Delta County, Michigan

Delta County Education, Geography, and History

Delta County is a county in the Upper peninsula in the state of Michigan. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 37,069. The county seat is Escanaba. The county was surveyed in 1843 and organized in 1861. Its name originates from the Greek letter "delta", which refers to the triangular shape of the original county which included segments of Menominee, Dickinson, Iron, and Marquette counties.

Delta County comprises the Escanaba, MI Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology - Origin of Delta County Name

Delta County is named for the Greek "Delta" symbol, because the original shape of the county was triangular (i.e., like a delta.)

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Delta County History

Delta County is named for the Greek "Delta" symbol, because the original shape of the county was triangular (i.e., like a delta.)

Set Off: 1843

Organized: 1861

Delta County was surveyed in April, 1843. At that time it included the present territory and all of what is now known as Menominee County, and parts of Dickinson, Iron and Marquette Counties. The name came from its triangular shape, like that of the Greek letter Delta.

Delta County was formally organized in 1861. The first meeting of the Delta County Board of Supervisors was held May 28,1862, at the Delta Mills in the Township of Nahma. Members of the Board were George LeGare, Chairman of Escanaba Township, A. G. Bailey, of Nahma Townhship, and the Clerk, Thomas Ashton. The county seat was located in Masonville from 1860 to 1864 when the county records and offices were moved to Escanaba.

Nahma Township was the first township created in Delta County in 1861. The other townships and their years of creation are Baldwin Township 1873, Bark River Township 1880, Bay de Noc Township 1881, Brampton Township 1903, Cornell Township 1905, Ensign Township 1921, Fairbanks Township 1872, Ford River Township 1875, Garden Township 1882, Maple Ridge Township 1873, Masonville Township 1869 and Wells Township 1889.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,991 square miles (5,160 km²), of which 1,171 square miles (3,030 km²) is land and 820 square miles (2,100 km²) (41%) is water. It is the fifth-largest county in Michigan by land area.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Alger County, Michigan - (north)
• Marquette County, Michigan - (northwest)
• Menominee County, Michigan - (southwest)
• Schoolcraft County, Michigan - (east)
  

Education

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