Wayne County is the most populous

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of 2020, the United States Census placed its population at 1,793,561, making it the 19th-most populous county in the United States. 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 ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

. The county was founded in 1796 and organized in 1815. Wayne County is included in the

- Warren-

Dearborn Dearborn may refer to: People * Dearborn (surname) ** Henry Dearborn (1751–1829), U.S. Secretary of War under President Thomas Jefferson, Senior Officer of the U.S. Army during the War of 1812 Places in the United States Forts * Fort Dearborn, ...

, MI

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

. It is one of several U.S. counties named after Revolutionary War-era general

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mi ...

History

Wayne County was the sixth county in the Northwest Territory, formed August 15, 1796 from portions of territorial Hamilton County, territorial Knox County and unorganized territory. It was named for the U.S. general "Mad Anthony" Wayne. It originally encompassed the entire area of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, most of the Upper Peninsula, as well as smaller sections that are now part of northern

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. By proclamation of the Territorial Secretary and Acting Governor, Winthrop Sargent, on August 15, 1796, the boundaries of Wayne County were declared to begin at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River then west to Fort Wayne, then to the southernmost point of

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that ...

and along the western shore north to the territorial boundary in

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh w ...

and then along the territorial boundary through

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrologically, it comprises the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as Lake Michigan, to which it is connected by the , Straits of Ma ...

, Lake St. Clair, and

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...

back to the starting point. The first division of the county into townships occurred November 1, 1798, into the four townships of

, Hamtramck,

Mackinaw Mackinac or Mackinaw may refer to: Geography Landforms * Straits of Mackinac, a waterway in the U.S. state of Michigan connecting two of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron and separating the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan * Mac ...

, and Sargent. The extent of Wayne county at that time included all the present state of Michigan in addition to parts of Indiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin, so that the townships erected at that time were vastly larger than the corresponding divisions of the present time. On January 14, 1803, the Governor of

Indiana Territory The Indiana Territory, officially the Territory of Indiana, was created by a congressional act that President John Adams signed into law on May 7, 1800, to form an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, ...

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

, issued a similar proclamation defining the boundaries as beginning at a point where an east and west line passing through the southernmost extreme of Lake Michigan would intersect a north and south line, passing through the westernmost extreme of the lake, then north to the territorial boundary, then along said boundary line to a point where an east and west line passing through the southerly extreme of Lake Michigan would intersect the same, then along this last mentioned line to the place of beginning. This boundary would include

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

and a sizable strip of

along Lake Michigan. These boundaries would be adjusted as

and

became states and as other counties were formed within

Michigan Territory The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroi ...

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (9.0%) is water. Its water area includes parts of the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair. Wayne County borders on Oakland County and Macomb County to the north, Washtenaw County to the west, Essex County,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada to the east, and Monroe County to the south. The eastern (and sometimes southern) boundary is a water boundary in the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair with Essex County, Ontario. Automotive traffic crosses this boundary at the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel and the Ambassador Bridge. Due to the southwestern course of the river, this small portion of Canada actually lies to the south of Wayne County. The southern communities of the county are usually referred to as " Downriver", in reference to their location downstream of downtown Detroit. Grosse Ile is the largest island in Wayne County and is connected to the mainland by the

Wayne County Bridge The Wayne County Bridge is a swing bridge that crosses the Trenton Channel in the Detroit River. Located in Wayne County, Michigan, it connects Grosse Ile Township to mainland Trenton and is one of two bridges connecting the island of Grosse ...

and the

Grosse Ile Toll Bridge The Grosse Ile Toll Bridge is a swing bridge that crosses the Trenton Channel of the Detroit River connecting Grosse Ile Township, Michigan to the mainland in Riverview, Michigan which is located in Wayne County, Michigan. History The Grosse Il ...

Adjacent counties

* Washtenaw County (west) * Monroe County (south/southwest) * Macomb County (northeast) * Oakland County (northwest) *

Essex County, Ontario Essex County is a primarily rural county in Southwestern Ontario, Canada comprising seven municipalities: Amherstburg, Kingsville, Lakeshore, LaSalle, Leamington, Tecumseh and the administrative seat, Essex. Administrative divisions Essex Co ...

, Canada (east/southeast)

National protected area

* Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge (part)

Transportation

Wayne County Department of Public Services

The Wayne County Department of Public Services was formed in 1906 as the Wayne County Road Commission. It was the government agency in Wayne County, Michigan responsible for building and maintaining the county's roads and highways. Its first commissioners were Edward N. Hines, Cassius R. Benton, and automobile manufacturer

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American Technological and industrial history of the United States, industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of ...

