Chippewa County

Chippewa County is a county in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 38,520.[3] The county seat is Sault Ste. Marie.[4]

Chippewa County comprises the Sault Ste. Marie micropolitan statistical area.

Geography

 * The county is named for the Chippewa Tribe, and was set off and organized in 1826.[1]
 * According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 2,698.39 square miles (6,988.8 km2), of which 1,558.42 square miles (4,036.3 km2) (or 57.75%) is land and 1,139.97 square miles (2,952.5 km2) (or 42.25%) is water.[5]
 * The Michigan Meridian runs through the eastern portion of the county. South of Nine Mile Road, M-129 (Meridian Road) overlays the meridian. In Sault Ste. Marie, Meridian Street north of 12th Avenue overlays the meridian.

Michigan State Trunklines
All Interstate and US Highways in Michigan, like all state-maintained highways, are part of the Michigan State Trunkline Highway System.
 * I‑75 ends at the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge at the Canada border.
 * M‑28
 * M‑48
 * M‑80
 * M‑123
 * M‑129
 * M‑134
 * M‑221
 * BS I‑75 travels from I-75 into downtown Sault Ste. Marie.

County-Designated Highways
The following highways are maintained by the Chippewa County Road Commission as part of the county road system. They are assigned numbers by the Michigan Department of Transportation as part of the County-Designated Highway System. In addition, the county road commission jointly maintains Whitefish Bay National Forest Scenic Byway, a National Forest Scenic Byway with the US Forest Service.
 * H-40
 * H-63 runs via Mackinac Trail, the former route of US 2 before it was replaced by I-75 in 1962.

Adjacent counties

 * Algoma District, Ontario, Canada (northeast, east)
 * Manitoulin District, Ontario, Canada (east)
 * Presque Isle County (southeast, water boundary only, in Lake Huron)
 * Mackinac County (south)
 * Luce County (west)

National protected areas

 * Harbor Island National Wildlife Refuge
 * Hiawatha National Forest (part)
 * Whitefish Point Unit of the Seney National Wildlife Refuge

State of Michigan game areas
This bay is open for recreation uses, such as hunting, boating and bird watching. The area is particularly known for its duck hunting, including mallards, divers and green-winged teal ducks. The Bay is most known for its icefishing and duck hunting. During opening weekend of duck season(late September)hundreds of hunters come from all over the state to begin their season on the Bay.[citation needed] This area has many types of waterfowl pass through it each year on their southern and northern migrations
 * Munuscong Bay

Demographics
The 2010 United States Census[8] indicates Chippewa County had a population of 38,520. This is a decrease of 23 people from the 2000 United States Census. This is a -0.1% change in population. In 2010 there were 14,329 households and 9,106 families in the county. The population density was 24.7 per square mile (9.5 square kilometers). There were 21,253 housing units at an average density of 13.6 per square mile (5.3 square kilometers). 72.3% of the population were White, 15.8%Native American, 6.5% Black or African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.2% of some other race and 4.6% of two or more races. 1.2% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 14.9% were of German, 8.4%English, 7.7% Irish, 7.4% French, French Canadian or Cajun and 5.4% Polishancestry.[9]

There were 14,329 households out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were husband and wife families, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.5% were non-families, and 29.5% were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.1% under age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. The population was 55.1% male and 44.9% female.

The 2010 American Community Survey 3-year estimate[10] indicates the median income for a household in the county was $39,351 and the median income for a family was $54,625. Males had a median income of $25,760 versus $16,782 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,334. About 2.3% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.0% of those under the age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government
The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Chippewa County elected officials
(information updated July, 2013) [13]
 * Prosecuting Attorney: Brian Peppler[11]
 * Sheriff: Robert Savoie[11]
 * County Clerk: Cathy Maleport[11]
 * County Treasurer: Marilyn McDonald[11]
 * Register of Deeds: Sharon Kennedy[11]
 * Drain Commissioner: Anthony Bosley[11]
 * County Surveyor: William Karr[12]

Cities

 * Sault Ste. Marie

Villages

 * De Tour Village