Otsego is a city in Allegan 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 4,120 at the 2020 census. The city is within Otsego Township, but is administratively autonomous. Otsego is situated on M-89 about west of Plainwell and

US 131 US Highway 131 (US 131) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway, of which all but 0.64 of its 269.96 miles (1.03 of 434.46 km) are within the state of Michigan. The highway starts in rural Indiana south of the state lin ...

. It is about southeast of Allegan and the

Kalamazoo River The Kalamazoo River is a river in the U.S. state of Michigan. The river is long from the junction of its North and South branches to its mouth at Lake Michigan, with a total length extending to when one includes the South Branch.U.S. Geologic ...

flows east to west through the city.

History

Otsego was established in fall of 1831 by the Samuel Foster family from

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

, called Pine Creek by its initial settlers: Giles Scott and Hull Sherwood. A post office was established in 1832 under the name of Allegan, the name being changed to Otsego in 1835 with the organization of Allegan County, spearheaded by Otsego resident Dr. Samuel Foster. 1833 brought a school to the new town, and a hotel - the Tompkins House - followed in the 1860s. On June 6, 1863, at Aaron Hilliard's house

Ellen G. White Ellen Gould White (née Harmon; November 26, 1827 – July 16, 1915) was an American author, and was both the prophet and a co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Along with other Adventist leaders, such as Joseph Bates and her husb ...

, a founder of the

Seventh-day Adventist church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...

, experienced a vision about health and disease, and it showed

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

food, as was described in Genesis 1:29, was the proper food for humankind. Her vision led to the creation of many vegetarian foods and vegetarian food companies, including the

Battle Creek Sanitarium The Battle Creek Sanitarium was a world-renowned health resort in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. It started in 1866 on health principles advocated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and from 1876 to 1943 was managed by Dr. John Harvey ...

and Loma Linda Foods. In the 1870s, visitors from all over the Midwest journeyed to Otsego to experience the "medicinal" waters at the Otsego Mineral Springs Bath House, which remained a regional draw until 1887 when George Bardeen's paper mill operation depleted the town's mineral springs. The 1880s saw some big advances for Otsego. In 1883, Otsego High School held its first commencement ceremony, graduating three students; a home-delivery milk route was started up in 1885; and 1886 brought the establishment of the volunteer fire department, which initially used horse-drawn water-wagons. The decade closed out with the formation of the city's Republican Club in 1888. In 1881, Wilson C. Edsell built the town's first bank and opera house. Edsell's Opera House was the primary entertainment venue in town for many years until the opening of the Nickelodeon (Irv Nichols's theatre venture) in 1909. An ''

Uncle Tom's Cabin ''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two Volume (bibliography), volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans ...

'' troupe played the Opera House stage on an annual basis. Native American

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

shows, called ''medicine shows'', were popular. Maro the Magician, stock theater groups,

minstrel show The minstrel show, also called minstrelsy, was an American form of theater developed in the early 19th century. The shows were performed by mostly white actors wearing blackface makeup for the purpose of portraying racial stereotypes of Afr ...

s took the opera house stage on a regular basis, with the minstrel shows led by the town's one African American resident Jim Smith. The city's baseball park was sold to the area Catholics as a site for a church in 1890. The Russell Buggy Company came to town as well, making popular ironclad carriages. The Bardeen Mansion was completed in 1894, which was razed in 1962–63. A

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

epidemic swept the town in 1894, as well. During the 1902 baseball season, Otsego was home to

Negro league baseball The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...

great Andrew "Rube" Foster, who played for George E. Bardeen's

Michigan State League The Michigan State League was a minor league baseball league that operated in various seasons between 1889 and 1941. The league franchises were based exclusively in Michigan, with the league forming on six different occasions. Twenty two different ...

white semi-professional team, the

Otsego Independents The Otsego Independents was a white minor league baseball team in Otsego, Michigan in the early 1900s. It was owned by paper industry magnate George E. Bardeen and was a member of the Michigan State League. * Location: Otsego, MI * League: Mich ...

, before signing on as a pitcher with the

Cuban X-Giants The Cuban X-Giants were a professional Negro league baseball, Negro league baseball team that played from 1896 to 1906. Originally most of the players were former Cuban Giants, or ex-Giants. Like the Cuban Giants, the original players were not Cu ...

