Au Sable Township is a

charter township A charter township is a form of Local government in the United States, local government in the U.S. state of Michigan. While all townships in Michigan are organized governments, a charter township has been granted a charter, which allows it cert ...

of Iosco County in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. The population was 2,016 at the 2020 census.

Communities

* Au Sable is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) located within the township at . * Oscoda is an unincorporated community and census-designated place that is mostly located within Oscoda Township to the north at . Only a very small portion of the CDP extends into Au Sable Township.

History

The area was originally inhabited by the Chippewa Native Americans, who used the area for hunting and fishing. They ceded the area to the federal government under the

Treaty of Saginaw The Treaty of Saginaw, also known as the Treaty with the Chippewa, was made between Gen. Lewis Cass and Chief Mash Kee Yosh, Chief John Okemos, Chief Wasso and other Native American tribes of the Great Lakes region (principally the Ojibwe, bu ...

in 1819. The first European settler to claim land was French-Canadian fur trader Louis Chevalier, and he established a trading post slightly upstream along the Au Sable River, which was translated from the French language "river of sand." The area became popular for hunters, fishermen, and trappers. In 1848, the township was established, and the community of Au Sable was platted in 1849 at the river mouth along Lake Huron. The township was later organized in 1857 under the name Sable when Iosco County was formally organized, and the township name was changed to AuSable in 1877. The community of Au Sable became the center of population and incorporated as an autonomous city in 1889. The new city had a population of 4,828 at the

1890 census The 1890 United States census was taken beginning June 2, 1890. The census determined the resident population of the United States to be 62,979,766, an increase of 25.5 percent over the 50,189,209 persons enumerated during the 1880 census. The ...

, while Au Sable Township remained sparsely populated and only had a population of 170. Along with neighboring Oscoda, the area became part of the thriving lumber region. After the lumber industry declined, the population dwindled, and Au Sable and Oscoda suffered a devastating fire in 1911. The city of Au Sable never recovered and surrendered its city charter in 1931 and returned to township control. Due to its location along the Au Sable River and Lake Huron coastline, a lighthouse was established at the river mouth to aid ships that were used to transport the large lumber supplies. The Au Sable Pierhead Lighthouse was commissioned in 1873. The lighthouse survived the devastating 1911 fire, but the surrounding area was destroyed. A newer skeletal tower was constructed in 1912 and later automated in 1940. The tower was deactivated and removed in 1957. It then sat on the grounds of the Oscoda Yacht Club and fell into desrepair. It was eventually restored and erected near U.S. Route 23 at the Huron Shores Artisan Hall just to the north in Oscoda Township.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the township has a total area of , of which is land and (2.32%) is water. The Au Sable River runs through the northeast boundary and has its river mouth at

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is shared on the north and east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south and west by the U.S. state of Michigan. The name of the lake is derived from early French ex ...

within the township.

Major highways

* runs south–north along the eastern edge of the township near Lake Huron.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 2,230 people, 956 households, and 636 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 1,498 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 96.50%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.85%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.27% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.30% of the population. There were 956 households, out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.81. In the township the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.1 males. The median income for a household in the township was $34,570, and the median income for a family was $38,462. Males had a median income of $27,415 versus $19,216 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the township was $20,025. About 9.3% of families and 12.3% 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 19.0% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Au Sable Township is served by two separate public school districts. The majority of the township is served by Oscoda Area Schools to the north in Oscoda, while the southwest corner of the township is served by Tawas Area Schools in Tawas City.

References

External links

Au Sable Township official websiteAu Sable and Oscoda Historical Society
{{Authority control Townships in Iosco County, Michigan Charter townships in Michigan Populated places established in 1848 1848 establishments in Michigan Populated places on Lake Huron in the United States