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CHistory
History · Big Rapids Township

Big Rapids Township dates to 1855, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns · #562 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1958 on, and the census since 1870.

1855founded
0on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: brewbooks · CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answers

How Big Rapids Township began

When was Big Rapids Township founded?

1855

Big Rapids Township dates its founding to 1855 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1870.

First census: 1,237 in 18702020 census: 3,917171 years

How historic is Big Rapids Township?

C

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Big Rapids Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Big Rapids Township is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #562 of 701 in Michigan. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Big Rapids Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1855, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194010.9% of homes (±5.8) · typical MI town 11.9% · U.S. 8.4%B−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical MI town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 31%
NewerOlder
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 20%

Few Michigan towns list much on the Register (a typical Michigan town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Big Rapids Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (32% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.8 points). Two sources give 1855.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Big Rapids Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 14,361 in 1980; 7,727 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Big Rapids Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Big Rapids Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Big Rapids Township, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 14,361

Peaked at 14,361 in 1980; 7,727 people lived here in 2020.

16 censuses, 1870–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Big Rapids Township’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Big Rapids Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Big Rapids Township.

Read it all →

Big Rapids was settled in 1855 by brothers George and Zera French. As the village of Leonard, at the intersection of Elm and Stewart streets, it became the seat of Mecosta County on February 11, 1859, but local lumbermen knew the site as Big Rapids. On September 29, 1859, the Leonard post office was renamed Big Rapids. Big Rapids was platted on November 3, 1859, surrounding the courthouse site of Leonard. The unincorporated community of Big Rapids was first cited on June 10, 1861, rather than Leonard, when the Mecosta County board of supervisors mentioned their seat of government, and in 1865 was consistently cited throughout the year. Big Rapids was incorporated as a city in 1869.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Big Rapids Township, 1855 to 1980

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1855
    FoundingBig Rapids Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900In the archiveMap of Holcomb's Addition, Big Rapids, Michigan (1900)
  5. 1958On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1980CensusPopulation peaks at 14,361
By decade

Big Rapids Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s1 item
Map of Holcomb's Addition, Big Rapids, Michigan (1900)1900Map of Holcomb's Addition, Big Rapids, Michigan (1900)Map
1910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
Muskegon River2023Muskegon RiverOsceola Pavillion2020Osceola PavillionAMC Classic Big Rapids 42020AMC Classic Big Rapids 4Memorial for September 11, 2001 attack; Public Safety office2019Memorial for September 11, 2001 attack; Public Safety…Bigrapidsbanner2017BigrapidsbannerBeautiful seasonal displays at the Old Pioneer Store and Emporium in historic downtown Big Rapids2016Beautiful seasonal displays at the Old Pioneer Store …Big Rapids water tower2014Big Rapids water towerBig Rapids White Pine Trail2014Big Rapids White Pine TrailBig Rapids, Michigan 20092009Big Rapids, Michigan 2009
On the map

Big Rapids Township on the map, 1958 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Big Rapids Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Big Rapids Township on the 1958 USGS mapBig Rapids Township on the 1985 USGS map1958Woodville sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Big Rapids Township.

Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Circle Drive Mobile Home ParkForest Hills Mobile Home Park
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Big Rapids Township
Highland ViewMount CarmelVan Gilder

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Colfax TownshipIts storyC+Mecosta TownshipIts storyC−Norwich TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGreen TownshipIts storyC−

Questions about Big Rapids Township’s history

What year was Big Rapids Township founded?

In 1855, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. the census of 1870 counted 1,237 people here.

How does Big Rapids Township rank for history?

Big Rapids Township is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #562 of 701 in Michigan. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Big Rapids Township?

11% of Big Rapids Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1987.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (10), Wikidata (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.