Grand Traverse County, Michigan

Grand Traverse County Education, Geography, and History

Grand Traverse County is a county located in the state of Michigan. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 86,986. The county seat is Traverse City.

Grand Traverse County is part of the Traverse City, MI Micropolitan Statistical Area, which also includes Benzie, Kalkaska, and Leelanau counties.

Etymology - Origin of Grand Traverse County Name

Grand Traverse County is an Americanization of the French phrase grande travers, meaning long crossing, and originally referring to Grand Traverse Bay.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Grand Traverse County History

Grand Traverse County is an Americanization of the French phrase grande travers, meaning long crossing, and originally referring to Grand Traverse Bay.

In 1840 it was separated and originally named Omeena County. Grand Traverse County was established by an act of the state legislature on April 7, 1851 The first permanent settlement in the county was the mission now known as Old Mission.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 601 square miles (1,560 km²), of which 464 square miles (1,200 km²) is land and 137 square miles (350 km²) (23%) is water. Grand Traverse County is considered to be part of Northern Michigan.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Antrim County (northeast)
• Kalkaska County (east)
• Wexford County (south)
• Benzie County (west)
• Leelanau County (northwest)
  

Education

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