Sebewaing (SEE-bah-wing) is a village in Huron 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 1,721 at the 2020 census. The village is within Sebewaing Township. This community is known as the

Sugar Beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

Capital, due to the

Michigan Sugar Michigan Sugar Company is an agricultural cooperative, based in Bay City, Michigan, that specializes in the processing of beet sugar. Founded in 1906, Michigan Sugar sells beet sugar under the brand names ''Big Chief'' and ''Pioneer.'' Michigan ...

slicing mill located within the village and the yearly Michigan Sugar Festival. The Sebewaing area,

the Thumb The Thumb is a region and a peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan, so named because the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Lower Peninsula is shaped like a mitten. The Thumb area is generally considered to be in the Central Michigan region, east of t ...

, and the state of

overall are major beet sugar producers, mostly for domestic consumption. Sebewaing is also the first gigabit village in the state of Michigan. In 2014–15, Sebewaing completed its fiber to the home network, offering up to gigabit/second speeds over their fiber optic network.

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. It is said that the name Sebewaing derives from the

Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...

word ''ziibiiweng'' meaning "place by the river," but there is no clear, early, documentation for this word or meaning. Perhaps, the name Sebewaing meant "river in the furriery or pelt country." That will come from the Chippewa or Ojibwe phrase "Zibii-wayaan-aki." The 18th century French called the Thumb of Michigan les Pays Peles meaning the land of pelts or furs, the pelt country. The Cass River to the south of Saginaw Bay in this same Upper Thumb region early on was called Onottoway-Sebewing. The Cass River with its headwaters in the upper Thumb of Michigan has its confluence or outlet into the Saginaw River that empties into the central part of Saginaw Bay. Wiscoggin Creek, whose outlet is into Saginaw Bay at today's Village of Unionville, Tuscola County, in Michigan's Upper Thumb, was in 1855 called Sebewaning River. Previously, a short distance away, the Sebewaing River, in today's Huron County, was called by the French Le Rivier du Fil meaning "the thread river." The mouth of the Thread River that today's is the Sebewaing River in Huron County is the location of the Village of Sebewaing. Here, the Sebewaing River pours out north into Saginaw Bay. Being on the banks of the river and bay shoreline, the village was certainly a place to weave strings or threads to make nets, fishing lines, snares, bow strings, necklaces, and dreamcatchers. Native American's often made string or thread from Willow trees that they planted along strategic rivers. Sebewaing is considered to be part of

, which in turn is a subregion of the

Flint/Tri-Cities Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan corres ...

History

Sebewaing's name was derived from the

Algonquian language Algonquian language may refer to: * Algonquian languages, language sub-family indigenous to North America * Algonquin language, an Algonquian language closely related to the Ojibwe language {{disambiguation ...

of Native Americans, the original inhabitants of the area. The village was founded in 1845 by Rev. John J.F. Auch, a Lutheran minister sent by the church to do missionary work in the Native American communities. Beginning in the mid-19th century, the town was settled by many migrants of German ancestry. In 1880 the E.O. Braendle Brewery began operations. The brewing operation was forced to close during

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

, but in 1927 it was renamed, and the Sebewaing Brewing Company brewed many types of German-style beer in the town until 1965. The defunct Michigan Brewing company in Webberville, Michigan resurrected some of the brands, using authentic formulae and labels.

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 1,759 people, 802 households, and 491 families residing 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 917 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.5%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 1.3% from other races, and 0.9% 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 4.3% of the population. There were 802 households, of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% 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, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.8% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.79. The median age in the village was 44.9 years. 20.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.4% were from 25 to 44; 29.1% were from 45 to 64; and 20.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 49.2% male and 50.8% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,974 people, 868 households, and 547 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 946 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 98.99%

, 0.10%

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 ...

, 0.35% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.25% from other races, and 0.20% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 3.34% of the population. There were 868 households, of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were

living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.91. In the village, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males. The median income for a household in the village was $32,721, and the median income for a family was $40,742. Males had a median income of $31,619 versus $23,125 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 $16,894. About 13.6% of families and 17.5% 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 32.7% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.

Climate

This climatic region has 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, Sebewaing 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 Sebewaing, Michigan
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Education

The village is served by Unionville-Sebewaing Area Schools. Unionville-Sebewaing Area High School was formed by the merger of Unionville and Sebewaing High Schools. The nearest tertiary educational institutions are located in Cass City to the east and Bay City to the west.

Notable People

* George W. Auch, businessman and Chicago city alderman

Notes

External links

Sebewaing webcam, local calendar and events
{{Coord, 43, 43, 56, N, 83, 27, 04, W, type:city_region:US-MI, display=title Villages in Huron County, Michigan Villages in Michigan Populated places on Lake Huron in the United States