, considered by many to be the greatest team in Negro leagues history.Wood, William R. (Nov. 11, 1996). "Black Baseball Pioneer Had Otsego Roots". ''Kalamazoo Gazette''. p. 54. Retrieved via Newspapers.com. He would later be instrumental in the founding of the Negro National League. For a time, Otsego had a "Rube Street," but it was renamed "Washington Street." On 17 April 2000, John Chapman, a local elementary teacher, petitioned the City Council to have one of the six baseball diamonds at Memorial Park renamed in Foster's honor. The city approved placement of a monument to him at the park by a 3–1 vote.Parker, Rosemary (April 18, 2000). "Otsego Plans to Honor Baseball Player". ''Kalamazoo Gazette''. p. 4. Retrieved via Newspapers.com. A flu epidemic struck 800 residents, killing some, in 1918. Otsego was struck by a tornado in 1962, uprooting trees and wiping out electricity/telephone services for several days.

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 city 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 3,956 people, 1,597 households, and 1,064 families living in the city. 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 1,716 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.2%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 1.2% from other races, and 2.1% 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 3.3% of the population. There were 1,597 households, of which 36.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% 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, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.00. The median age in the city was 36.1 years. 27.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.3% were from 25 to 44; 25.5% were from 45 to 64; and 13.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.1% male and 52.9% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 3,934 people, 1,553 households, and 1,062 families living in the city. The

was . There were 1,632 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.10%

, 0.31%

, 0.56% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 1.32% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.50% of the population. There were 1,553 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.6% were

living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.00. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.0% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $37,525, and the median income for a family was $44,308. Males had a median income of $36,429 versus $25,054 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 city was $17,521. About 4.6% of families and 6.9% 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 7.9% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.

Culture

"Otsego" is a recurring mention in

industrial metal Industrial metal is the fusion of Heavy metal music, heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating Heavy metal guitar, metal guitar riffs, sampling (music), sampling, synthesizer or music sequencer, sequencer lines, and Distor ...

band

Static-X Static-X is an American industrial metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1994. The line-up has fluctuated over the years, but was long-held constant with band founder, frontman, vocalist and rhythm guitarist Wayne Static until his d ...

's material, with songs named after the town including "Otsegolation", "Otsego Undead" and "Otsegolectric"; frontman

Wayne Static Wayne Richard Wells (November 4, 1965 – November 1, 2014), known professionally as Wayne Static, was an American musician, best known as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, and primary lyricist for the industrial metal band St ...

attended

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a Public university, public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. B ...

and at the time used a

fake ID Identity document forgery is the process by which identity documents issued by governing bodies are illegally copied and/or modified by persons not authorized to create such documents or engage in such modifications, for the purpose of deceivi ...

that claimed he was "Dean from Otsego".

Education

Otsego is home to Otsego Public Schools, which includes Alamo Elementary (located in Alamo Township), Dix Street Elementary, Washington Street Elementary (formerly Allegan Street Elementary), Otsego Middle School, Otsego High School, and the West Campus High School.

Notable people

Forman Brown Forman Brown (January 8, 1901 – January 10, 1996) was one of the world's leaders in puppet theatre in his day, as well as an important early gay novelist. He was a member of the Yale Puppeteers and the driving force behind Turnabout Theatre. ...

(1901–1996), songwriter, composer, author * Sid Conrad (1923–2010), TV character actor * Hon. Wilson C. Edsell, state senator, Olivet College founder, founder of first national bank in Otsego, D.M. Canright supporter * Phil Regan, major league baseball pitcher, manager and coach *

Kevin VanDam Kevin VanDam (born October 14, 1967), often called simply "KVD," is a professional bass fisherman from Otsego, Michigan. He is the all-time money winner in professional bass fishing, having earned $7,089,388 through August 2022 according to Majo ...

, professional bass fisher, BASS Angler of the Year (1992, 1996, 1999, 2008, 2009); graduated from Otsego High School

References

External links

City of Otsego official websiteOtsego Area Historical Society website
{{Coord, 42, 27, 38, N, 85, 41, 47, W, type:city_region:US-MI, display=title Cities in Allegan County, Michigan Populated places established in 1831 Michigan placenames of Native American origin 1831 establishments in Michigan Territory