. While the commission was authorized by an 80% positive vote of county voters in a 1906 referendum, it was controversial and there was a Michigan state supreme court case pressed which found it unconstitutional. Commissioners Benton and Ford quit, but commissioner Hines persisted and led the commission through reorganization getting around the obstacles. Hines was a commissioner continuously from 1906 to 1938. Hines is credited with the idea of putting a painted line down a roadway's center to divide traffic, and other innovations that were later widely adopted. The commission claims credit for constructing the country's first mile of concrete-paved rural highway, a section of Woodward Avenue" just outside the Detroit city limits. A number of the county road commissions' works are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

. The county road commission was merged into the general county government, becoming the Roads Division of the Department of Public Services.

Major highways

* through the Downriver communities, then through the southwest-side neighborhoods of

and serves as the northern border of

Downtown Detroit Downtown Detroit is the central business district and a residential area of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States. Locally, downtown tends to refer to the 1.4 square mile region bordered by M-10 (Lodge Freeway) to the west, Interstate 75 ...

as the Fisher Freeway. It then turns away from the Fisher onto the Chrysler Freeway at a complex interchange with I-375 and an unnumbered extension which connects with M-3, then follows M-1, which is less than a mile away through the remainder of Detroit, connecting eastern Wayne County to

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Orur ...

and

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...

to the south and north respectively. It runs non-stop to the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge to the north and to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, a ...

to the south. * runs east–west through the central parts of Wayne County, connecting it to

Port Huron Port Huron is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of St. Clair County. The population was 30,184 at the 2010 census. The city is adjacent to Port Huron Township but is administered separately. Located along the St. Clair ...

eastbound and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

westbound. To the west it provides an uninterrupted route as far as

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

and connects to the northern side of the Detroit Metro Airport. In Detroit it is known as the Edsel Ford Freeway. * has its eastern terminus in the county, in

. It follows

Grand River Avenue Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and commun ...

until the city's northwest side, there it turns due west to I-275, where it turns north to concurrent with I-275. West of Detroit to I-275 it is known as the Jeffries Freeway; in Detroit it is the Rosa Parks Memorial Highway, but it is sometimes still known as the Jeffries. * , most of whose mileage is in Wayne County, serves the southern side of the Detroit Metro Airport. * is the nation's shortest Interstate Highway to be ''signed''. However some highways are shorter but are not signed at all. It serves as the eastern boundary of

and is a southern extension of the Chrysler Freeway. * has its eastern terminus in

at Cass Avenue. From there it travels through the west side of

and through

and other points west and is a useful alternative to I-94. US 12 continues west through Michigan, passing through several US cities including Chicago and Minneapolis, eventually ending in the Pacific Northwest in Aberdeen, Washington. Locally it is known as Michigan Avenue. * traverses through Downriver and the far west sides of

and

and is a useful alternative to I-75. Locally it is known as Telegraph Road. * entered the county by two ways. Initially it was via Woodward Avenue but when the Lodge Freeway was completed U.S. Route 10 was relocated onto it; the Woodward route became M-1. Later the existing highway was truncated in Bay City and M-10 replaced it on the Lodge. * entered Wayne County on

and ended in

. * was the designated name for Dix-Toledo Highway in Downriver and Fort Street and Gratiot Avenue in

. The construction of I-75 resulted in the truncation of U.S. Route 25 to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

. * followed Michigan Avenue out of

and out of Wayne County. Is now a routing of U.S. Route 12. * has its southern terminus in

at Adams Street. It travels through Midtown Detroit and New Center and through Highland Park. It serves as an alternative to I-75 and M-10. Locally known as Woodward Avenue. M-1 was a result of US-10 being redesignated to the Lodge Freeway. * has its southern terminus in

at Randolph and Jefferson Avenue. It proceeds northeasterly through Detroit's northeast side and beyond towards Mount Clemens and points further north. Locally known as Gratiot Avenue. M-3 was the result of the removal of US-25 from Michigan. * begins at the northern intersection with I-96 on Detroit's northwest side and follows

out of the county. * runs from I-96 to Conant Street in

, passing through Highland Park. The freeway portion is known as the Davison Freeway. * starts at the same intersection where M-3 starts in

and travels further into the city on the Lodge Freeway and connects it to Southfield. * starts at the interchange with I-96 and I-275 in

Livonia Livonia ( liv, Līvõmō, et, Liivimaa, fi, Liivinmaa, German and Scandinavian languages: ', archaic German: ''Liefland'', nl, Lijfland, Latvian and lt, Livonija, pl, Inflanty, archaic English: ''Livland'', ''Liwlandia''; russian: Ли ...

