Pontiac Township is a defunct

charter township A charter township is a form of Local government in the United States, local government in the U.S. state of Michigan. While all townships in Michigan are organized governments, a charter township has been granted a charter, which allows it cert ...

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 area consisted of what is now the cities of Pontiac, Auburn Hills, and Lake Angelus. Pontiac Township was bordered on the north by Brown Road and Dutton Road, on the east by South Adams Road (including a line extending north from South Adams Road), on the south by South Boulevard, and on the west by Telegraph Road.

History

In 1818, Colonel Stephen Mack purchased 1280 acres (5.2 km²) of land that was to become the city of Pontiac. In 1820, Pontiac became the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Oakland County. Pontiac incorporated as a village in 1837 and later as a city in 1861. The township was organized as a civil entity in 1827. Under Michigan law, cities are independent of township governance, while villages may continue to receive some services from the township. Thus, as Pontiac grew, it annexed land from the township. The village of Auburn was platted in 1826 and was renamed Amy in 1880. In 1917, it was renamed again as Auburn Heights. Pontiac Township attempted to incorporate as Pontiac Heights in 1971, but the request was denied by state officials. Pontiac Township became a

in 1978, to protect itself from further annexation. In 1983, it formally became the city of Auburn Hills and included Auburn Heights. Lake Angelus incorporated as a village in 1930 and became a city in 1984. Although the township no longer exists as a civil entity, it is still used as a

survey township A survey township, sometimes called a Congressional township or just township, as used by the United States Public Land Survey System and by Canada's Dominion Land Survey is a nominally-square area of land that is nominally six survey miles (a ...

for land use purposes.

References

{{Oakland County, Michigan Defunct townships in Michigan Geography of Oakland County, Michigan Populated places established in 1827 1827 establishments in Michigan Territory Populated places disestablished in 1983 1983 disestablishments in Michigan Metro Detroit