Pontiac Township is a defunct

charter township A charter township is a form of local government in the U.S. state of Michigan. Townships in Michigan are organized governments. A charter township has been granted a charter, which allows it certain rights and responsibilities of home rule that ...

Oakland County Oakland County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the metropolitan Detroit area, located northwest of the city. As of the 2020 Census, its population was 1,274,395, making it the second-most populous county in Michigan, b ...

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 sover ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. The area consisted of what is now the cities of

Pontiac Pontiac may refer to: *Pontiac (automobile), a car brand *Pontiac (Ottawa leader) ( – 1769), a Native American war chief Places and jurisdictions Canada *Pontiac, Quebec, a municipality ** Apostolic Vicariate of Pontiac, now the Roman Catholic D ...

Auburn Hills Auburn Hills is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 21,412 at the 2010 census. Before incorporating as a city in 1983, the area was part of the now-defunct Pontiac Township. It is home to Oakland University ...

, and

Lake Angelus Lake Angelus is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is an affluent suburb of Detroit, with one of the highest per capita incomes of any community in the state. History In the early 1900s, a small community formed around th ...

. Pontiac Township was bordered on the north by Brown Road and Dutton Road, on the east by South Adams Road (including a line extending north from South Adams Road), on the south by South Boulevard, and on the west by Telegraph Road.

History

In 1818, Colonel

Stephen Mack Stephen Mack (June 15, 1766 – November 11, 1826) was an American merchant, patriot and politician. He was a member of the founding company of Pontiac, Michigan, and represented Oakland County in the First Michigan Territorial Council in 1824. ...

purchased 1280 acres (5.2 km²) of land that was to become the city of Pontiac. In 1820, Pontiac became the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Oakland County. Pontiac incorporated as a village in 1837 and later as a city in 1861. The township was organized as a civil entity in 1827. Under Michigan law, cities are independent of township governance, while villages may continue to receive some services from the township. Thus, as Pontiac grew, it annexed land from the township. The village of Auburn was platted in 1826 and was renamed Amy in 1880. In 1917, it was renamed again as Auburn Heights. Pontiac Township attempted to incorporate as Pontiac Heights in 1971, but the request was denied by state officials. Pontiac Township became a

in 1978, to protect itself from further annexation. In 1983, it formally became the city of Auburn Hills and included Auburn Heights. Lake Angelus incorporated as a village in 1930 and became a city in 1984. Although the township no longer exists as a civil entity, it is still used as a

survey township A survey township, sometimes called a Congressional township or just township, as used by the United States Public Land Survey System, is a nominally-square area of land that is nominally six U.S. survey miles (about 9.66 km) on a side. E ...

for land use purposes.

References

{{Oakland County, Michigan Defunct townships in Michigan Geography of Oakland County, Michigan Populated places established in 1827 1827 establishments in Michigan Territory Populated places disestablished in 1983 1983 disestablishments in Michigan Metro Detroit