and travels out into rural areas, serving

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymout ...

and Ann Arbor. * starts in Lincoln Park's city center and runs along Southfield Road to

Allen Park Allen Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 28,638. Ford Motor Company is an integral part of the community. Many of the company's offices and facilities lie within the city lim ...

and becomes the Southfield Freeway, traveling through the west side of

. * begins at M-3 in

, running through the city and connecting it to the Thumb area of the state. Locally known as Van Dyke Avenue. * , which is entirely in Wayne County, starts at Griswold Street in

and connects the city's southwest side to Downriver, ending near

Flat Rock Flat Rock may refer to: Australia *Flat Rock or Collins Rock, a low point in Woonona, New South Wales United States * Flat Rock, Alabama * Flat Rock, Georgia * Flat Rock (Columbus, Georgia), a residential neighborhood in Columbus, Georgia * F ...

at I-75, for whom which M-85 serves as an alternative. Locally known as West Fort and South Fort, divided at the River Rouge. * only runs a short distance through Detroit's northeast side, starting at M-3. In the city it follows Gunston Street and Hoover Street. * follows the county line between M-5 and I-94. Locally known as West 8 Mile and East 8 Mile, divided at John R. Street. * starts at Wyoming Street on the Detroit-Dearborn limit and continues through the western suburbs as Ford Road. * became part of US 16, which is also removed from Michigan. * once followed Ecorse Road into Lincoln Park, then ran concurrently with U.S. Route 25 to

. * connected US 24 in Monroe to

; it once connected to US 112 in

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

along Huron River Drive and Belleville Road. * entered Wayne County during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and the years following, on an expressway, providing access to the

Willow Run Airport Willow Run Airport is an airport in Van Buren Charter Township and Ypsilanti Township, near Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States that serves freight, corporate, and general aviation. Due to its very close proximity to Detroit Metropolitan ...

in Van Buren Township and turned onto present-day Interstate 94 in Romulus Township. In Taylor Township it had interchanges with both M-17 and US 24, then ended at US 112 in

. *

Dixie Highway ran through Wayne County as early as 1915. Back then it was one of the only routes that connected the county to the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

. Today there are no traces of the old highway in the county.

Airports

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is located in the Downriver community of

Romulus Romulus () was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus and his contemporaries. Although many of these ...

. It serves as a hub for

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along wi ...

and Spirit Airlines and is one of the two airports operated by the Wayne County Airport Authority. * Airport Sign

is located in Van Buren Township and has four runways (a fifth was recently converted into a taxiway). No scheduled flights operate out of Willow Run and is one of the two airports operated by the Wayne County Airport Authority. * Airport Sign

Grosse Ile Municipal Airport is located about two miles (3.2 km) south of Grosse Ile Township's downtown area. It has two paved runways. No scheduled flights operate out of this airport as well. * Airport Sign

Coleman A. Young International Airport Coleman A. Young International Airport (Coleman A. Young Municipal Airport, formerly Detroit City Airport until 2003) is six miles northeast of downtown Detroit, in Wayne County, Michigan. It is owned by the City of Detroit. The Federal Aviation ...

is also known as the Detroit City Airport, which is not to be confused with the larger and nearby Detroit Metro Airport. It is located just a short drive from

along M-3. It also has two runways and no scheduled flights, although it has been attempted in the past.

Demographics

2020 census

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''

2010 Census

The 2010 United States Census indicates Wayne County had a 2010 population of 1,820,584. This is a decrease of 240,578 people from the 2000 United States Census. Overall, the county had an -11.7% growth rate during this ten-year period. In 2010 there were 702,749 households and 450,651 families in the county. 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 2,974.4 per square mile (1,148.4 square kilometers). There were 821,693 housing units at an average density of 1,342.5 per square mile (518.3 square kilometers). 52.3% were

White White is the lightness, 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 diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 40.5% Black or African American, 2.5% Asian, 0.4% Native American, 0.8% of some other race and 2.4% of two or more races. 5.2% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 7.5% were of German, 6.8% Polish and 5.2% Irish ancestry. There were 702,749 households, out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.4% were husband and wife families, 20.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.9% were non-families, and 30.7% were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.22. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.4% under age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.7 males. The 2010 American Community Survey 1-year estimate indicates the median income for a household in the county was $39,408 and the median income for a family was $49,176. Males had a median income of $26,823 versus $17,744 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 county was $20,948. About 18.6% of families and 23.7% 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 ...

, including 34.8% of those under the age 18 and 11.7% of that age 65 or over.

Religion

According to 2010 statistics, the largest religious group in Wayne County was the Archdiocese of Detroit, with 297,283 Catholics worshipping at 149 parishes, followed by 92,394 non-denominational adherents with 144 congregations, 76,422 NBC Baptists with 110 congregations, an estimated 67,775

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abra ...

with 38 congregations, 28,021 ABCUSA Baptists with 32 congregations, 22,687 Missouri Synod Lutherans with 52 congregations, 16,043 CoGiC Pentecostals with 66 congregations, 14,689 UMC Methodists with 53 congregations, 14,107 PC-USA Presbyterians with 36 congregations, and 13,199 AME Methodists with 29 congregations. Altogether, 43.3% of the population was claimed as members by religious congregations, although members of historically African-American denominations were underrepresented due to incomplete information. In 2014, Wayne County had 780 religious organizations, the 12th most among all US counties.

Government

Wayne County is Michigan's first " charter county", with a

home rule charter Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wit ...

setting up its structures within limits set in state law and constitution. Most Michigan county governments are structured according to state law, without a locally adopted charter. The city is governed pursuant to the ''Home Rule Charter of Wayne County, Michigan'', and the ''Wayne County Code'' is the codification of Wayne County's local ordinances. Unless a violation of the code or other ordinance is specifically designated as a municipal civil infraction (or unless expressly otherwise required by applicable state or federal laws), the violation is a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than ad ...

. The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains

vital records Vital records are records of life events kept under governmental authority, including birth certificates, marriage licenses (or marriage certificates), separation agreements, divorce certificates or divorce party and death certificates. In ...

for all areas except Detroit, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. Most other local government functions – police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. – are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

* County Executive: Warren Evans (

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

) * Prosecuting Attorney: Kym Worthy (

) *

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

: Raphael Washington (

) * County Clerk: Cathy M. Garrett (

) *

County Treasurer A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

: Eric Sabree (

) *

Register of Deeds Recorder of deeds or deeds registry is a government office tasked with maintaining public records and documents, especially records relating to real property, real estate ownership that provide persons other than the owner of a property with re ...

: Bernard J. Youngblood (

) * Wayne County Commission: Alisha Bell, Chair (

) 15 members, elected from districts (14 Democrats, 1 Republican) * Circuit Court (3rd Circuit encompasses Wayne County): 61 judges (non-partisan) * Probate Court: 8 judges (non-partisan) (information as of February 2021)

Department of Public Services

Formerly the Wayne County Road Commission, the Department of Public Services is the government agency in Wayne County responsible for building and maintaining the county's roads and highways. A number of the former agency's works are listed on the

Corrections

The Wayne County Jail Division operates The Andrew C. Baird Detention Facility in

, The Old Wayne County Jail in Downtown Detroit, and The William Dickerson Detention Facility in Hamtramck.

Politics

Wayne County has backed the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

candidate for president in every election from 1932 onward, often and more recently by wide margins. From 1896 to 1928, it had always voted Republican for president, or at least more Republican than Democratic. Its large population has helped swing the election to Democrats in many statewide elections since then, with candidates running up large margins here offsetting Republican majorities in most rural counties of Michigan. The last Republican candidate to carry Wayne County in a statewide election was Candice Miller when she won re-election to the Secretary of State office in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

Communities

Cities

* Belleville *

* Dearborn Heights *

(county seat) * Ecorse *

(partially in Monroe County, Michigan) * Garden City * Gibraltar *

Grosse Pointe Grosse Pointe refers to an affluent coastal area next to Detroit, Michigan, United States, that comprises five adjacent individual cities. From southwest to northeast, they are: * Grosse Pointe Park * Grosse Pointe * Grosse Pointe Farms * Grosse ...

* Grosse Pointe Farms * Grosse Pointe Park * Grosse Pointe Shores (partially in Macomb County) * Grosse Pointe Woods * Hamtramck * Harper Woods * Highland Park * Inkster * Lincoln Park *

Melvindale Melvindale is a city in Wayne County of the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city population was 12,851. History Melvindale began as the unincorporated settlement of Oakwood Heights in the northwestern part of Ecorse Township i ...

* Northville (partially in Oakland County) *

* River Rouge * Riverview * Rockwood *

* Southgate * Taylor * Trenton * Wayne * Westland * Woodhaven * Wyandotte

Charter townships

* Brownstown Charter Township * Canton Charter Township * Huron Charter Township * Northville Charter Township * Plymouth Charter Township * Redford Charter Township * Van Buren Charter Township

Civil townships

* Grosse Ile Township * Sumpter Township

Unincorporated communities

Beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engl ...

