Fairview is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either hav ...

Oscoda County Oscoda County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,219, making it the least populous county in the Lower Peninsula, and the sixth-least populous county in the entire state. The county seat i ...

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 ...

. It is located within Comins Township at the intersection of highways M-33 and M-72 at . Fairview is considered the wild turkey capital of Michigan. The Fairview 48621 ZIP Code serves most of Comins Township, as well as small portions of Clinton Township to the north and Mentor Township to the south.

Geography

Geographic features

*Fairview is situated near the Au Sable River Valley. *It is surrounded by the

Huron National Forest The Huron National Forest is a National Forest in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It was established in 1909 after the logging era began to decline. In 1945, it was administratively combined with the Manistee National Forest, to create the Hur ...

and near the

Rifle River State Recreation Area Rifle River State Recreation Area is a state park located on the upper reaches of the Rifle River within the Au Sable State Forest in Ogemaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Covering , the area provides a variety of recreational opportuniti ...

. *The area is part of the

Au Sable State Forest The Au Sable State Forest is a state forest in the north-central Lower Peninsula of Michigan. It is operated by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. The Au Sable State Forest is a byproduct of the lumbering boom in Michigan during the ...

, specifically the ** Grayling FMU (Alcona, Crawford, Oscoda, and northern Iosco counties). *The

Park is minutes away. *Fairview is part of

Northern Michigan Northern Michigan, also known as Northern Lower Michigan (known colloquially to residents of more southerly parts of the state and summer residents from cities such as Detroit as " Up North"), is a region of the U.S. state of Michigan. A popula ...

. *Fairview sits on the "Grayling outwash plain", a unique habitat. Glaciers shaped the area, creating a unique regional ecosystem. A large portion of the area is the so-called Grayling outwash plain, which consists of broad outwash plain including sandy ice-disintegration ridges; jack pine barrens, some white pine-red pine forest, and northern hardwood forest. Large lakes were created by glacial action.

Highways

* runs mostly concurrent with M-72 before separating north in the center of the community, where it is known locally as North Abbe Road. * runs eastwest through the center of the community and merges briefly with M-33. Locally, it is referred to as East Miller Road.

Local attractions and activities

Attractions

The community is centered in the

along the Au Sable River. Wildlife are nearby, including bear, deer, eagles, Kirtland's warblers, and turkeys. Local attractions and activities include: *

Amish The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churches ...

Community *Fairview Pines golf club * Mennonite Relief Expo & Fair *Michigan Shore to Shore Riding & Hiking Trail passes nearby. It runs from

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

to Oscoda, and points north and south. It is a 500-mile interconnected system of trails. *Steiner's Museum of pioneer artifacts is in Fairview. * The Michigan AuSable Valley Railroad is located in Fairview. It is a ¼ scale, gauge

ridable miniature railway A ridable miniature railway (US: riding railroad or grand scale railroad) is a large scale, usually ground-level railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are often models of full-sized railway locomotives (powered by diesel or petr ...

, which offers rides on a passenger train through of

jack pine Jack pine (''Pinus banksiana'') is an eastern North American pine. Its native range in Canada is east of the Rocky Mountains from the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, and the north-central a ...

country. Riders travel through parts of the

, often with Kirtland's Warblers visible. The roadbed, built by Diane and Howard Schrader, includes two trestles and a tunnel, and took almost ten years to build. The train station is the home of Schrader's Railroad Catalog, also run by the Schraders.Michigan Au Sable Valley Railroad.
/ref> *Cedar Valley Wild Frontier Park and Golf Course is a good attraction to visit in Fairview, Michigan. It is designed to make guests feel like they are in “pure” northern Michigan. Since its existence, it has been a family operated business. The Cedar Valley Golf Course attracts older people and younger people. The public course consists of 18 holes full of sand traps and ponds. A simulator is also available during the winter months. On the property there is also an amusement park and a campground as well. The amusement park has 18 rides, plus a miniature golf course and batting cages. A picnic table area is also available for visitors. Visitors can also plan parties or group visitations.

Activities

*Birding - Kirtland Warbler Habitat and Festival. The

Kirtland's warbler Kirtland's warbler (''Setophaga kirtlandii''), also known in Michigan by the common name jack pine bird, or the jack pine warbler, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family ( Parulidae), named after Jared Potter Kirtland, an Ohio doc ...

has its habitat in the area. There is a Kirtland's Warbler Festival, which is sponsored in part by Kirtland Community College. *Boating, paddling (

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

and

kayak A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word '' qajaq'' (). The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each ...

) *Fishing, particularly trout fishing *Hiking *Golf *Hunting *

Cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreatio ...

*ORV, motorcycle and groomed

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

trails, including the renowned Bull Gap. *Every year, Fairview Area Schools puts on Eagle Festival. This festival is in the second week of October, and is a fundraiser for Fairview School's athletic department. The festival includes a parade, soccer games, a silent auction, car shows, kiddie games and more.

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

Howard and Joann Schrader Dunn, Jon, and Garrett, Kimball. ''Warblers''. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Print. USDA, Forest Service Huron-Manistee National Forests. Biological Opinion Monitoring2006.

External links

Fairview Community SchoolsMichigan Organizations, Oscoda County Chamber of Commerce.
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Oscoda County, Michigan Unincorporated communities in Michigan