaks is the only incorporated community within the township....
and Chikaming Township. Three Oaks and Chikaming were set apart in 1856.
Communities
- The city of New BuffaloNew Buffalo, MichiganNew Buffalo is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,200 at the 2000 census. This city is within New Buffalo Township, but is politically autonomous.-Geography:...
is within the township, but is administratively autonomous. - The villages of Grand BeachGrand Beach, MichiganGrand Beach is a village in Berrien County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 221. The village is within New Buffalo Township on the shore of Lake Michigan near to the Michigan-Indiana border.-Geography:...
and MichianaMichiana, MichiganMichiana is a village in New Buffalo Township, Berrien County in the extreme southwest corner of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 200 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
are also within the township. - The unincorporated community of Union PierUnion Pier, MichiganUnion Pier is an unincorporated community in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated between the Lake Michigan shore and the Galien River about five miles north of the Indiana state border.Union Pier is at coordinates...
is situated on the boundary between New Buffalo Township and Chikaming Township.
The township is part of a region
Region
Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...
sometimes referred to as Harbor Country
Harbor Country
Harbor Country is a region of Southwestern Michigan just north of the Indiana state line. It is notable as a popular, upscale weekend getaway destination, particularly for Chicagoans looking to enjoy the region's beaches, bed and breakfasts, and wineries....
.
History
At the time of the arrival of the first Europeans to the area, French explorer Father Jacques MarquetteJacques Marquette
Father Jacques Marquette S.J. , sometimes known as Père Marquette, was a French Jesuit missionary who founded Michigan's first European settlement, Sault Ste. Marie, and later founded St. Ignace, Michigan...
in 1675, he reported seeing the Miami people in his travels down the nearby St. Joseph River
St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan)
The St. Joseph River is a river, approximately long, in southern Michigan and northern Indiana in the United States. It drains a primarily rural farming area in the watershed of Lake Michigan...
. Four years later, the exploration party of René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle reported that the Miami were being displaced by the Potawatomi
Potawatomi
The Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied...
.
In 1834, one of the first permanent white settlers to the area, Captain Wessell Whittaker, ran his schooner Post Boy aground near what is now the village of Grand Beach
Grand Beach, Michigan
Grand Beach is a village in Berrien County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 221. The village is within New Buffalo Township on the shore of Lake Michigan near to the Michigan-Indiana border.-Geography:...
. The captain and crew found shelter a bit south of there at the present day Michigan City
Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City's origins date to 1830, when the land for the city was first purchased by Isaac C. Elston. Elston Middle School, formerly Elston High School, located at 317 Detroit St., is named after the founder....
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. While traveling north to St. Joseph
St. Joseph, Michigan
St. Joseph is a city in the US state of Michigan. It was incorporated as a village in 1834 and as a city in 1891. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 8,789. It lies on the shore of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the St. Joseph River, about east-northeast of Chicago. It is the county...
to report the ship's loss to its underwriters, Whittacker was so struck by the beauty of the area and the natural harbor that he filed claim to a large tract of land around the mouth of the Galien River. Whittacker named it after his hometown of Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
After laying out plans for the city and gaining partners to develop the area, the value of land rapidly increased in a period of land speculation. This lasted until the Panic of 1837
Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis or market correction in the United States built on a speculative fever. The end of the Second Bank of the United States had produced a period of runaway inflation, but on May 10, 1837 in New York City, every bank began to accept payment only in specie ,...
, which brought an abrupt end to most speculative land development in the area for several years. Followed soon after by a severe winter in 1841, the area struggled economically. The western terminus of the Michigan Central Railroad
Michigan Central Railroad
The Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
in New Buffalo was completed in 1849. The harbor was improved and the economy flourished briefly until the railroad connection to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
was completed in 1853, after which the use of the harbor for shipping declined.
Around the turn of the century, the area began to be recognized for its vacation and resort potential, resulting in summer cottages, camps and hotels. 1921 saw the opening of the Golfmore Hotel, rated as one of the finest resorts on the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
. Unfortunately, the hotel was destroyed by fire in 1936. Like much of the country, the area struggled through the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, followed by booming growth after world War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
During the 1970s and 1980s nightclubs just north of the Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
state line in New Buffalo Township were popular destinations for young adults from Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
who were under age 21. Both of those states had minimum drinking ages of 21 whereas Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
's minimum drinking age was 18.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the township has a total area of 20.3 square miles (52.5 km²), of which, 20.2 square miles (52.4 km²) of it is land and 0.05% is water.
Due to the Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
shoreline on the west and the Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
border to the south, New Buffalo Township has an irregular triangle shape and is one of the smallest townships in Michigan. Most survey township
Survey township
Survey township, sometimes called Congressional township, as used by the United States Public Land Survey System, refers to a square unit of land, that is nominally six miles on a side...
s are 36 square miles (93.2 km²). However the townships along the Michigan side of the Indiana border are truncated so that they are only six miles wide by about three and a half miles tall. The village of Michigan within New Buffalo Township consists of the partial section 24 of survey township T8S R22E, the westernmost portion of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan
Lower Peninsula of Michigan
The Lower Peninsula of Michigan is the southern of the two major landmasses of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is surrounded by water on all sides except its southern border, which it shares with Ohio and Indiana. Geographically, the Lower Peninsula has a recognizable shape that many people...
. The rest of the township consists of the several partial and whole sections of T8S R21E as well as the western row of sections from T8S R20E, section 31 of T7S R20E, and section 35 and 36 of T7S R21E.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 2,468 people, 1,093 households, and 718 families residing in the township. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 121.9 per square mile (47.1/km²). There were 2,139 housing units at an average density of 105.6 per square mile (40.8/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 93.88% White, 3.65% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.62% of the population.
There were 1,093 households out of which 20.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.74.
In the township the population was spread out with 18.0% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 33.4% from 45 to 64, and 20.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 99.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.6 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $46,991, and the median income for a family was $58,333. Males had a median income of $46,411 versus $27,639 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the township was $33,587. About 3.5% of families and 6.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.5% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.