Milford is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in Oakland 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 so ...

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 6,175 at the time of the 2010 census. The village is located within Milford Township. The village is known for being the home of the Milford General Motors Proving Ground.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the village has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

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 6,175 people, 2,589 households, and 1,719 families living 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 2,777 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.7%

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 ...

, 0.6%

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.7% 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 2.0% of the population. There were 2,589 households, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% 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, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.6% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.93. The median age in the village was 40.8 years. 23.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.8% were from 25 to 44; 30.9% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The sex makeup of the village was 47.4% male and 52.6% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 6,272 people, 2,427 households, and 1,706 families living in the village. The population density was . There were 2,491 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.35%

, 0.16%

, 0.38% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.35% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.32% of the population. There were 2,427 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were

living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.09. In the village, the population was spread out, with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 33.0% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males. The median income for a household in the village was $59,688, and the median income for a family was $71,333. Males had a median income of $53,393 versus $31,935 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 $26,159. About 6.5% of families and 7.2% 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 13.0% of those under age 18 and 2.4% of those age 65 or over.

History

The village of Milford began with the building of a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

by Elizur and Stanley Ruggles in 1832. Early county records indicate that the mill was erected in the "Township" at that time, and that formal organization would occur in 1834. That same year, the first

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

was erected by Luman Fuller. In 1835, the first

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

was established with Aaron Phelps as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

. The Lower Mill Pond was created in 1836 to provide waterpower for the various types of mills and factories. The Upper Mill Pond followed in 1845. In 1911, the Hubbell Pond was created by a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

built on 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 ...

to generate

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

. The village was incorporated in 1869. Hydropower made it possible for Milford to become one of the first communities to have electric lights, in 1892. A year later, telephone service was available in the Village. As a point of reference, nearby South Lyon did not have electric lights until 1932. By 1939,

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American Technological and industrial history of the United States, industrialist and business magnate. As the founder of the Ford Motor Company, he is credited as a pioneer in making automob ...

built a

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor or carburetter) is a device used by a gasoline internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the Ventu ...

plant and two

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

stations intended to allow residents to maintain their agricultural work while working in the factories. The former carburetor plant was demolished in 2002. The

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

station still remains on Pettibone Creek in the village, and restoration work began in 2004. The summer of 2017 was the first year that the village has allowed golf carts on their streets. By November, only 10 carts were registered.

Government

As a village, Milford is provided assessing, counties and school districts tax collecting and elections administration for county, state and national by Milford Township. The Village of Milford is a Michigan home rule village with a council-manager form of government. The village is governed by a local charter adopted by village electors. The village council appoints a Village Manager to serve as the

CAO Cao or CAO may refer to: Mythology *Cao (bull), a legendary bull in Meitei mythology Companies or organizations * Air China Cargo, ICAO airline designator CAO * CA Oradea, Romanian football club * CA Osasuna, Spanish football club * Canadian ...

of the government, responsible for the management of the village's daily operations and oversight of all departments. Milford is a part of the Huron Valley School District. All communities in far western Oakland County including Milford are presently represented in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

by Tom Barrett, R-

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Notable people

* Lillian Hollister, temperance activist * Mary Jackson, actress * Thomas Lynch, poet * Blake Pietila, hockey player * Richard Pursel, animation writer * Dax Shepard, actor * Brian Steele, actor * Jim Storm, hockey player * Matt Wayne, animation writer *

Violent J Joseph Frank Bruce (born April 28, 1972), known by his stage name Violent J, is an American rapper, record producer, professional wrestler, actor, and part of the hip hop duo Insane Clown Posse (ICP). He is a co-founder of the record label Ps ...

, rapper * Natalie Kerwin, Sports Reporter, Bally Sports Detroit

Climate

This climatic region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Milford has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Milford, Michigan
/ref>

References

External links

Village of Milford

Milford Historical Society

Milford Downtown Development Authority

Huron Valley Schools

Milford Hydroelectric Powerhouse

Milford Times

"Remnants Remain of Oakland County's Water Powered Past" – Oakland Press

An Account of Oakland County – University of Michigan "Michigan County Histories" Collection

The Spinal Column
{{authority control Villages in Oakland County, Michigan Villages in Michigan Metro Detroit Populated places established in 1832 1832 establishments in Michigan Territory