Marquette Township dates to 1849, and 1 of its places is on the National Register
More historic than 63% of U.S. towns · #251 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Most of Marquette Township was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1990. Its Register listing is the Granite Island Light Station. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1953 on, and the census since 1850.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Marquette Township is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns, #251 of 701 in Michigan. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Marquette 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 Marquette Township’s 2.4 sits above most of its state (70% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.3 points). Two sources give 1849.
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 Marquette Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The land around Marquette was known to French missionaries of the early 17th century and the trappers of the early 19th century. The area was originally and predominantly inhabited by the Noquet, Ojibwe, Odawa and Potawatomi, the latter three peoples comprising the Anishinaabe Council of Three Fires. They knew the area as Gichi-namebini-ziibing ("The river of giant white suckers", referring to the Dead River). Development of the area began in 1844, when William Burt and Jacob Houghton (the brother of geologist Douglass Houghton) discovered iron deposits near Teal Lake west of Marquette. In 1845, Jackson Mining Company, the first organized mining company in the region, was formed.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Marquette Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1953Negaunee sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Marquette Township.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this view19th century lifeboat in, 1850
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Marquette Township’s page.
In 1849, according to Wikidata. the census of 1850 counted 136 people here.
How does Marquette Township rank for history?
Marquette Township is more historic than 63% of U.S. towns, #251 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.
What is on the National Register in Marquette Township?
One place: the Granite Island Light Station (listed 1983).
How old are the homes in Marquette Township?
7% of Marquette Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.3 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1990.
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), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.
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