Munising, Michigan

Munising, Michigan
—  City  —
Munising, Michigan
Location of Munising, Michigan
Coordinates: 46°24′38″N 86°38′51″W / 46.41056°N 86.6475°W / 46.41056; -86.6475
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Alger
Government
- Official Can Collector
Area
- Total	9.1 sq mi (23.7 km2)
- Land	5.4 sq mi (13.9 km2)
- Water	3.8 sq mi (9.8 km2)
Elevation	614 ft (187 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	2,539
- Density	474.0/sq mi (183.0/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	49862
Area code(s)	906
FIPS code	26-56200[1]
GNIS feature ID	1620952[2]

Munising is a city on the southern shore of Lake Superior on the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 2,539. It is the county seat of Alger County^[3]. The city is at the northwest corner of Munising Township, but is administratively autonomous.

Geography

Downtown Munising (Elm Avenue).

Munising is located on the southern edge of Munising Bay at 46°24′40″N 86°38′52″W / 46.41111°N 86.64778°W / 46.41111; -86.64778, also known as the South Bay of Grand Island Harbor, across from Grand Island around the mouth of the Anna River. It is the primary embarkation point for cruises to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Grand Island National Recreation Area.

The name Munising is derived from the Ojibway language. 'Munissi' means island. 'Munising' means near the island. Grand Island is located one half mile north in Munising Bay.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.1 square miles (24 km²), of which, 5.4 square miles (14 km²) of it is land and 3.8 square miles (9.8 km²) of it (41.40%) is water.

The Munising area has many waterfalls including Alger Falls, Horseshoe Falls, Memorial Falls, Munising Falls, Miners Falls, Scott Falls, Tannery Falls and Wagner Falls.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 2,539 people, 1,115 households, and 654 families residing in the city. The population density was 474.0 per square mile (182.9/km²). There were 1,249 housing units at an average density of 233.2 per square mile (90.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.74% White, 0.16% African American, 3.51% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 1.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.98% of the population. 13.3% were of French, 12.4% German, 11.0% Finnish, 9.9% Polish, 8.8% Swedish, 7.3% French Canadian and 6.8% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000. 97.8% spoke English and 1.6% Spanish as their first language.

There were 1,115 households out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.3% were non-families. 36.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.82.

Munising harbor

In the city the population was spread out with 21.4% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 25.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 88.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,899, and the median income for a family was $46,133. Males had a median income of $41,333 versus $24,444 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,779. About 7.4% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.6% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

City Hall, with South Bay and Grand Island in the background right.

• M-28 travels west to Marquette and east to Sault Ste. Marie.
• M-94 travels westerly through Chatham toward Sawyer International Airport south of Marquette, and southerly to Manistique.
• H-11 runs from H-58 just east of the city to Miner's Castle within Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
• H-13, a north-south route, terminates at H-58 in the eastern part of the city.
• H-58 begins in downtown Munising and continues northeasterly through Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

Sources

Alger County Courthouse Complex

• Romig, Walter. Michigan Place Names. Wayne State University Press: Detroit, 1986.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Munising, Michigan
3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 

External links

Media related to Munising, Michigan at Wikimedia Commons

• Munising Visitor's Bureau
• City of Munising Website
• Munising Area Information
• Munising Area Tourism, History, Our Town, Economic Development
• Explore Munising! Travel and Adventure Guide Website

Coordinates: 46°24′40″N 86°38′52″W / 46.41111°N 86.64778°W / 46.41111; -86.64778