Ada Township, Michigan
Encyclopedia
Civil township
A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to, and geographic divisions of, a county. Specific responsibilities and the degree of autonomy vary based on each state. Civil townships are distinct from survey townships, but in states that have both,...
of Kent County
Kent County, Michigan
-Air Service:*Commercial air service to Grand Rapids is provided by Gerald R. Ford International Airport . Previously named Kent County International Airport, it holds Grand Rapids' mark in modern history with the United States' first regularly scheduled airline service, beginning July 31, 1926,...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 9,882. Ada is the corporate home of Alticor
Alticor
Alticor is a privately held corporation, owned and run by members of the DeVos and Van Andel families. It was established in 1999 to serve as the parent company for a handful of business ventures, most notably the direct selling company Amway and Quixtar and a manufacturing and distribution...
and its subsidiary companies Quixtar
Quixtar
Amway Global is a multi-level marketing or network marketing company, founded 1959 in Ada, Michigan, United States...
and Amway
Amway
Amway is a direct selling company and manufacturer that uses network marketing to sell a variety of products, primarily in the health, beauty, and home care markets. Amway was founded in 1959 by Jay Van Andel and Richard DeVos...
.
Communities
- Ada is an unincorporated community within the township on M-21M-21 (Michigan highway)M-21 is an east–west state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan connecting the cities of Grand Rapids and Flint. The highway passes through rural farming country and several small towns along its course through the Lower Peninsula...
twelve miles east of Grand RapidsGrand Rapids, MichiganGrand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
. Rix RobinsonRix RobinsonRix Robinson was a Michigan pioneer. He was a fur trader and the first permanent settler of Kent County, Michigan, a representative to the state constitutional convention of 1850 and a state senator.- Early years :...
built a trading post near Ada in 1821 and made the first land purchase here in 1833. A post office was established in 1837, and both the township and settlement were named for Ada Smith, the daughter of the first postmaster. It was a station on the Detroit and Milwaukee Railroad (later part of the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee RailwayDetroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee RailwayThe Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railway is a defunct railroad which operated in the US state of Michigan during the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
). A platPlatA plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
was recorded in 1857. The Ada ZIP codeZIP CodeZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
, 49301, serves most of the township as well as much of eastern Cascade TownshipCascade Township, MichiganCascade Charter Township is a charter township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 15,107 at the 2000 census.The township is situated in the southeastern section of Kent County, approximately 10 miles southeast of Grand Rapids. A defining feature of the township is the...
to the south, the northwest corner of Lowell TownshipLowell Township, MichiganLowell Charter Township is a charter township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 5,219...
to the southeast, small areas of western Vergennes TownshipVergennes Township, MichiganVergennes Township is a civil township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 3,611.-Geography:...
to the east, the southwest corner of Grattan TownshipGrattan Township, MichiganGrattan Township is a civil township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 3,551.Grattan is an unincorporated community within the township.-Geography:...
to the northeast, much of southern Cannon TownshipCannon Township, MichiganCannon Township is a civil township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 12,075.- Communities :* Cannonsburg is an unincorporated community in the township....
to the north, and a small area of eastern Grand Rapids Charter TownshipGrand Rapids Charter Township, MichiganGrand Rapids Charter Township is a charter township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 14,056 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
to the west. In addition to 49301, the Ada ZIP codes 49355, 49356, 49357 are assigned to specific organizations. - The city of Grand RapidsGrand Rapids, MichiganGrand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
is to the west, and the 49525 ZIP codeZIP CodeZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
for Grand Rapids, serves a small area in the northwest corner of the township. The 49546 ZIP code for Grand Rapids serves the southwestern portion of the township. - LowellLowell, MichiganLowell is a city in Kent County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 4,013. The city is in the northern portion of Lowell Township, but is politically independent...
is to the east and the 49331 ZIP codeZIP CodeZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
for Lowell serves a small area in the eastern part of the township and in the southeast along the Grand River.
