Barton Hills is a village in Washtenaw 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 316 at the 2020 census. The village is located within Ann Arbor Charter Township just northwest of the city of

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

. Originally established by Detroit Edison president Alex Dow on land acquired for the Barton Dam, Barton Hills was designed as an exclusive, forested residential enclave just outside Ann Arbor. In 1944, the community was sold to its residents, and a village was incorporated in 1973. The streets in the village were formerly owned by the Barton Hills Maintenance Corporation but were purchased by the village itself in 2010.

History

In the early 1900s the land now occupied by Barton Hills Village was used for cattle grazing by a local firm, Towar Dairy. Around 1910 the Detroit Edison Company needed to increase its electrical generating capacity and decided to construct a series of dams and power stations along the

Huron River The Huron River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed November 7, 2011 river in southeast Michigan, southeastern Michigan, rising out of the Huron Swamp in Springfie ...

. For that purpose they purchased 2,000 acres and water rights along both sides of the Huron River, including the Towar Dairy property. The present Barton Dam was built in 1913. An area known as "Huron Farms" was established by the Detroit Edison Company in 1913 on this property on the north shore of the Huron River, adjacent to the City of Ann Arbor. Land owned by the company was also used for agricultural purposes, including farms, dairy cattle, and fruit orchards. Detroit Edison's president, Alex Dow, devoted parted of the company's acquisition as an exclusive residential community for company executives. Dow and his wife Vivienne selected a site just north of the Barton Dam, on former pastureland, for their own house. In 1915, the company contracted with the

Olmsted Brothers The Olmsted Brothers company was a Landscape architecture, landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape ar ...

, famous for their park and subdivision designs, as landscape architects for the new community. The Olmsted Brothers architectural firm, designers of Central Park in New York City, were employed to lay out lot lines and roads which they did in great detail. Most of that plan is still in use today. At first a denuded hill sloping into the pond, jokingly referred to as "Barren Hill", the Olmstead Brothers plan prescribed that the area be reforested. Several Detroit Edison executives had constructed homes along the river in this area by the early 1920s. In 1924 the company platted and deeded the Towar parcel as a subdivision called Barton Hills, and in the process placed deed restrictions on the property to ensure that it would remain a controlled residential community. When homes were constructed in the 1920s, restrictions attached to each deed stipulated that the homes must be designed by a registered architect.“Barton Hills Maintenance Corporation Architectural Guidelines” url=https://thebhmc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Architectural-Guidelines-May-1-2021.pdf The Barton Hills Country Club, the only business establishment within the village, was founded in 1917. Membership in the Barton Hills Country Club was considered by many to be a mark of distinction. In 2020, about 45% of Barton Hills residents were members of the country club. The subdivision was in its early years considered too far from Ann Arbor to be attractive, and grew slowly. The economic depression of the 1930s slowed all types of building, and it was only in the post-World War II years of the 1950s and 1960s that construction of private homes resumed in earnest. This has continued so that few empty lots remain. By the 1940s, through the economic and social turmoil of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the community had become an economic liability for a public utility. The company shareholders decided to make an outright gift of its holding to the residents of the community in exchange for assuming responsibility for maintaining the water system, roads, and other municipal services. However, the community did not seek municipal status until some thirty years later. On December 12, 1973, the community became the first home rule village in Washtenaw County.

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 village has a total area of , all land. Barton Hills sits on the north bank of Barton Pond along the

, which is a reservoir created by Barton Dam, which is located in the city of Ann Arbor.

Demographics

2010 census

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 2010, there were 294 people, 123 households, and 93 families residing in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was . There were 137 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 88.1%

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 ...

, 1.0%

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 ...

, 6.8% Asian, 1.7% from other races, and 2.4% 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 5.8% of the population. There were 123 households, of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.9% 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, 2.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 24.4% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.74. The median age in the village was 53.7 years. 21.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 10.2% were from 25 to 44; 37.3% were from 45 to 64; and 29.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48.0% male and 52.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 335 people, 136 households, and 112 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 141 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 88.96%

, 1.49%

, 5.07% Asian, 0.30%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.30% from other races, and 3.88% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.19% of the population. There were 136 households, out of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them. 81.6% of households were married couples living together, 0.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.6% were non-families. 15.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.73. The village population was 18.8% under the age of 18, 3.6% age 18 to 24, 14.6% age 25 to 44, 40.6% age 45 to 64, and 22.4% age 65 and older. The median age was 52. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.7 males. The median household income was $149,056, and the median family income was $153,166. Males had a median income of $100,000 versus $51,111 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 village was $110,683. None of the families and 0.6% of the population were living 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 ...

, none of whom were under the age of eighteen or over 64.

Education

Barton Hills is served by Ann Arbor Public Schools, although there are no schools located within the village.

Images

File:Barton Pond Barton Hillls Michigan.JPG, File:Barton Shore Drive Barton Hills Michigan.JPG, File:Maple-Foster Bridge Barton Hills Michigan.JPG,

References

External links

Barton Hills Village official website
{{authority control Villages in Michigan Villages in Washtenaw County, Michigan Populated places established in 1913 1913 establishments in Michigan