Free Soil Township, Michigan

Free Soil Township is a civil township of Mason County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 822 at the 2010 census. The village of Free Soil is located within the township.

Free Soil Township, Michigan
Civil township
Location within Mason County (red) and the administered village of Free Soil (pink)
Free Soil Township Location within the state of Michigan Free Soil Township Free Soil Township (the United States)
Coordinates: 44°07′11″N 86°13′15″W
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Mason
Organized	1848
Government
• Supervisor	Gregg Surma
• Clerk	Lynda Papes
Area
• Total	39.22 sq mi (101.6 km^2)
• Land	38.80 sq mi (100.5 km^2)
• Water	0.42 sq mi (1.1 km^2)
Elevation	689 ft (210 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	822
• Density	21.2/sq mi (8.2/km^2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)	49411 (Free Soil) 49660 (Manistee)
Area code(s)	231
FIPS code	26-30620[1]
GNIS feature ID	1626315[2]

Free Soil Township was named in 1848 after the Free Soil Party.[3]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 39.22 square miles (101.58 km²), of which 38.80 square miles (100.49 km²) is land and 0.42 square miles (1.09 km²) (1.07%) is water.[4]

Demographics

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 809 people, 335 households, and 233 families residing in the township. The population density was 20.9 per square mile (8.1/km²). There were 552 housing units at an average density of 14.3 per square mile (5.5/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 96.91% White, 0.74% African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.49% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population.

There were 335 households, out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.9% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the township the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 28.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.6 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $34,375, and the median income for a family was $40,795. Males had a median income of $37,000 versus $20,417 for females. The per capita income for the township was $15,318. About 4.8% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

1. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Free Soil Township, Michigan
3. "Free Soil gets history write-up". Ludington Daily News. Jun 25, 1981. p. 4. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
4. "Michigan: 2010 Population and Housing Unit Counts 2010 Census of Population and Housing" (PDF). 2010 United States Census. United States Census Bureau. September 2012. p. 32 Michigan. Retrieved April 12, 2020.