* Belleville North * Cherry Hill * Cherry Island * Conners Creek (former) * Denton * Duboisville (former) * East Rockwoood * Edgewater Heights * French Landing * Grand View Acres * Maple Beach * Martinsville * Milleville Beach * New Boston *

Rawsonville Rawsonville is a small wine growing and farming community in the Breede River Valley of the Western Cape province of South Africa. The town forms part of the Breede Valley Local Municipality, and is located in a scenic portion of the valley on ...

(partially in Washtenaw County) * Roulo * Sheldon *

Waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the w ...

* West Sumpter *

Willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist ...

Education

School districts: * Airport Community School District * Allen Park Public Schools * Crestwood School District *

Flat Rock Community Schools Flat Rock Community Schools is a school district jurisdiction located in the city of Flat Rock, in Wayne County, Michigan. Vision Statement Flat Rock Community Schools will provide the programs necessary to develop the appropriate degree o ...

* Clarenceville School District * Dearborn City School District *

Dearborn Heights School District 7 Dearborn Heights District 7 is one of the three public school districts in Dearborn Heights, Michigan. The Crestwood School District is located in the city's northern side, while the Westwood School District is located in the city's southwest ...

* Detroit Public Schools Community District *

Ecorse Public School District Ecorse Public Schools is a school district headquartered in Ecorse, Michigan, United States. The district serves Ecorse. In 2015 the district stated that it eliminated its budget deficit.Hicks, Mark.Officials: Ecorse Public Schools eliminates de ...

* Garden City School District * Gibraltar School District * Grosse Ile Township Schools * Grosse Pointe Public Schools * Hamtramck Public Schools *

Harper Woods City Schools Harper Woods School District is a school district headquartered in Harper Woods, Michigan, United States in Metro Detroit. History In 2003 the district twice attempted to pass a $42 million bond that called for replacing all three school building ...

Highland Park City Schools Highland Park Schools, officially the School District of the City of Highland Park, is a school district headquartered in Highland Park, Michigan, Highland Park, Michigan, United States in Greater Detroit.Huron School District * Lincoln Consolidated School District * Lincoln Park Public Schools *

Livonia Public Schools Livonia Public Schools (LPS) is a public school district in southeastern Michigan Metro Detroit area, serving most of the city of Livonia and the northernmost portions of Westland. The district was formed in 1944 with other areas consolidated ...

* Melvindale-North Allen Park School District * Northville Public Schools * Plymouth-Canton Community Schools * Redford Union School District * River Rouge School District *

Riverview Community School District Riverview Community School District (RCSD) is a school district headquartered in Riverview, Michigan, United States. It is responsible for Riverview Community High School, Seitz middle school and three elementary schools, along with a preschool ...

Romulus Community Schools Romulus Community School District, also referred to as Romulus Community Schools (RCS), is a public school district in Romulus, Michigan in Metro Detroit. The district's Administration Offices & Transportation Department is located at 36540 Grant ...

* South Redford School District * Southgate Community School District * Taylor School District * Trenton Public Schools *

Van Buren Public Schools The Van Buren Public Schools (VBPS) is a school district headquartered in Belleville, Michigan. Schools Secondary schools * Belleville High School ( Belleville) * McBride Middle School (formerly North Middle School, Van Buren Township)

Wayne-Westland Community School District Wayne-Westland Community Schools is a school district headquartered in Westland, Michigan in Metro Detroit. The district service area includes all and/or portions of Westland, Wayne, Canton, Dearborn Heights, Inkster, and Romulus. As of 2012 th ...

* Westwood Community Schools *

Woodhaven-Brownstown School District The Woodhaven-Brownstown School District in Michigan headquartered in Woodhaven in Metro Detroit. It consists of eight separate schools and students from both the City of Woodhaven and Brownstown Township can attend the district. The district ...

* Wyandotte City School District Former school districts: * Inkster City School District - Page
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/ref> Tertiary institutions: *

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

* Henry Ford College * University of Detroit Mercy

References

External links

Wayne County Government

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Wayne County Road Commission Photos

* ttp://library.municode.com/index.aspx?clientId=13032 Wayne County Codefrom Municode {{Coord, 42.28, -83.26, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MI_source:UScensus1990 Michigan counties Metro Detroit 1815 establishments in Michigan Territory Populated places established in 1815 Majority-minority counties in the United States