Dorr Township, Michigan

Dorr Township, Michigan
Township
Dorr Township Location within the state of Michigan
Coordinates: 42°44′10″N 85°43′1″W / 42.73611°N 85.71694°W / 42.73611; -85.71694Coordinates: 42°44′10″N 85°43′1″W / 42.73611°N 85.71694°W / 42.73611; -85.71694
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Allegan
Area
• Total	36.2 sq mi (93.7 km2)
• Land	36.1 sq mi (93.6 km2)
• Water	0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation	699 ft (213 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	7,439
• Density	206/sq mi (79.5/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	49323
Area code(s)	616,269
FIPS code	26-22680[1]
GNIS feature ID	1626186[2]
Website	www.dorrtownship.org

Dorr Township is a civil township of Allegan County in the southwest of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 7,439 at the 2010 census.^[3]

Communities

Dorr is an unincorporated community at 42°43′31″N 85°43′21″W / 42.72528°N 85.72250°W / 42.72528; -85.72250, near the center of the township, west of U.S. Highway 131 exit 68.^[4] The ZIP code is 49323.

This area was long the territory of Algonquian-language tribes, specifically the Ojibwe, Ottawa and Pottawatomi. Dorr is the base for the federally recognized Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians of Michigan, formerly known as the Gun Lake Band of Grand River Ottawa Indians or the Gun Lake Band.

The first permanent European-American settlers in the township arrived in 1845. The first settler in the community of Dorr came in 1856, and arranged for the town to be platted in 1869. It received a United States post office in 1870.

First known as Dorr Centre, the community is believed to have been named for Thomas Wilson Dorr, a state legislator and leader of the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island that sought a broader franchise of universal male suffrage in the 1840s.^[5]

In the 21st century, Dorr has many retail businesses, including Subway, B.C. Pizza, Dick's Market, Dorr Dance Academy, and Dorr Veterinary Clinic. Also, The Dairy Ranch has become a hotspot over the years, hosting classic car shows during the summer. Recently Dorr added a new skatepark for the kids. Dorr also has recreation programs for sports like football, basketball, baseball, and flag football.

It has two elementary schools: Sycamore Elementary, which is part of the Hopkins school district, and Dorr Elementary, which is part of Wayland Union Schools.

Moline is an unincorporated community at 42°44′21″N 85°39′50″W / 42.73917°N 85.66389°W / 42.73917; -85.66389 just east of U.S. Highway 131.^[6] The ZIP code is 49335. The community lies mostly within Dorr Township but is on the eastern boundary. Some development extends into neighboring Leighton Township. Moline was first settled by European Americans in 1840. Development was stimulated when the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railway came through in 1870 and established a station here. It was platted in 1872 by Alfred Chapple.^[5]

North Dorr is a tiny hamlet at 42°46′06″N 85°45′42″W / 42.76833°N 85.76167°W / 42.76833; -85.76167 straddling the boundary between Dorr Township in Allegan County and Byron Township in Kent County.^[7] It began about 1865 and had its own post office from 1874 to 1905.^[5]

The city of Wayland is at the southeast corner of the township in Wayland Township.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 36.2 square miles (93.7 km²), of which 36.1 square miles (93.6 km²) is land and 0.039 square miles (0.1 km²), or 0.07%, is water.^[3]

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 6,579 people, 2,100 households, and 1,768 families residing in the township. The population density was 182.0 per square mile (70.3/km²). There were 2,135 housing units at an average density of 59.1 per square mile (22.8/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 96.93% White, 0.52% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.90% from other races, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.08% of the population.

There were 2,100 households out of which 47.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.5% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.8% were non-families. 12.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.13 and the average family size was 3.43.

In the township the population was spread out with 33.7% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 33.9% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 101.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.0 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $60,446, and the median income for a family was $62,313. Males had a median income of $43,150 versus $26,510 for females. The per capita income for the township was $18,756. About 3.5% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

• Owen Bieber, former president of the United Auto Workers was born in North Dorr.

References

External links

• Dorr Township official website
• Dorr Township Library
• Dorr Directory

Municipalities and communities of Allegan County, Michigan, United States
County seat: Allegan
City	Allegan Douglas Fennville Holland‡ Otsego Plainwell Saugatuck South Haven‡ Wayland
Villages	Hopkins Martin
Charter township	Gun Plain
General law townships	Allegan Casco Cheshire Clyde Dorr Fillmore Ganges Heath Hopkins Laketown Lee Leighton Manlius Martin Monterey Otsego Overisel Salem Saugatuck Trowbridge Valley Watson Wayland
Unincorporated communities	Bradley Burnips Glenn Hamilton Hilliards Macatawa Moline New Richmond Pullman Shelbyville
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties