Clare County, Michigan

Clare County
Clare County
County
	Clare County District Court in Harrison
	Seal
	Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
	Michigan's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 43°59′N 84°50′W / 43.99°N 84.84°W
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Founded	1840 (established); 1871 (organized)
Named for	County Clare, Ireland
Seat	Harrison
Largest city	Clare
Area
• Total	575 sq mi (1,490 km2)
• Land	564 sq mi (1,460 km2)
• Water	11 sq mi (30 km2) 1.9%
Population (2020)
• Total	30,856
• Density	55/sq mi (21/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	2nd
Website	clareco.net

Clare County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 30,856.^[2] The county seat is Harrison.^[3]

History

The county was created by the Michigan Legislature from part of Michilimackinac County in 1840, named Kaykakee County^[5] after a Sauk Indian Chief. It was renamed Clare County in 1843 after County Clare in Ireland. The county was administered by a succession of other Michigan counties prior to the organization of county government in 1871.^[4]^[1]^[6]^[a] Farwell was the first county seat; in 1877 the county seat was moved to Harrison.

Geography

According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 575 square miles (1,490 km²), of which 564 square miles (1,460 km²) is land and 11 square miles (28 km²) (1.9%) is water.^[7] It is considered to be part of both Northern Michigan and Central Michigan.

Features

Au Sable State Forest

Major highways

US 10 runs east–west through bottom of county. Enters west county line at 3.7 miles (6.0 km) north of SW corner of county. Runs easterly to intersection with US127 at 2.8 miles (4.5 km) north of Clare.
Bus. US 10 runs through Clare with Bus. US 127 until they meet M-115, where Bus. US 10 runs eastward to US 10.
US 127 runs north–south through eastern middle of county, Passing Harrison and Clare.
Bus. US 127 runs through Clare with Bus. US 10 until the two meet M-115, where Bus. US 10 turns eastward while Bus. US 127 continues southward to US 127.
Bus. US 127 runs from US 127 to go through Harrison. Bus. US 127 intersects M-61, and the two have a concurrency with each other until they both intersect US 127, where Bus. US 127 ends with M-61 continues eastward to Gladwin.
M-18 runs along east line of county, from the northeast corner for 3.5 miles (5.6 km), then turns east into Gladwin County.
M-61 runs east–west through middle of county, entering the west line from Osceola County and running east to intersection with US 127 at Harrison.
M-115 runs southeast and east across bottom of county. It enters the west line from Osceola County at nine miles (14 km) above the southwest corner of county and runs to an intersection with Bus. US 127/Bus. US 10 at Clare.^[8]

Adjacent counties

Missaukee County – northwest
Roscommon County – northeast
Gladwin County – east
Midland County – southeast
Isabella County – south
Mecosta County – southwest
Osceola County – west

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1870	366		—
1880	4,187		1,044.0%
1890	7,558		80.5%
1900	8,360		10.6%
1910	9,240		10.5%
1920	8,250		−10.7%
1930	7,032		−14.8%
1940	9,163		30.3%
1950	10,253		11.9%
1960	11,647		13.6%
1970	16,695		43.3%
1980	23,822		42.7%
1990	24,952		4.7%
2000	31,252		25.2%
2010	30,926		−1.0%
2020	30,856		−0.2%
2023 (est.)	31,316	^[9]	1.5%
US Decennial Census^[10] 1790-1960^[11] 1900-1990^[12] 1990-2000^[13] 2010-2018^[2]

The 2010 United States Census^[14] indicates Clare County had a 2010 population of 30,926. This decrease of 326 people from the 2000 United States Census represents a loss of 1.0% population. In 2010 there were 12,966 households and 8,584 families in the county. The population density was 54.8 per square mile (21.2/km²). There were 23,233 housing units at an average density of 41.2 per square mile (15.9/km²). The racial and ethnic makeup of the county was 95.8% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 1.5% Hispanic or Latino, 0.1% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races.

There were 12,966 households, out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% were husband and wife families, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.8% were non-families, and 28.0% were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.83.

The county population contained 20.9% under age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 20.8% from 25 to 44, 30.4% from 45 to 64, and 19.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males.

