Potterville is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Eaton County Eaton County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 109,175. The county seat is Charlotte. The county was organized in 1837 and was named for John Eaton, who was Secretary of War under ...

in 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 2,617 at the 2010 census.

History

Potterville is named after Linus Potter, who settled his family in the area in November, 1844. Linus was elected supervisor of Benton Township in 1846. In 1830, Linus and his wife Diantha came from Cayuga County, New York, by way of the Erie Canal, to Buffalo and then by way of Lake Erie steamboat to Detroit. From there, Linus and Diantha walked to Plymouth, Michigan, a journey of about thirty miles, before walking on to Saline. The pair carried their three-year-old son, George, and their infant daughter, Louisa. Potterville incorporated as a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

within Benton Township in 1881, and as a

in 1962 withdrawing it completely from the township. On July 6, 1994, a lightning strike at Fox Park injured 22 beach-goers. The lightning struck the water and "walked up the beach." A rare Michigan

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...

on September 2, 1994, had its

epicenter The epicenter, epicentre () or epicentrum in seismology is the point on the Earth's surface directly above a hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or an underground explosion originates. Surface damage Before the instrumental pe ...

just east of the city. The shock had a

body wave magnitude Body-waves consist of P-waves that are the first to arrive (see seismogram), or S-waves, or reflections of either. Body-waves travel through rock directly. mB scale The original "body-wave magnitude" – mB or mB (uppercase "B") – was developed ...

of 3.5 and a maximum

Mercalli intensity The Modified Mercalli intensity scale (MM, MMI, or MCS), developed from Giuseppe Mercalli's Mercalli intensity scale of 1902, is a seismic intensity scale used for measuring the intensity of shaking produced by an earthquake. It measures the eff ...

of V (''Moderate''). It could be felt through most of Mid-Michigan. The city experienced a massive train derailment of 35

Canadian National The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN ...

railroad cars over

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

weekend 2002. Due to leaking propane from the cars, the entire city was evacuated. The cause of the derailment was found to have been a faulty rail. A second

train derailment occurred in May 2006, though no evacuation was necessary. The cause of this derailment was found to be a failed wheel bearing on the 82nd car.http://www.wzzm13.com/printfullstory.aspx?storyid=53935

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 city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

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 2,617 people, 952 households, and 702 families residing in the city. 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 1,112 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.2%

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 ...

, 1.3%

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.5%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.6% 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 2.6% 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 5.7% of the population. There were 952 households, of which 45.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.2% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 26.3% were non-families. 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.16. The median age in the city was 32.4 years. 31.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30% were from 25 to 44; 23.5% were from 45 to 64; and 7.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.6% male and 51.4% female.

2000 Census

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,168 people, 802 households, and 572 families residing in the city. The

was . There were 892 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.48%

, 0.23%

, 0.42% Native American, 0.42%

, 1.48% from

, and 1.98% from two or more races.

of any race were 4.01% of the population. There were 802 households, out of which 44.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 17.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.6% were non-families. 22.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.18. In the city, the population was spread out, with 33.7% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 33.9% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $42,292, and the median income for a family was $48,182. Males had a median income of $33,988 versus $26,250 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 city was $17,880. About 3.5% of families and 5.9% 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 5.0% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The city is served by Potterville Public School District, whose schools are located on one campus along Main Street just east of N. Hartel Road ( M-100). The district mascot is the Vikings, with school colors of maroon and gold. This campus includes an elementary, middle, and high school (including sport facilities). Also sharing this campus are the administration and preschool buildings.

Transportation

Potterville is located approximately 12.6 miles (20.2 kilometers) southwest of

downtown Lansing Downtown Lansing is the central business district of Lansing, Michigan, United States. Located in the west-central part of the city along the banks of the Grand River, downtown Lansing is primarily home to Michigan's state government and three ...

and 7 miles (11.2 kilometers) northeast of

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

along Lansing Road at its intersection with Hartel Road/ M-100. The city is connected with interstate highway system immediately south of this intersection where M-100 interchanges with

I-69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...

. M-100 also connects Potterville to

I-96 Interstate 96 (I-96) is an east–west Interstate Highway that runs for approximately entirely within the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan. The western terminus is at an interchange with US Highway 31 (US 31) and Bu ...

just north of

Grand Ledge Grand Ledge is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city lies mostly within Eaton County, though a small portion extends into Clinton County to the north. The city sits above the Grand River 12.7 miles (20.4 kilometers) west of downtown La ...

. The city is serviced by Canadian National Railway (CN) along its Flint Subdivision.

Highways

Highways * *

Public safety

The City of Potterville Police Department provides law enforcement services to Potterville with three full-time officers, one part-time officer, and a full-time chief. Fire services are provided by the Benton Twp. Fire & EMS Department, which utilizes a combination of full-time, part-time and paid-on-call firefighters/medical personnel, which took effect on September 10, 2019 when the city decided to dissolve the Potterville City Fire Dept. due to unforeseen circumstances.

Notable people

Joe Davis Joseph Davis (15 April 190110 July 1978) was an English professional snooker and English billiards player. He was the dominant figure in snooker from the 1920s to the 1950s, and has been credited with inventing aspects of the way the game is ...

, announcer for the Los Angeles Dodgers and FOX sports; attended Potterville High School

References

External links

Official Website of the City of Potterville
{{Coord, 42, 37, 45, N, 84, 44, 20, W, type:city_region:US-MI, display=title Cities in Eaton County, Michigan Lansing–East Lansing metropolitan area Populated places established in 1844