4 places in town are on the National Register, among them the St. Ignace Mission, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 3 buildings. Most of Moran Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. Below: maps from 1964 on.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Moran Township is more historic than 57% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Moran 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 Moran Township’s 40.1 sits above most of its state (89% of Michigan towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% 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 (±2.7 points) is firm at this size.
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 Moran Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
The story so far
Moran Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Moran Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Brevort Township ( breh-VORT) is a civil township of Mackinac County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 502, down from 594 in 2010. The township was named after Henry Brevort (or Brevoort), a surveyor assigned to subdivide the area in 1845. Most of the township land is within the eastern portion of the Hiawatha National Forest. The township includes part of the Mackinac Wilderness.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 994 to 1,029 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Moran Township, 1671 to 1966
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Moran Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1964Kenneth 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 Moran Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Moran Township
Nobody well known was born in Moran Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Moran Township is more historic than 57% of U.S. towns. 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 Moran Township?
4 listings: 1 building, 1 historic district, the St. Helena Island Light Station, with 3 contributing buildings, and 2 sites.
How old are the homes in Moran Township?
5% of Moran Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.7 points), against a typical 12% for a Michigan town; the median home was built in 1987.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.
★ Landmark
