St. Helen, Michigan

St. Helen, Michigan
Census-designated place (CDP) & Unincorporated community

Location of St. Helen, Michigan
Coordinates: 44°21′49″N 84°24′37″W / 44.36361°N 84.41028°W / 44.36361; -84.41028Coordinates: 44°21′49″N 84°24′37″W / 44.36361°N 84.41028°W / 44.36361; -84.41028
Country United States
State Michigan
County Roscommon
Area
  Total 5.9 sq mi (15.3 km2)
  Land 5.0 sq mi (13.1 km2)
  Water 0.9 sq mi (2.3 km2)
Elevation 1,191 ft (363 m)
Population (2010[1])
  Total 2,668
  Density 593.6/sq mi (229.2/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
  Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 48656
FIPS code 26-70800[2]
GNIS feature ID 0636665[3]

St. Helen is an unincorporated community in Richfield Township, Roscommon County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a census-designated place (CDP) for statistical purposes and has no legal status as an incorporated municipality. The population was 2,668 at the 2010 census.[1] The ZIP code is 48656.

History

In the 1870s, lumber baron Henry Stephens established a large lumber operation at St. Helen,[4] considered at the time to be among the largest and best equipped in the state. The mills were estimated to have produced more than 1 billion board feet (2,000,000 m3) of lumber within a period of fourteen years. Most of the logs were moved by river, but lumber was also moved by rail.

The St. Helen Development Company was organized to sell land and promote development of the area, and over seven years sold 80,000 acres (320 km2) of land and helped to build more than 30 miles (48 km) of roads and over 80 miles (130 km) of fencing.

St. Helen was named after the lake. It is believed that French voyageurs named it after Saint Helena of Constantinople, mother of Emperor Constantine.

The Detroit, Bay City and Alpena Railroad (later the Michigan Central, then the Detroit and Mackinac Railway and presently the Lake State Railway Company) built a line through the area with a station at St. Helen. M-76 passes through St. Helen and portions are still signed as "Old 76". St. Helen has survived based on tourism and proximity to the lake.

Geography

Major highways

Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 2,993 people, 1,380 households, and 873 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 593.6 per square mile (229.3/km2). There were 2,617 housing units at an average density of 519.1 per square mile (200.5/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 98.46% White, 0.07% African American, 0.63% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.07% from other races, and 0.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.77% of the population.The median gross rent in 2011 was 583.00 dollars. A household in the CDP was $24,104, and the median income for a family was $30,268. Males had a median income of $30,521 versus $20,461 for females. The most common occupations in St. Helen are metal and plastic workers, making up 13% of the working class. Carpenters make up 7% of the working class, while mechanics make up 5% of the working class. Sales make up 6% of the working class and construction workers make up 5% of the working class. Lastly, the "other" categories such as farmers and teachers make up the remaining 4% of the working class. The per capita income for the CDP was $17,198. About 12.8% of families and 19.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.6% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over. Neighboring cities include; West Branch, Rose city, Roscommon and Prudenville all exceeding St. Helen's population. St. Helen is one of the largest outdoor motor sport areas in Michigan with over 10 miles of trails in a 2 square mile area.[5]

Other affiliations

Businesses

Local Events

There are a number of recurrent local events:

Famous resident

The Charlton Heston academy of St. Helen Michigan is named after the actor Charlton Heston.[18]

Further reading

Notes

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, March 16, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.