Macomb County, Michigan

Infobox U.S. County
county = Macomb County
state = Michigan
largest city = Warren


map size = 200
founded = January 15, 1818 [http://www.macombcountymi.gov/history.asp]
seat = Mt. Clemens | area_total_sq_mi =570
area_land_sq_mi =480
area_water_sq_mi =89
area percentage = 15.68%
census yr = 2000
pop = 788149
density_km2 =633
density_sq_mi=
web = macombcountymi.gov
|

Macomb County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. The 2000 census recorded its population to be 788,149. In 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that its population had reached 831,077. The county seat is Mt. ClemensGR|6. Macomb County is part of the Detroit metropolitan area, though the actual the city of Detroit is located south of 8 Mile Road in neighboring Wayne County. Macomb County contains 28 cities, townships and villages. These communities range from mature, inner-ring suburbs like the cities of Warren and Roseville to newer, wealthier locales such as Sterling Heights, Macomb Township, Shelby Charter Township, and Washington Township. The county is named for Alexander Macomb, Jr., an early U.S. Army commander.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 570 square miles (1,476 km²)—480 square miles (1,244 km²) of it is land and 89 square miles (231 km²) of it (15.68%) is water.

Lake St. Clair borders the county on the east.

Far northern parts of the county, such as Richmond and Armada can be considered to be in the Thumb region.

Adjacent counties

* Across Lake St. Clair lies Chatham-Kent (east) and Essex County (south), Ontario, Canada
* St. Clair County, Michigan - northeast
* Lapeer County, Michigan - northwest
* Oakland County, Michigan - west
* Wayne County, Michigan - south

Demographics

USCensusPop
1900 = 33244
1910 = 32606
1920 = 38103
1930 = 77146
1940 = 107638
1950 = 184961
1960 = 405804
1970 = 625309
1980 = 694600
1990 = 717400
2000 = 788149
estyear=2007
estimate=831077As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 788,149 people, 309,203 households, and 210,876 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,640 people per square mile (633/km²). There were 320,276 housing units at an average density of 667 per square mile (257/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.66% White, 2.71% Black or African American, 0.31% Native American, 2.14% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.39% from other races, and 1.77% from two or more races. 1.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.1% were of German, 17.1% Polish, 13.6% Italian, 7.5% Irish and 5.5% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 87.6% spoke English, 1.7% Italian, 1.4% Polish, 1.2% Spanish, 1.1% Arabic and 1.1% Syriac as their first language.

Two Native American tribes had over 1000 people who self-identified with the tribe in Macomb County in 2000. 1781 county residents indicated that they were Cherokee on the census form. 1038 did the same for being Chippewa. [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DTTable?_bm=y&-context=dt&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U&-CONTEXT=dt&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_PCT007&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_PCT010&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_PCT011&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_PCT003&-tree_id=4001&-redoLog=true&-all_geo_types=N&-_caller=geoselect&-geo_id=05000US26099&-geo_id=05000US26125&-geo_id=05000US26127&-geo_id=05000US26163&-search_results=01000US&-format=&-_lang=en Detailed Tables - American FactFinder ] ] This is the tribe known as the Ojibwa. It should be kept in mind that whether someone marked "Ojibwa", "Chippewa" or "Anishabaag" it was all grouped together in the reported counts.

Among Asians groups, Macomb County has six with over 1000 people. The most numerous were the 5713 Asian Indians. Filipinos came in a close second numbering 4155, this includes many children who are Filipino on their mother's side and European-American on their father's side. Chinese number 2489. Koreans numbered 1853, while Vietnamese numbered 1557. There were 1103, the only Asian group without a nation to be so recognized. It should be remembered that people from Iran and further west are classed as whites.

There were 309,203 households out of which 31.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.30% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.80% were non-families. 26.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.10% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 31.50% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $52,102, and the median income for a family was $62,816. Males had a median income of $48,303 versus $30,215 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,446. About 4.00% of families and 5.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.00% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over.

The years 2000-2005 saw the African American population in Macomb County more than double. This growth largely resulted from an exodus of African Americans from Detroit. By 2005 Census estimates for Macomb County showed it was 5.6% African American, meaning that the growth of the African-American population in the county had been well over 100% in the last 5 years. The percentage of Asians had risen to 2.9%, largely fueled by the exodus of the eastside Detroit Hmong population northward into Warren. The American Community Survey showed 1.5% of Macomb County's population reporting two or more races.

According to the 2006 American Community Survey the average family size is 3.15. The population of 25 and over is 571,463. 86.9% of that population has graduating from High school, 21% of that population has a Bachelor's degree or higher. About 14.3 of that population is disabled. 12.5% of Macomb's population can speak another language at home.

History

The Ojibwa were the first settlers in the area. The first Europeans arrived in the area during the 17th century. A Moravian colony was established in the county in the late 18th Century. They included French fur trappers and missionaries. In addition to the original French and English, later settlers included Germans, Belgians and others who came directly from Europe.

Macomb County was formally organized on January 15, 1818 as the third county in the Michigan territory. At that time, it covered a much larger area than it does today. In 1819 and 1820, large portions of the county were removed to form the counties of Oakland, Lapeer, Genesee and St. Clair. The county was named in honor of General Alexander Macomb a highly decorated veteran of the War of 1812.

The county gained fame in the 1980s and '90s as a bellwether of state and national politics. Macomb's large cohort of working-class, socially conservative whites gave it one of the nation's most prominent concentrations of "Reagan Democrats", and outsider candidates with a conservative-populist bent have done well there in the past (e.g. George Wallace in 1968 and Pat Buchanan in 1992).

Parks and recreation

Macomb County is home to more than 130 parks covering 12,000 acres (49 km²) managed by the state, regional, county, and local government. There are four major public parks in the County - [http://www.freedomhillcountypark.com/ Freedom Hill County Park] , [http://www.macomborchardtrail.com/ Macomb Orchard Trail] , Metro Beach Metropark, and Stony Creek Metropark. The county also has 31 miles of shoreline and over 100 marinas.

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.

In May 2008, Macomb County voters approved the inclusion of a County Executive in a new charter to be submitted to the voters by 2010.

Macomb County Elected Officials

* Prosecuting Attorney: Eric J. Smith (Democrat)
* Sheriff: Mark A. Hackel (Democrat)
* County Clerk/Register of Deeds: Carmella Sabaugh (Democrat)
* County Treasurer: Ted B. Wahby (Democrat)
* Public Works Commissioner: Anthony V. Marrocco (Democrat)
* County Commission or Board of Commissioners: 26 members, elected from districts (17 Democrats, 9 Republicans)
* Circuit Court: 12 judges (non-partisan)
* Probate Court: 2 judges (non-partisan)

(information as of February 2006)

Noted people from Macomb County

Actors/Actresses

*Adrienne Frantz, actress/singer, Mount Clemens, Michigan
*Dave Coulier, actor/comedian, St. Clair Shores
*Dean Cain, actor, Mount Clemens
*Faye Grant, actress, St. Clair Shores
*Ellen Burstyn, actress Detroit, Michigan

Athletes

*Derian Hatcher, NHL player, Sterling Heights
*Kevin Hatcher, NHL player, Sterling Heights
*Matt Hunwick, NHL player, Warren
*Craig Kowalski, ECHL player, Warren
*Denny Felsner, NHL player, Warren
*Dick Enberg, sports announcer, Armada
*Michele Van Gorp, WNBA player from Duke University
*Shirley Muldowney, race car driver, Armada
*Bryan Herta, race car driver, Warren
*Johnny White, race car driver, Warren
*John Smoltz, MLB player, Warren
*Steve Phillips, MLB coach, Warren
*Jim Sorgi, NFL player, Fraser
*Craig Krenzel, NFL player, Sterling Heights
*Brian Rafalski, NHL player
*John DiGiorgio, NFL Player, Macomb,Shelby Township

