Bad Axe, Michigan
| Bad Axe, Michigan | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
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| Coordinates: 43°48′10″N 82°59′59″W / 43.80278°N 82.99972°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Huron |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.1 sq mi (5.5 km2) |
| • Land | 2.1 sq mi (5.5 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 758 ft (231 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 3,462 |
| • Density | 1,617.3/sq mi (624.5/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 48413 |
| Area code(s) | 989 |
| FIPS code | 26-04740[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0620421[2] |
Bad Axe is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Huron County[3] located in the Thumb region of the Lower Peninsula. The population was 3,462 at the 2000 census, making it the largest community in Huron County and second largest in the Thumb, after Caro (if Lapeer and St. Clair counties, part of Metro Detroit, are not included).
The city's unusual name dates to the time of its settlement. While surveying the first state road through the Huron County wilderness in 1861, Rudolph Papst and George Willis Pack made camp at the future site of the city and found a much-used and badly damaged axe. At Pack’s suggestion, Papst used the name “Bad Axe Camp” in the minutes of the survey and on a sign he placed along the main trail.[4] The first post office in Bad Axe was established in 1870.[5]
Contents |
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.1 square miles (5.4 km2), all land.
[edit] Transportation
[edit] Michigan State Trunklines
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 3,462 people, 1,418 households, and 877 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,617.3 per square mile (624.6/km²). There were 1,545 housing units at an average density of 721.8 per square mile (278.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.57% White, 0.26% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.38% from other races, and 0.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.53% of the population.
There were 1,418 households out of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,125, and the median income for a family was $42,650. Males had a median income of $34,758 versus $20,288 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,465. About 9.3% of families and 14.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 14.3% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Education
Bad Axe is served by Bad Axe Public Schools, which consist of:
- Greene Elementary
- Bad Axe Intermediate
- Bad Axe Junior High
- Bad Axe High (the "Hatchets")
[edit] Notable people
- Allen James Babcock, Roman Catholic bishop
- Lilian Jackson Braun, mystery writer
- Bob Murawski, Academy Award winning film editor
- Johnny Prill, writer of official National Grandparents Day song
[edit] Media
[edit] Radio
The thumb area is an unranked radio area. Local radio in Bad Axe includes WLEW (AM) and WLEW-FM.
[edit] Newspapers
- Bad Axe and the northern thumb area are served by a daily newspaper, the Huron Daily Tribune.
- Daily editions of the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News, as well as thrice-weekly editions of the Bay City Times and Saginaw News, are also available.
[edit] Broadcast television
Huron County lies inside the Flint/Tri-Cities Television Market. Only stations available on Comcast in the Bad Axe area are listed below.
- WNEM 5 (CBS/MyNetworkTV)
- WJRT 12 (ABC)
- WDCQ 19 (PBS)
- WEYI 25 (NBC)
- WBSF 46 (The CW)
- WAQP 49 (Religious)
- WSMH 66 (Fox)
WDCQ is the Thumb's only television station, licensed to Bad Axe, and owned and operated by Delta College, near Bay City. The station's studios are located at Delta College, with its digital transmitter in Quanicassee, in northwestern Tuscola County. The station's analog transmitter was based near Bad Axe, but went dark in June 2009.
[edit] References
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Bad Axe, Michigan
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ^ Local History – How Bad Axe got its Name
- ^ Walter Romig. Michigan Place Names. (Grosse Pointe, Michigan: Walter Romig, not dated) p. 38
[edit] External links
[edit] Surrounding communities
Coordinates: 43°48′07″N 83°00′03″W / 43.80194°N 83.00083°W
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Caseville | Port Austin | Port Hope | |
| Pigeon, Sebewaing |  |
Harbor Beach, Lake Huron | ||
 Bad Axe, Michigan  |
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| Saginaw, Caro | Sandusky, Detroit | Minden City, Port Huron |
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