Pipestone Township is a

civil township A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States that is subordinate to a County (United States), county, most often in the northern and midwestern parts of the country. The term town is used in New England town, Ne ...

of Berrien 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 2,177 at the 2020 census. The township was organized on February 16, 1842.

History

The first settler in the township was James Kirk, who moved with his family to

Niles, Michigan Niles is a city in Berrien County, Michigan, Berrien and Cass County, Michigan, Cass counties in the U.S. state of Michigan, near the Indiana state line city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. The population was 11,988 according to the 2020 Unit ...

, in 1833 and then established a residence in Pipestone in April 1837. In the fall of 1837, Dr. Morgan Enos moved from Bainbridge Township and settled at a point that became known as "Shanghai Corners", because, according to local history, Dr. Enos was the first to bring Shanghai chickens into the township. Joab Enos, a brother of Dr. Enos, moved into the township in 1838. He and William Boughton laid out a village known first as "Pipestone", and later as "Shanghai". Although only a few lots were sold, a post office was established in the village in 1846, and later there was a store operated by John Garrow. The word "pipestone" refers to a red stone, known today as

catlinite Catlinite, also called pipestone, is a type of argillite (metamorphosed mudstone), usually brownish-red in color, which occurs in a matrix of Sioux Quartzite. Because it is fine-grained and easily worked, it is prized by Native Americans, prim ...

, which is used to make the bowls of some Indian

ceremonial pipe A ceremonial pipe is a particular type of smoking pipe (tobacco), smoking pipe, used by a number of cultures of the indigenous peoples of the Americas in their sacred ceremonies. Traditionally they are used to offer prayers in a religious ceremo ...

s. Pipestone Creek was so named because Native Americans have found material for making pipes along its course. The name was later extended to Pipestone Township.

Communities

* The village of Eau Claire lies partially within the township and partially within Berrien Township to the south. There are no other incorporated municipalities within the township. The township is primarily agricultural. * Pleasant Valley was a rural post office in the township at approximately from May 11, 1870, until September 18, 1874.

Geography

Two tributaries of the St. Joseph River drain the township: Pipestone Creek in the north and Farmers Creek in the south. M-140 runs north–south through the township. Sodus Township lies to the west, Benton Charter Township to the northwest, Bainbridge Township to the north, Van Buren County to the northeast, Cass County to the east, and Berrien Township to the south. 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 township has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.16%, is water.

Demographics

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 2000, there were 2,474 people, 842 households, and 661 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 899 housing units at an average density of 25.2 per square mile (9.7/km). The racial makeup of the township was 90.22%

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 ...

, 4.93%

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 ...

, 0.85% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 2.87% from other races, and 0.97% 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 11.44% of the population. There were 842 households, out of which 34.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.3% 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, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.4% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.05. In the township the population was spread out, with 26.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.1 males. The median income for a household in the township was $41,440, and the median income for a family was $45,859. Males had a median income of $32,214 versus $24,432 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 township was $16,423. About 8.0% of families and 11.6% 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 15.9% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Pipestone Township official website
{{authority control Townships in Berrien County, Michigan Townships in Michigan