Musicians

*Kid Rock, Romeo
*Alice Cooper, St. Clair Shores
*Mitch Ryder, Roseville
*Justin Jeffre, ("98 Degrees"), Mount Clemens
*Uncle Kracker, Harrison Township
*Eminem, Warren

Other

*David Bonior, politician, Mt. Clemens
*Candice Miller, politician, Harrison Township
*Alex Groesbeck, politician, Warren
*Butch Hartman, creator of the cartoon show "The Fairly OddParents", New Baltimore
*Martha Griffiths, Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (1983-1991), Armada
*Jerry M. Linenger, NASA astronaut, Eastpointe

Cities, villages, and townships

Cities
* Center Line
* Eastpointe
* Fraser
* Memphis
* Mount Clemens (county seat)
* New Baltimore

* Richmond
* Roseville
* St. Clair Shores
* Sterling Heights
* Utica
* WarrenVillages
* Armada
* Grosse Pointe Shores (partial)
* New Haven
* Romeo

Townships
*Armada Township
*Bruce Township
*Chesterfield Township
*Clinton Charter Township
*Harrison Charter Township
*Lake Township (the part of Grosse Pointe Shores in Macomb County)
*Lenox Township
*Macomb Township
*Ray Township
*Richmond Township
*Shelby Charter Township
*Washington Township

High Schools

*Anchor Bay High School
*Armada High School
*Centerline High School
*Chippewa Valley High School
*Clintondale High School
*Cousino High School
*Dakota High School
*De La Salle Collegiate High School
*East Detroit High School
*Dwight D. Eisenhower High School
*Fitzgerald High School
*Fraser High School
*Henry Ford II High School
*Lakeshore High School
*Lakeview High School
*L'Anse Creuse High School
*L'Anse Creuse High School - North
*Lutheran High School - North
*Mount Clemens High School
*New Haven High School
*Richmond High School
*Romeo High School
*Southlake High School
*Sterling Heights High School
*Sterling Heights Parkway Christian
*Stevenson High School
*Utica High School
*Warren Connor Creek Academy West
*Warren Mott High School
*Warren Lincoln High School
*Warren Woods Tower High School

Transportation

Air

*Coleman A. Young International Airport (DET) (Detroit) - General aviation only
*Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) (Romulus) - Major commercial airport, hub for Northwest Airlines and Spirit Airlines
*Oakland County International Airport (PTK) Waterford Township) - Charter passenger facility
*St. Clair County International Airport (near Port Huron, Michigan) - A major international airport on the U.S. and Canadian Border.
*Selfridge Air National Guard Base (Mount Clemens) - Military airbase

Major Highways

Other Major Roads

*Jefferson Avenue is a scenic highway that runs parallel to the shore of the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair. It is also the principal thoroughfare for the Grosse Pointes, where it is called Lake Shore Drive. Another important dividing line between Detroit and the city of Grosse Pointe Park is Alter Road, where portions of some intersecting streets have been reconfigured or walled-off in order to thwart vehicular and pedestrian movement from Detroit into Grosse Pointe Park.

*"Mile" roads: Surface street navigation in Metro Detroit is commonly anchored by "mile roads," major east-west surface streets that are spaced at one-mile intervals and increment as one travels north and away from the city center. Mile roads sometimes have two names, the numeric name (ex. 15 Mile Road) used in Macomb County and a local name (ex. Maple Road) used in Oakland County mostly. main|Mile Road System (Detroit)

References

Bibliography and further reading

* [http://www.clarke.cmich.edu/localhistory/Macomb.htm Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, Bibliography on Macomb County]

External links

* [http://www.macombcountymi.gov Macomb County - Official Website]
* [http://www.macombcountymi.gov/clerksoffice Office of Carmella Sabaugh] (County Clerk/Register of Deeds)
* [http://www.libcoop.net/mcl Macomb County Library]
* [http://www.macombcountyvoice.com Macomb County Voice]