From the archives ...

Demographics of SW Michigan

A summary of SW Michigan's land area and general population characteristics by county, county subdivision, census tract, and block group
 
SWMI map - Allegan County Barry County Berrien County Branch County Cass County Calhoun County Eaton County Ionia County Kalamazoo County Kent County Ottawa County St. Joseph County Van Buren County
daily-tangents.com
22-feb-1998
map image of SW Michigan - 13 counties highlighted

The Demographic Data Viewer, or DDViewer, provides the Internet Community access to over 200 variables from the 1990 Census For the purposes of this study, DDViewer v. 2.0 was used to extract, map, and analyze general population and land area characteristics for 13 counties in SW Michigan. Characteristics (or variables) reviewed include total population [totpop], percent of population sampled [pctsmpld], land area [landsqmi], and population density [poppsqmi]. Maps and statistics are presented for various geographic "entities" or "summary levels" including regional, state, county, tract, and block group.

Credits and acknowledgements for DDViewer development belong to CIESIN, SEDAC, Census Bureau, and UIC.

We, at daily-tangents.com, hope you find this guide to SW Michigan Demographics useful. Let us know what you think. Your comments provide guidance for continued update and future development of regional pages. Thank you for your interest!

Land Area Measurements

Land area measurements detail the size recorded for each geographic entity for which the Census Bureau tabulates data. This report discusses the entities "county", "subdivision", "tract", and "block group" and reports land area in square miles.

Water areas are not included.

Population Estimates

Total population refers to the estimated number of total persons within a geographic entity, based upon a sample estimate percent of population sampled. Huh? Users need to realize that "Total Persons" in this report is an estimate based on a sample and is subject to sampling error. It is the users discretion to evaluate what level of error is acceptable for purposes intended. If you are interested in specific details about this topic refer to "Census Summary Tape File User Notes"

Rankings of Thirteen SW Michigan Counties
map of SW Michigan - 13 counties are labeled - allegan, barry, berrien, branch, calhoun, cass, eaton, ionia, kalamazoo, kent, ottawa, st joseph, van buren
Variate   TP     SA     LA     PS     ID  
Allegan 7 8 12 5 26005
Barry 3 6-7 4 2 26015
Berrien 10 4-5 7 10 26021
Branch 1 13 3 1 26023
Calhoun 9 4-5 11 9 26025
Cass 2 11 1 4 26027
Eaton 8 6-7 9 8 26045
Ionia 4 12 8 3 26067
Kalamazoo 12 3 5 12 26077
Kent 1 2 13 13 26081
Ottawa 11 1 6 11 26139
St. Joseph 5 9 2 7 26149
Van Buren 6 10 10 6 26159
Variate Legend
Range
  TP   Total Population   1 = lowest   13 = greatest 41,502 - 500,631
  SA   Sample Population   1 = lowest   13 = greatest 14.5 - 33.6
  LA   Land Area (sq miles)   1= smallest   13 = largest 492.152 - 856.089
  PS   Population per Square Mile   1 = lowest   13 = greatest 81.8 - 584.8
  ID  
Fips State and County Code - Direct Link to county level summaries from the Census Bureau

Summary of SW Michigan's
Land Area & Population
by County

There are 13 counties in the region herein described as SW Michigan. Counties are the primary political divisions of Michigan. Of the 13 SW Michigan counties reviewed, Kent County was found to have the largest population, the largest land area, and the highest density of persons. Branch County was found to have the lowest population, Cass County had the least land area, and Branch County was the least densely populated.

SW Michigan - County Summary
Click on Map
to Enlarge 		SW Michigan map - Total Population by County. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - % Population Sampled by County. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Land Area by County. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Population Density by County. Source: 1990 Census
Variable Population % Sampled Land Area Population
Density
Minimum
County
Value 		Branch
41,502
persons 		Ottawa
14.5
% 		Cass
492.152
sq. miles 		Branch
82 persons
per sq. mile
Maximum
County
Value 		Kent
500,631
persons 		Branch
33.6
% 		Kent
856.089
sq. miles 		Kent
585 persons
per sq. mile
Detailed Summary Statistics      ... downloaded using DDViewer 13-feb-1998 ...

Summary of SW Michigan's
Land Area & Population
by County Subdivision

There are 290 county subdivisions [townships and cities] within SW Michigan.

SW Michigan - County Subdivision Summary
Click on Map
to Enlarge 		SW Michigan map - Total Population by County Subdivision. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - % Population Sampled by County Subdivision. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Land Area by County Subdivision. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Population Density by County Subdivision. Source: 1990 Census
Variable Population % Sampled Land Area Population
Density
Minimum
Subdivision
Value 		* See Note 1
Allegan, Cass
0
persons 		* See Note 1
Allegan, Cass
0.0
% 		South Haven City
Allegan County
0.0054
sq. miles 		* See Note 1
Allegan, Cass
0
persons/sq. mile
Maximum
Subdivision
Value 		Grand Rapids City
Kent County
 189,126
persons 		Clarendon Township
Calhoun County
52.0
% 		Porter Township
Cass County
51.7347
sq. miles 		Grand Rapids City
Kent County
4,274 persons
per sq. mile
Detailed Summary Statistics      ... downloaded using DDViewer 13-feb-1998 ...
Notes
 1.  Two county subdivisions report "0" [zero] values for population, % sampled, and population density
       ... South Haven City in Allegan County (Land Area = 0.0054 sq. miles)
      ... Niles City of CassCounty (Land Area = 0.46787 sq. miles)
 

Summary of SW Michigan's
Land Area & Population
by Census Tract

There are 420 census tracts within SW Michigan. Census tracts are small, relatively permanent statistical subdivisions of a county. When first delineated, census tracts are designed to be homogeneous with respect to population characteristics, economic status, and living conditions. Census tracts do not cross county boundaries.

In SW Michigan, the population of census tracts range from 0 to 10,488 persons. The spatial size ranges from 0 to 113 square miles, and the population density ranges from 0 to 12,345 persons per square mile.

SW Michigan - Census Tract Summary
Click on Map
to Enlarge 		SW Michigan map - Total Population by Census Tract. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - % Population Sampled by Census Tract. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Land Area by Census Tract. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Population Density by Census Tract. Source: 1990 Census
Variable Population % Sampled Land Area Population
Density
Minimum
Census Tract
Value 		* See Notes 1,2
Berrien, Kalamazoo
0
persons 		* See Notes 1,2
Berrien, Kalamazoo
0
% 		* See Notes 1,3
Berrien, Ottawa
0
sq. miles 		* See Notes 1,2,3,9
Berrien, Kalamazoo, Ottawa
0
persons/sq. mile
Maximum
Census Tract
Value 		* See Note 7
Kalamazoo
10,488
persons 		* See Notes 4,5
Berrien, Cass
49
% 		* See Note 6
Ionia
113
sq. miles 		* See Note 8,9
Kent
12,345 persons
per sq. mile
Detailed Summary Statistics     ... downloaded using DDViewer 13-feb-1998 ...
Notes
 
       Tract ID     County   Population  %      Land     Population 
                                      Sampled   Area      Density 

 1.  260210008.99   Berrien        0    0.0    0              .  
 2.  260770035.98   Kalamazoo      0    0.0    0.02316       0.0 
 3.  261390206.99   Ottawa        12    8.3    0              .  
 4.  260210116.00   Berrien     2132   49.1   35.9814       59.3 
 5.  260270016.00   Cass        1107   49.1    4.68916     236.1 
 6.  260670318.00   Ionia       5161   23.1  113.283        45.6 
 7.  260770020.01   Kalamazoo  10488   12.5    5.51141    1903.0 
 8.  260810032.00   Kent        5738   12.7    0.46478   12345.5
 9.  Note that for variable "Population Density" , there are 2 missing values resulting in 418 observations as opposed to 420 [the total number of tracts].
 

Summary of SW Michigan's
Land Area & Total Population
by Block Group

There are 1,525 block groups within SW Michigan.

