Milford is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

Oakland County Oakland County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the metropolitan Detroit area, located northwest of the city. As of the 2020 Census, its population was 1,274,395, making it the second-most populous county in Michigan ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

. The population was 6,175 at the time of the 2010 census. The village is located within Milford Township. The village is known for being the home of the Milford General Motors Proving Ground.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the village has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2010, there were 6,175 people, 2,589 households, and 1,719 families living in the village. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was . There were 2,777 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 0.6%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.7% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.7% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 2.0% of the population. There were 2,589 households, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.6% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.93. The median age in the village was 40.8 years. 23.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.8% were from 25 to 44; 30.9% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The sex makeup of the village was 47.4% male and 52.6% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 6,272 people, 2,427 households, and 1,706 families living in the village. The

was 2,560.7 per square mile (988.4/km). There were 2,491 housing units at an average density of 1,017.0 per square mile (392.6/km). The racial makeup of the village was 97.35%

, 0.16%

, 0.38% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.35% from

, and 1.26% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.32% of the population. There were 2,427 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were

living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.09. In the village, the population was spread out, with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 33.0% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males. The median income for a household in the village was $59,688, and the median income for a family was $71,333. Males had a median income of $53,393 versus $31,935 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the village was $26,159. About 6.5% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 2.4% of those age 65 or over.

History

The village of Milford began with the building of a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

by Elizur and Stanley Ruggles in 1832. Early county records indicate that the mill was erected in the "Township" at that time, and that formal organization would occur in 1834. That same year, the first

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

was erected by Luman Fuller. In 1835, the first

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional se ...

was established with Aaron Phelps as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

. The Lower Mill Pond was created in 1836 to provide

waterpower Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a w ...

for the various types of mills and factories. The Upper Mill Pond followed in 1845. In 1911, the Hubbell Pond was created by a dam built on the Huron River to generate

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...

. The village was incorporated in 1869. Hydropower made it possible for Milford to become one of the first communities to have electric lights, in 1892. A year later, telephone service was available in the Village. As a point of reference, nearby South Lyon did not have electric lights until 1932. By 1939,

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that ...

built a

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor) is a device used by an internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the venturi tube in the main meteri ...

plant and two

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

stations intended to allow residents to maintain their agricultural work while working in the factories. The former carburetor plant was demolished in 2002. The

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...

station still remains on Pettibone Creek in the village, and restoration work began in 2004. (Historical information gathered from the Milford Historical Society, The Oakland Press, "An Account of Oakland County", listed in External Links.) The summer of 2017 was the first year that the village has allowed golf carts on their streets. By November, only 10 carts were registered.

Government

As a village, Milford is provided assessing, counties and school districts tax collecting and elections administration for county, state and national by Milford Township. The Village of Milford is a Michigan home rule village with a council-manager form of government. The village is governed by a local charter adopted by village electors. The village council appoints a Village Manager to serve as the CAO of the government responsible for the management of the village's daily operations and oversight of all departments. Milford is a part of the Huron Valley School District.

Notable people

Lillian Hollister Lillian Hollister (September 8, 1853 – August 4, 1911) was an American temperance and church worker. Hollister served as Supreme Commander of the Ladies of the Maccabees. Early years and education Lillian Bates was born in Milford, Michigan, Se ...

, temperance activist * Mary Jackson, actress * Thomas Lynch, poet *

Blake Pietila Blake Chester Pietila (born February 20, 1993) is an American professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), left winger who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played for the Hershey Bears in the American Hockey League (AHL). ...

, hockey player *

Richard Pursel Richard Dale Pursel (born 17 September 1964) is an American television writer, screenwriter, story, and storyboard artist. He is known as a writer for the television series ''The Ren & Stimpy Show'', ''SpongeBob SquarePants'', and ''Cow and Chic ...

, animation writer *

Dax Shepard Dax Randall Shepard (born January 2, 1975) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker and podcast host. Since 2018, he has hosted ''Armchair Expert'', a podcast that interviews celebrities, journalists, and academics about their lives. Shepard ha ...

, actor * Brian Steele, actor * Jim Storm, hockey player *

Matt Wayne Matt S. Wayne is an American writer of comic books and television. Wayne is probably best known for his work on the animated series '' Niko and the Sword of Light'', ''Cannon Busters'' and '' Ben 10: Omniverse'', and writing and editing comic b ...

, animation writer *

Violent J Joseph Frank Bruce (born April 28, 1972), known by his stage name Violent J, is an American rapper, record producer, professional wrestler, and part of the hip hop duo Insane Clown Posse. He is a co-founder of the record label '' Psychopathic R ...

, rapper

Climate

This

climatic Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorological ...

region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

system, Milford has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Milford, Michigan
/ref>

References

External links

Village of Milford

Milford Historical Society

Milford Downtown Development Authority

Huron Valley Schools

Milford Hydroelectric Powerhouse

Milford Times

"Remnants Remain of Oakland County's Water Powered Past" - Oakland Press

An Account of Oakland County - University of Michigan "Michigan County Histories" Collection

The Spinal Column
{{authority control Villages in Oakland County, Michigan Villages in Michigan Metro Detroit Populated places established in 1832 1832 establishments in Michigan Territory