Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
28% of residents are 65 or older in Alpena Township, above both the Michigan town median (19%) and the median of U.S. towns (18%). 17% of the land in Alpena Township is conserved, where Michigan’s towns sit at 4.4% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. The biggest park or preserve is Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, at 17,024 acres. We don’t grade Alpena Township yet; the figures below are still real.
Where Alpena Township beats most towns.
Census counts: 6,153 in 1880, a peak of 14,682 in 1960, 10,197 in 2020. The archive holds 23 old photos and papers going back to 1875 and 2 maps from 1971 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Alpena Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Alpena Township.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 92% of U.S. communities. Since 1985, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Alpena Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Alpena Public Schools. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thunder Bay Junior High SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 796 | C |
NCES · EDFacts
Alpena Township’s median age is 49.3 years. 24% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Michigan. 20% of residents are under 18 in Alpena Township.
| Alpena Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 49.3 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 20% | 21% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 24% | 26% | 29% |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.3 points. Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Alpena Township | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.1% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.6% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.4% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.6% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.5% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.8% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 16.6% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.2% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.7% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 32.5% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.5% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.2% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.2% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 9% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
91 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The trail density in Alpena Township is 0.7 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit | 24.8 mi | 9,075 |
| 2. Rockport Recreation Area | 10.1 mi | 2,507 |
| 3. Norway Ridge Pathway | 8 mi | 435 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Alpena Township has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 78°, January nights drop to 13° and about 59 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 5 of Alpena Township’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Alpena Township fell to 4,120 in 2021, 694 fewer than in 2011. The top destinations are Alpena (37%), Lansing (1%) and Ypsilanti Township (1%).
| Alpena Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 22% | 5.9% | 8% |
| Median household income | $52,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Alpena Township beats the Michigan average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 42% of Alpena Township adults have high blood pressure.
| Alpena Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 36% | 35% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 12% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Alpena Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.4% | 77.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.1% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Alpena Township
About 2 of every 100 Alpena Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
3 places in Alpena Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Michigan, United States
Alpena ( al-PEE-nə) is the only city in and the county seat of Alpena County, Michigan, United States. The population was 10,197 at the 2020 census, making it the third most populated city in the Northern Michigan region, after Traverse City and Cadillac. The city is surrounded by Alpena Township, but the two are administered autonomously. It is the core city of the Alpena micropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Alpena County and had a total population of 28,907 at the 2020 census. Alpena is located at the head of Thunder Bay, a bay of Lake Huron. Offshore of Alpena is the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which protects an estimated 116 historically significant shipwre…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Alpena Township.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpena Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Maple Ridge Township | — | — | B+ | — | C+ | C− |
| Sanborn Township | — | — | A− | — | C+ | C+ |
| Wilson Township | — | — | B | — | C+ | C− |
| Presque Isle Township | — | — | B− | — | C+ | B− |
Maple Ridge Township, Sanborn Township, Wilson Township and Presque Isle Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Maple Ridge Township, Sanborn Township, Wilson Township and Presque Isle Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Alpena Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Alpena Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
We don’t grade Alpena Township yet; the figures below are still real. Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