History
The township traces its history to 1821, when Rix RobinsonRix Robinson
Rix Robinson was a Michigan pioneer. He was a fur trader and the first permanent settler of Kent County, Michigan, a representative to the state constitutional convention of 1850 and a state senator.- Early years :...
obtained a French-Canadian trading post at the junction of the Grand
Grand River (Michigan)
The Grand River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs through the cities of Jackson, Eaton Rapids, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Grand Haven.-Description:...
and Thornapple
Thornapple River
The Thornapple River is an tributary of Michigan's longest river, the Grand River. The Thornapple is located in western Michigan. It joins the Grand in Ada, Michigan.- Description :...
Rivers from Madeline La Framboise
Madeline La Framboise
Madeline La Framboise , of mixed French and Native American descent, was one of the most successful fur traders in the Northwest Territory. Fur trading was one of the most difficult and dangerous occupations of the time according to historical accounts. She conducted business in the territory that...
on behalf of John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor
John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob Astor, was a German-American business magnate and investor who was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
's American Fur Company
American Fur Company
The American Fur Company was founded by John Jacob Astor in 1808. The company grew to monopolize the fur trade in the United States by 1830, and became one of the largest businesses in the country. The company was one the first great trusts in American business...
. Land north of the Grand River was not open for white settlers to purchase land in until the 1836 Treaty of Washington
Treaty of Washington (1836)
The Treaty of Washington is a treaty between the United States and representatives of the Ottawa and Chippewa nations of Native Americans. With this treaty, the tribes ceded an area of approximately 13,837,207 acres in the northwest portion of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan and the eastern...
. There are conflicting reports concerning when the township was organized. Information provided by the township web site indicate that Robinson was elected as the Township's first Supervisor. However, other sources indicate it was organized on April 2, 1838, and that Sydney Smith was elected the first Supervisor and that Robinson was the second, elected in 1841 and again in 1844.
A village was plat
Plat
A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
ted in 1858 at the mouth of the Thornapple, but it developed slowly and never incorporated.
Ada Covered Bridge
The Ada Covered Bridge is a span Brown truss covered bridge erected in 1867 in Ada, Michigan, United States. Carrying Bronson Street across the Thornapple River, it is located just south of where the Thornapple enters the Grand River, in turn just south of M-21...
, was constructed across the Thornapple in 1867. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, it is one of 9 covered bridge
Covered bridge
A covered bridge is a bridge with enclosed sides and a roof, often accommodating only a single lane of traffic. Most covered bridges are wooden; some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides...
s that remain standing in the state.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the township has a total area of 37 square miles (95.8 km²), of which, 36.1 square miles (93.5 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (2.6 km²) of it (2.59%) is water.
In addition to its two rivers (the Grand
Grand River (Michigan)
The Grand River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs through the cities of Jackson, Eaton Rapids, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Grand Haven.-Description:...
and the Thornapple
Thornapple River
The Thornapple River is an tributary of Michigan's longest river, the Grand River. The Thornapple is located in western Michigan. It joins the Grand in Ada, Michigan.- Description :...
), numerous streams and meadows, Ada Township is best known for its lush, rolling, woodland terrain. In fact, the local school district is called Forest Hills.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 9,882 people, 3,263 households, and 2,802 families residing in the township. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 273.9 per square mile (105.8/km²). There were 3,384 housing units at an average density of 93.8 per square mile (36.2/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 95.57% White, 0.47% African American, 0.16% Native American, 2.35% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.07% of the population.
There were 3,263 households out of which 47.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 78.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.1% were non-families. 11.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.03 and the average family size was 3.30.
In the township the population was spread out with 32.6% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 7.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 99.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.1 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $83,357, and the median income for a family was $87,972. Males had a median income of $61,795 versus $36,288 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the township was $37,840. About 1.1% of families and 1.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.6% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.
Sources
- Ada Township Official Website
- Info on Rix Robinson
- History and Directory of Kent County, Michigan. Dillenback and Leavitt. Grand Rapids, Mich.,: Daily eagle steam printing house, 1870 p. 20
- Grand Rapids and Kent County, Michigan. Chicago [Ill.] : Robert O. Law Company, 1918. pp. 219++
- History of Kent County, Michigan. Leeson, M. A. Chicago: C. C. Chapman & co. 1881. p. 487+