The 2010 American Community Survey 3-year estimate^[14] indicates the median income for a household in the county was $33,338 and the median income for a family was $40,983. Males had a median income of $24,220 versus $13,587 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,516. About 2.3% of families and 23.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.8% of those under the age 18 and 8.5% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saginaw is the controlling regional body for the Catholic Church.^[15]
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has one meetinghouse in the county, in Harrison.^[16]

Government

Clare County voters tend to vote Republican; they have selected the Republican Party nominee in 71% of national elections (24 of 34).

United States presidential election results for Clare County, Michigan^[17]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	10,861	66.65%	5,199	31.91%	235	1.44%
2016	8,505	63.24%	4,249	31.59%	695	5.17%
2012	6,988	51.63%	6,338	46.83%	209	1.54%
2008	6,793	46.51%	7,496	51.32%	316	2.16%
2004	7,088	49.82%	6,984	49.09%	154	1.08%
2000	5,937	47.09%	6,287	49.87%	383	3.04%
1996	3,742	32.03%	6,311	54.02%	1,630	13.95%
1992	3,916	32.20%	5,346	43.95%	2,901	23.85%
1988	5,661	54.18%	4,710	45.08%	77	0.74%
1984	6,587	63.26%	3,764	36.15%	61	0.59%
1980	5,719	53.36%	4,164	38.85%	835	7.79%
1976	4,879	53.46%	4,153	45.51%	94	1.03%
1972	4,402	62.99%	2,434	34.83%	152	2.18%
1968	3,315	56.85%	1,909	32.74%	607	10.41%
1964	2,258	43.45%	2,927	56.32%	12	0.23%
1960	3,616	70.49%	1,507	29.38%	7	0.14%
1956	3,721	75.51%	1,194	24.23%	13	0.26%
1952	3,529	76.22%	1,059	22.87%	42	0.91%
1948	2,512	66.02%	1,197	31.46%	96	2.52%
1944	2,636	70.58%	1,078	28.86%	21	0.56%
1940	3,004	69.86%	1,277	29.70%	19	0.44%
1936	1,979	53.37%	1,494	40.29%	235	6.34%
1932	1,474	44.34%	1,741	52.38%	109	3.28%
1928	1,920	82.62%	381	16.39%	23	0.99%
1924	1,920	77.67%	358	14.48%	194	7.85%
1920	1,762	73.48%	511	21.31%	125	5.21%
1916	1,049	54.38%	769	39.87%	111	5.75%
1912	563	30.99%	435	23.94%	819	45.07%
1908	1,345	68.14%	567	28.72%	62	3.14%
1904	1,453	70.91%	519	25.33%	77	3.76%
1900	1,182	63.62%	640	34.45%	36	1.94%
1896	886	53.09%	723	43.32%	60	3.59%
1892	719	41.90%	811	47.26%	186	10.84%
1888	905	47.99%	912	48.36%	69	3.66%
1884	622	46.21%	685	50.89%	39	2.90%

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, records deeds, mortgages, and vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget and has 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.

Elected officials

County Commission: Dale Majewski; Samantha Pitchford; Leonard Strouse; Jack Kleinhardt; Mark Fitzpatrick; David Hoefling; Jeff Haskell
Prosecuting Attorney: Michelle Ambrozaitis
Sheriff: John Wilson
County Clerk/Register of Deeds: Lori Martin
County Treasurer: Jenny Beemer-Fritzinger
Drain Commissioner: Bill Faber
County Surveyor: Paul A. Lapham
Road Commission: Dave Coker; Tim Haskin; Karen Hulliberger; Bill Simpson; Max Schunk
State Representative: Speaker of the House Jason Wentworth

(information as of January 2019)

Attractions

Clare County is in the middle of large state forests. Wildlife, including bear, deer, eagles, Kirtland's warblers, and turkeys, are located nearby. Local attractions include:

Kirtland's Warbler Habitat and Festival^[18]
Michigan Shore-to-Shore Trail passes through the area, running from Empire to Oscoda and points beyond. It is a 500-mile interconnected system of trails.^[19]

Activities include: