Plainwell 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 3,788 at the 2020 census. Plainwell is located on M-89 just east of its junction with US 131. The city of Otsego is about to the west. The city of

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in Kalamazoo County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 73,598. It is the principal city of the Kalamazoo–Portage metropolitan are ...

is about to the south, and the city of

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

is about to the north. 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 through the center of the city and it is known as "The Island City".

History

This part of Michigan was settled in the 1830s, after the removal of native people. Allegan County was organized in 1835, and the Plainwell area was settled soon after. It was on a stagecoach route from Kalamazoo to Grand Rapids, and later the

Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad The Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad at its height provided passenger and freight railroad services between Cincinnati, Ohio, and the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, USA. The company was formed on January 18, 1854. Beginnings After grapp ...

was constructed along the same route. After the advent of the automobile,

U.S. Route 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 ...

was created and run through the town. In the 1960s, an improved 4-lane US-131 was built west of town to connect Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, with an interchange on M-89 between Plainwell and Otsego. This allowed the town to become a kind of "bedroom community" for Kalamazoo or the southern part of Grand Rapids.

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. The nickname ''Island City'' has to do with a power canal which diverts a portion of the Kalamazoo River around the downtown area, causing it to be an island.

Major highways

* is a freeway that is located in the western portion of the city. * follows M-89 for most of its route in Plainwell, but soon has a concurrency with U.S. 131 just before the city line. * has a concurrency with M-43 for most of its route in Plainwell, but continues west alone into Otsego.

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 3,804 people, 1,561 households, and 966 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 1,674 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.0%

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 ...

, 1.0%

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 ...

, 0.5% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.6% from other races, and 1.5% 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 2.3% of the population. There were 1,561 households, of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.3% 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, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.1% were non-families. 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age in the city was 38.7 years. 23.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.2% were from 25 to 44; 26.6% were from 45 to 64; and 15.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.7% male and 53.3% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 3,933 people, 1,506 households, and 1,018 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 1,593 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.77%

, 0.46%

, 0.48% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.66% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.65% of the population. There were 1,506 households, out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were

living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.01. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $39,590, and the median income for a family was $44,519. Males had a median income of $35,785 versus $26,397 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 $16,982. About 1.4% of families and 6.1% 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 2.6% of those under age 18 and 18.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

K-12 Students are served by Plainwell Community Schools. There are two high schools,

Plainwell High School Plainwell High School is a high school located in Plainwell, Michigan. Approximately 200 students graduate from Plainwell High School per year. The school is in a suburban school district just outside Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a ...

, and Renaissance High School. Renaissance is the alternative education high school. There is only one middle school, Plainwell Middle School. The school district has three elementary schools. They are Cooper Elementary, Gilkey Elementary, and Starr Elementary. Michigan Career and Technical Institute is also located nearby.

Notable people

Jack Conklin Jonathan Jackson Conklin (born August 17, 1994) is an American professional football offensive tackle for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans. Early life Conkli ...

, American football offensive tackle * Dave Coverly, syndicated cartoonist *

Mallory Comerford Mallory Burckle (née Comerford; born September 6, 1997) is an American competitive swimmer specializing in freestyle events. Comerford was the winner of five gold medals at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships. She won USA Swimming's Golden ...

, competitive swimmer *

Ed Gale Edward Gale (August 23, 1963 – May 27, 2025) was an American actor, stunt performer and registered sex offender who appeared in films and television series primarily between 1986 and 2013. He was notably the physical performer of Chucky in '' ...

, actor *

Narada Michael Walden Narada Michael Walden ( ; Michael Walden; born April 23, 1952) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He acquired the nickname Narada from Sri Chinmoy. He began his career as a drummer, working primarily in the jazz ...

, singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer * Joseph Keckler, singer, songwriter, musician

References

External links

City of Plainwell official website
{{Coord, 42, 26, 24, N, 85, 38, 56, W, type:city_region:US-MI, display=title Cities in Allegan County, Michigan