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 ...
and
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a 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 counterparts of incorporated places, su ...
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 ...
In 1879, Robert Cherry settled here along the shores of Pine Lake (now known as Lake Charlevoix). Cherry worked for the Pine Lake Iron Company of Chicago and built a plant here that opened in 1881. The plant used
iron ore
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the ...
brought in by barges from the
Upper Peninsula
The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by ...
and turned it into
pig iron
Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate product of the iron industry in the production of steel which is obtained by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with sil ...
. A post office opened in Ironton on January 31, 1881, and the community was platted in 1884. The iron operation ultimately failed in 1893, but the community remained. The post office closed on December 30, 1965.
The community of Ironton was listed as a newly-organized census-designated place for the 2010 census, meaning it now has officially defined boundaries and population statistics for the first time.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Ironton CDP has a total area of , all land.
Ironton is located in the western segment of Eveline Township, which is divided by Lake Charlevoix. The Ironton Ferry within the community connects the two segments of the township along a narrow stretch of the lake.
Major highways
* runs south–north through the community.
Demographics
Education
Ironton is served primarily by
Charlevoix Public Schools
Charlevoix ( , ) is a cultural and natural region in Quebec, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River as well as in the Laurentian Mountains area of the Canadian Shield. This dramatic landscape includes rolling terrain, fjords, headlands, ...
to the northwest in Charlevoix, while some southwestern portions of the community may be served by East Jordan Public Schools farther to the south in
East Jordan
East Jordan is a city in Charlevoix County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,239 at the 2020 census.
The city is at the end of the south arm of Lake Charlevoix at the mouth of the Jordan River. The corporate headquarters of ...