Cheshire Township is a

civil township A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States that is subordinate to a county, most often in the northern and midwestern parts of the country. The term town is used in New England, New York, and Wisconsin to re ...

of Allegan County 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 2,211 at the 2020 census.

Communities

Cheshire Center or Cheshire is an unincorporated community at . The first permanent white settler was Simeon Pike from

Monroe County, New York Monroe County is a county in the Finger Lakes region of the State of New York. The county is along Lake Ontario's southern shore. At the 2020 census, Monroe County's population was 759,443, an increase since the 2010 census. Its county seat a ...

, who arrived in 1839. Cheshire Township was organized in 1851, and the sawmill village was named for the township. A post office named Cheshire was established on March 8, 1856, with Jonathon Howard as the first postmaster. The name of the office was "Lake" from April 10, 1858, until February 18, 1863, when it reverted to Cheshire. The office closed on March 6, 1879, and reopened from June 20, 1879, until July 30, 1905. Chicora is an unincorporated community at . A post office was opened on January 10, 1896, with Herman D. Clark as the first postmaster, and operated until May 31, 1904. It is named after the '' S.S. Chicora'', a steamship that sank in Lake Michigan on January 21, 1895.

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 township has a total area of , of which is land and , or 3.05%, is water.

Demographics

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 2000, there were 2,335 people, 857 households, and 646 families residing in the township. The population density was . here were 1,137 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 92.25%

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 ...

, 3.38%

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 ...

, 0.60% Native American, 0.13%

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 ...

, 0.26%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.99% 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 2.40% 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 2.61% of the population. There were 857 households, out of which 37.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.5% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.6% were non-families. 18.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.09. In the township the population was spread out, with 28.9% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.4 males. The median income for a household in the township was $40,405, and the median income for a family was $46,250. Males had a median income of $38,750 versus $25,993 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 township was $16,350. About 4.7% of families and 9.4% 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 6.3% of those under age 18 and 16.9% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

* {{authority control Townships in Allegan County, Michigan 1851 establishments in Michigan Populated places established in 1851 Townships in Michigan