| Moffatt Township, Michigan | |
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| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Arenac |
| Area | |
| - Total | 32.1 sq mi (83.1 km²) |
| - Land | 31.7 sq mi (82.0 km²) |
| - Water | 0.4 sq mi (1.1 km²) |
| Elevation | 768 ft (234 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 1,121 |
| - Density | 35.4/sq mi (13.7/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| FIPS code | 26-54800GR2 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1626751GR3 |
Moffatt Township is a township in Arenac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,121 at the 2000 census.
Contents |
Communities
- Alger is an unincorporated community at , situated on exit 202 off I-75 at the junction with M-33. The ZIP code is 48610 and the FIPS place code is 01140. The elevation is 784 feet above sea level.
- Forest Lake is a small community around the reservoir named Forest Lake on the east-central part of the township. The lake is formed by a dam on Wells Creek. Water from Forest Lake is released into the Rifle River.
History
Moffatt Township was organized in 1874 and the community of Alger was named after Russell A. Alger almost a decade later. In 1882 to 1883, the area of Alger was created from the formation of a railroad junction along the Michigan Central Railroad.[1] This junction came from the now defunct East Tawas and Bay County Railroads out of Prescott, Michigan. It was constructed under the direction of Russell A. Alger who later became the 20th Governor of Michigan, and then a U.S. Secretary of War. The railroads were thriving mainly due to Michigan's lumbering boom at the time, and Alger grew to be a popular settlement with many mills, restaurants, and saloons. Two suburbs named Culver and Wells existed nearby. Culver was located about a mile north and Wells was about a mile south of downtown Alger. Into the early 1900's, as the timber reached depletion, the logging railroads disappeared along with businesses. Today, Wells and Culver no longer exist and Alger has slowly downsized to a small community of approximately 1,000 people.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 32.1 square miles (83.1 km²), of which, 31.7 square miles (82.0 km²) of it is land and 0.4 square miles (1.1 km²) of it (1.28%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 1,121 people, 484 households, and 327 families residing in the township. The population density was 35.4 per square mile (13.7/km²). There were 862 housing units at an average density of 27.2/sq mi (10.5/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 97.86% White, 0.62% Native American, 0.27% Asian, and 1.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.80% of the population. There were 484 households out of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.3% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.75. In the township the population was spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 21.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.4 males. The median income for a household in the township was $32,250, and the median income for a family was $40,724. Males had a median income of $35,769 versus $17,917 for females. The per capita income for the township was $16,058. About 5.7% of families and 9.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.
Organization Camps
Cole Canoe Base is a nearby camp for the Boy Scouts of America. It is located on East Greenwood Road, a few miles from the Skidway Lake and Prescott, Michigan area.
