Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 1,918 residents, this town was established in 1886.
The best of Torch Lake Township’s subject grades are an A− for schools and the outdoors; the weakest is a C for health. 35% of residents are 65 or older in Torch Lake Township, above both the Michigan town median (19%) and the median of U.S. towns (18%). Only 2 of the 702 Michigan towns we compare have a lower midsummer high than Torch Lake Township. Homes are within reach, about $171K for a typical one, or 2.9 years of the Houghton area’s $58K median household income. The biggest place to walk is Copper Country State Forest- Baraga Unit, 1,225 acres with 1 miles of trail. Torch Lake Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Torch Lake Township beats most towns.
Where Torch Lake Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Torch Lake Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 1919 and 2 maps from 1954 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Torch Lake 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 Torch Lake Township.
Torch Lake Township’s age of the median resident comes in at 53.3 years. Michigan has 32% of adults 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or more; here it is 31%. The share of residents in Torch Lake Township who are under 18: 20%.
| Torch Lake Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 53.3 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 20% | 21% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 26% | 29% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.9 points. Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Torch Lake Township | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.8% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.4% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.4% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.1% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.7% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 24.1% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.8% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.7% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.5% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.4% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.3% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.3% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.8% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,900, single groups can be off by several points
Among working residents in Torch Lake Township, 1.9% work locally. Jobs based in Torch Lake Township grew to 199 in 2021, 63 more than in 2011. Half commute less than 9 miles. The top destinations are Houghton (19%), Calumet Township (17%) and Hancock (16%).
| Torch Lake Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 6.1% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 5.9% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $70,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
For adults in Torch Lake Township, the share who have obesity is 38%. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Torch Lake Township is ahead of Michigan on 2 and behind on 8. 41% of adults in the town have high blood pressure; 14% have diabetes.
| Torch Lake Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 34% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 36% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 12% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Torch Lake Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.9% | 11.9% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.9% | 77.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 14.6% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons reach 75° and January nights drop to 12°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The national flood insurance program has paid one claim in Torch Lake Township since 2026. On expected storm and flood damage, Torch Lake Township sits below 63% of U.S. communities. Expected losses in Torch Lake Township break down as 74% from inland flooding and 18% from cold waves.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
73 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The density of trails in Torch Lake Township is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Torch Lake Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.8% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Copper Country State Forest- Baraga Unit | 1 mi | 1,225 |
| 2. Point Mills Nature Area | 0.3 mi | 121 |
| 3. Le Chance Creek Nature Area | — | 434 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Torch Lake Township. Close and well known come first.
26 mi MountainMount Arvon
10 mi National Historical ParkKeweenaw National Historical Park35K visitors a year
9 mi MuseumA. E. Seaman Mineral Museum26 mi Ski areaMount Bohemia21 runs · 814 ft vertical
10 mi MuseumCarnegie Museum of the KeweenawMount Arvon: Yinan Chen, Public Domain · Keweenaw National Historical Park: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0 · A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum: Chris857, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Carnegie Museum of the Keweenaw: Chris857, CC BY-SA 3.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Torch Lake Township
About 2 of every 100 Torch Lake Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
2 places in Torch Lake Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
Civil township in Michigan, United States
Torch Lake Township is a civil township of Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population of the township was 1,893. The township was established in 1886 and is one of the largest townships in Houghton County by area. It is surrounded by the Torch Lake, the Portage Lake, and Lake Superior. As well as a large number of unincorporated communities, the township also includes a portion of the Baraga State Forest which lies along the shores of Keweenaw Bay. The township borders Schoolcraft Township to the north, Osceola Township to the northwest, and Chassell Township to the southwest. The community of Hubbell serves as the major population center of the tow…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Torch Lake Township.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Torch Lake Township | — | — | A− | — | A− | C |
| Osceola Township | — | — | A− | — | B | C |
| Schoolcraft Township | — | — | A− | — | A− | C |
| Chassell Township | — | — | B− | — | B+ | B+ |
| Portage Township | #145 | A− | B− | — | A+ | B |
| Hubbell | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dollar Bay | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Lake Linden | — | — | A | — | A− | C− |
Torch Lake Township, Osceola Township, Schoolcraft Township, Chassell Township and Lake Linden have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Torch Lake Township, Osceola Township, Schoolcraft Township, Chassell Township, Portage Township and Lake Linden report no FBI crime data of their own. Hubbell and Dollar Bay aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Torch Lake Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
