Where Watersmeet Township earns its living
Jobs and income earn Watersmeet Township C; getting around on foot earns it B−. About one in four stay in Watersmeet Township for work; outside it, Ironwood is the main destination (8%, 47 miles). The average commute takes 22 minutes each way; Michigan averages 24, the U.S. 26.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Watersmeet Township
Watersmeet Township’s biggest commute is a long one
The top workplace outside Watersmeet Township is Ironwood, 47 miles away as the crow flies. 8% of working residents (31) make that trip; no town closer to home draws more of them. How far ↓
Watersmeet Township is where the jobs are
Watersmeet Township has 606 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
A big share show a job far from home
30% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published; with 372 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
How the Jobs & income grade adds up in Watersmeet Township
On income, poverty and job access, Watersmeet Township is better than 31% of U.S. towns. The poverty rate holds Watersmeet Township’s grade up (7.4%, U.S. 12.5%); job access by car pulls it down (near the bottom of U.S. towns).
Unemployment (3.1%) is left out: Watersmeet Township’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is two years behind.
A rough placement. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Watersmeet Township could be anywhere from D to B.
Miles to work from Watersmeet Township
About 30% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Who works in Watersmeet Township, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 271 residents head out to work, 101 work right here, and 505 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,700 people are in Watersmeet Township on a workday afternoon, 16% more than live here.
1.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
Where Watersmeet Township’s workforce comes from
Where Watersmeet Township clocks in
8% of workers
7% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
In Watersmeet Township, services account for most jobs
606 jobs are based in Watersmeet Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Watersmeet Township, 2011 → 2021: 433 → 606. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Watersmeet Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting from Watersmeet Township: about 22 minutes a trip
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.1 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Watersmeet Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 352 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Getting around Watersmeet Township: mostly by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Watersmeet Township is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns. How people get to work scores higher than the street layout: 8.2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, against 3.8% across Michigan, on an EPA index of 4.0.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 412 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 6.2% of Watersmeet Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Watersmeet Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Watersmeet Township is 3,512th among 6,308 U.S. towns of 1,000 to 2,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Chevy Chase Village MD | 1,978 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 101 | Caledonia MI | 1,778 | $106K | 3.7% | 0.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 166 | Dimondale MI | 1,183 | $111K | 3.2% | 4.6% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 206 | Wheatfield Township MI | 1,659 | $117K | 1.9% | 2.7% | 1% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 3,510 | Meyersdale PA | 1,986 | $66K | 10.0% | 4.3% | 8% | C |
| 3,511 | Belmont WI | 1,042 | $62K | 9.7% | 3.6% | 11% | C |
| 3,512 | Watersmeet Township MI | 1,481 | $73K | 7.4% | 3.1% | 27% | C |
| 3,513 | Bark River Township MI | 1,585 | $69K | 7.4% | 3.2% | 5% | C |
| 3,514 | Custer Township MI | 1,213 | $84K | 10.7% | 7.0% | 1% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 6,308 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Watersmeet Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
How Watersmeet Township compares with the towns next door
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Watersmeet Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watersmeet Township | – | C | B− | 22 min | $72,708 |
| Marenisco Township | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Haight Township | under 2% | — | — | 22 min | — |
| Stambaugh Township | under 2% | C+ | C | 26 min | $70,673 |
| Interior Township | under 2% | — | — | 29 min | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Marenisco Township, Haight Township and Interior Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Watersmeet Township’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Watersmeet Township: questions
What is the median household income in Watersmeet Township?
$72,708 (±$17,267) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Watersmeet Township?
7.4%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Watersmeet Township?
22 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Watersmeet Township work?
27% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Ironwood (8%, 47 mi), Wakefield (7%, 38 mi), Bessemer (7%, 43 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Watersmeet Township walkable?
Watersmeet Township is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 4.0 out of 20, and 8% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Watersmeet Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Watersmeet Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Watersmeet Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.