On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Green Lake Township is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #616 of 701 in Michigan. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Green Lake Township’s overall grade.
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 Green Lake 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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.8 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Green Lake Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Green Lake Township was organized in 1883, from part of Blair Township. This makes it the newest township in Grand Traverse County.
Interlochen Center for the Arts was established in Green Lake Township in 1928 by Joseph E. Maddy.
On September 17, 2026, an F-16 fighter jet from the 149th Fighter Wing of the Texas Air National Guard crashed while training near the Glacier Ponds neighborhood of eastern Green Lake Township. While the pilot ejected safely, an area within a 1-mile (1.6 km) radius was evacuated due to hazardous chemicals spilled.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Green Lake Township.
1983Lake Ann sheet · 1:25,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Green Lake Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Green Lake Township
Nobody well known was born in Green Lake Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Green Lake Township is more historic than 23% of U.S. towns, #616 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 Green Lake Township?
7% of Green Lake Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.8 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1988.
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 Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) 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.