Census blocks are small areas bounded on all sides by visible features such as streets, roads, streams, and railroad tracks, and by invisible boundaries such as city, town, township, and county limits, property lines, and short, imaginary extensions of streets and roads. Blocks are numbered uniquely within each census tract. At a minimum, a block is identified by a three-digit number. A block group is a cluster of blocks having the same first digit of their three-digit identifying numbers within a census tract. Geographic block groups never cross census tract boundaries, but may cross the boundaries of county subdivisions, places, American Indian and Alaska Native areas, urbanized areas, voting districts, and congressional districts.

In SW Michigan, the population of block groups range from 0 to 6,793. The spatial size ranges from 0 to 41 square miles and the population density ranges from 0 to 38,323 persons/sq. mile.

SW Michigan - Block Group Summary
Click on Map
to Enlarge 		SW Michigan map - Total Population by Block Group. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - % Population Sampled by Block Group. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Land Area by Block Group. Source: 1990 Census SW Michigan map - Population Density by Block Group. Source: 1990 Census
Variable Population % Sampled Land Area Population
Density
Minimum
Block Group
Value 		* See Notes 1-11
Berrien, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Kent
0
persons 		* See Notes 1-11
Berrien, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Kent
0
% 		* See Notes 4,12
Berrien,
Ottawa
0
sq. miles		 * See Notes 1-12,17
Berrien, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, Kent, Ottawa
0
persons/sq. mile
Maximum
Block Group
Value 		* See Note 13
Eaton
6,793
persons 		* See Note 14
Calhoun
52
% 		* See Note 15
Ionia
41
sq. miles 		* See Note 16
Kalamazoo
38,323 persons
per sq. mile
Detailed Summary Statistics      ... downloaded using DDViewer 13-feb-1998 ...
Notes
 
      POLID       Area    County   Population %     Land    Population
                  Name                    Sampled   Area    per Sq. Mile

 1. 260210001.001  BG 1    Berrien      0    0.0   0.39491       0.0 
 2. 260210008.001  BG 1    Berrien      0    0.0   0.3926        0.0 
 3. 260210008.007  BG 7    Berrien      0    0.0   0.20112       0.0 
 4. 260210008.991  BG 1    Berrien      0    0.0   0              .  
 5. 260210203.003  BG 3    Berrien      0    0.0   0.00039       0.0 
 6. 260250004.001  BG 1    Calhoun      0    0.0   0.21039       0.0 
 7. 260770035.986  BG 6    Kalamazoo    0    0.0   0.02316       0.0 
 8. 260810014.001  BG 1    Kent         0    0.0   0.12237       0.0 
 9. 260810028.005  BG 5    Kent         0    0.0   0.08917       0.0 
10. 260810130.009  BG 9    Kent         0    0.0   0.69834       0.0 
11. 260810144.009  BG 9    Kent         0    0.0   0.19649       0.0 
12. 261390206.993  BG 3    Ottawa      12    8.3   0              .  

13. 260450214.009  BG 9    Eaton      6793  21.0   29.3637     231.3
14. 260250030.002  BG 2    Calhoun    1100  52.0   35.6348      30.9 
15. 260670318.003  BG 3    Ionia      1302  43.0   41.479       31.4
16. 260770015.072  BG 2    Kalamazoo   503   4.6    0.01312   38323.3
17.  Note that for variable "Population Density" , there are 2 missing values resulting in 1,523 observations as opposed to 1,525 [the total number of block groups].
 

DISCLAIMER
The accuracy of the data contained herein is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to replace more detailed studies.
copyright (c) 1998
daily-tangents.com
all rights reserved

UPDATE:
- 10 June 2002 ... Links reviewed, verified, and updated.
... This feature is seeking sponsorship for continued maintenance and update.
... Please direct inquiries to InfoTech@daily-tangents.com
... LINKs:   Census 2000 gateway
daily-tangents.com:   Reference Index:   About   Alphabet   Birds   Festivals   InfoTech   Maps   Names   Sky   Store   TimeQuest   TimeZone   Trees   Weather  

©1997-2002 g&l publishers   *   daily-tangents.com   *   all rights reserved.  
page design: lk