Lake Odessa is a village in

Ionia County Ionia County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 66,804. The county seat is Ionia. The Ionia County Courthouse was designed by Claire Allen, a prominent southern Michigan architect. Ion ...

of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. The population was 2,018 at the 2010 census. It is located in the southern portion of the county in Odessa Township on the northeast shore of Jordan Lake, which is the boundary with Barry County. Since 1987, Lake Odessa has been named a "Tree City USA" by the National Arbor Day Foundation.

History

Several brothers in the Russell family began settling here around 1839 and it became known as the "Russell Settlement". It later became known as "Bonanza" and a Post Office with that name was established in 1880. When the

Detroit, Lansing and Northern Railroad The Detroit, Lansing and Northern Railroad (DL&N) is a defunct railroad which was formed on December 27, 1876 as a reorganization of the foreclosed Detroit, Lansing and Lake Michigan Rail Road. The segment of its main line from Detroit to Lansing ...

(later the

Pere Marquette Railroad The Pere Marquette Railway operated in the Great Lakes region of the United States and southern parts of Ontario in Canada. It had trackage in the states of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and the Canadian province of Ontario. Its primary connections in ...

) was built through the area in the 1880s, the village was moved about a mile southwest. At that time the name was changed to "Lake Odessa", derived from the nearby Jordan Lake and the name of Odessa Township, which had been established in 1846. The township had been named for the city of

Odesa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrati ...

in Ukraine, reflecting an interest of one of the founders in Ukraine as well as a desire for a distinctive name. Investor Humphrey Wager purchased of farmland on Jordan Lake and

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...

ted the village in 1887. With the advantage of a station on the new railroad, the new village quickly eclipsed the former settlement at Bonanza. The village incorporated in 1889. John R. Waite, a local man with an interest in history, has been credited with significant historical research for the village of Lake Odessa. John is also recognized as the President of the Lake Odessa Area Historical Society and is involved with the Train Depot Museum.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the village has a total area of , all land. Lake Odessa, along with neighboring

Woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (se ...

, Sunfield and Clarksville, make up the Lakewood Public School district.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 2,018 people, 835 households, and 534 families living in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was . There were 950 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 91.4%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 0.1%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 4.2% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 3.1% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 10.3% of the population. There were 835 households, of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.7% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.0% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% 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 2.98. The median age in the village was 34.6 years. 27% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.6% were from 25 to 44; 23.5% were from 45 to 64; and 13.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48.3% male and 51.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,272 people, 892 households, and 600 families living in the village. The population density was . There were 977 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.16%

, 0.13%

, 0.66% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 2.77% from

, and 0.70% from two or more races.

of any race were 6.07% of the population. There were 892 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.8% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.08. In the village, the population was spread out, with 30.5% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.6 males. The median income for a household in the village was $34,896, and the median income for a family was $41,379. Males had a median income of $32,961 versus $25,787 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the village was $19,822. About 5.5% of families and 8.8% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

Notes

Sources

* Village of Lake Odessa site * Chapter XIL, pp. 154+ *

External links

* * * {{authority control Villages in Ionia County, Michigan Villages in Michigan Grand Rapids metropolitan area