Oxford, Michigan, United States

🇺🇸 Oxford is a village in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The village is located within Oxford Township. Located about 30 miles (48 km) north of Detroit, it is a northern suburb of the Metro Detroit region.

History During the early 19th century the north-east Oakland County area was largely avoided by the early settlers because it was believed to be nothing but impenetrable swamp land. The area was, at that time, nicknamed "The Barren Plains of Oxford". It was called this primarily because of a report made in 1812 by the U.S. Surveyor General that described the area as a poor, barren, sandy land, on which scarcely any vegetation could grow with the exception of some very small scrubby oaks. It was concluded in the surveyors' report that there was one acre out of one hundred that appeared to be eligible for cultivation. Any hope for crop production was thought to be preposterous. At this point, the area was deemed worthless, and discouragement of any hope for development by forthcoming settlers was inevitable.

Purchase of public land in what is now called Oxford was in 1823 by a man named Elbridge G. Deming. Soon after, the first person to settle in Oxford was a wolf trapper named Avery Brown. He made use of the land and gave some credibility to its value. It wasn't long after that the first area post office was officially established in what was then known as Demingsburgh on May 2, 1834. Five years later, the name was officially changed to Oxford on January 15, 1839. Elbridge D. Deming was the first postmaster for Oxford, as the post office was located in his log home near the intersection of M-24 and Metamora Road.

On November 30, 2021, a mass shooting occurred at Oxford High School. Four people were killed, and seven others were injured, including an injured teacher. School attendance was very low that day, as rumors had spread earlier that week of a shooting being about to occur. Most of the students escaped into a nearby Meijer. The suspect, a 15-year-old sophomore student, reportedly fired between 15 and 20 bullets in a chemistry room and did not resist arrest.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.46 square miles (3.78 km²), of which 1.26 square miles (3.26 km²) is land and 0.20 square miles (0.52 km²) (1.37%) is water.

Arts and culture The village centre consists of shops, restaurants, and taverns stretching for two blocks. Local happenings such as athletic events, downtown fairs, scarecrow competitions, school plays, the annual Steamback golf outing at Oxford Hills and concerts garner a large turnout throughout the year and are reported in the weekly newspaper of record since 1898, The Oxford Leader.

The area's public high school, Oxford High School, was newly expanded in 2003–2004.

Education The village of Oxford is home to the school district of Oxford Community Schools. The district has nine schools which include: • Two high schools (Oxford High School and Oxford Bridges High School, the latter an alternative school) • One middle school (Oxford Middle School) • Five elementary schools (Clear Lake, Daniel Axford, Lakeville, Leonard, and Oxford Elementary). All five elementary schools earned an A on their EducationYes! Report cards for the 2010–2011 school year. • One adjudicated youth school (Crossroads for Youth)

The primary mascot for Oxford Schools is the Wildcat. Both the high school and the middle school have sports teams which are referred to as Oxford Wildcats. The Oxford Wildcat logo is visible around the town, prominently on one of the three water towers.

In 2009 and in 2010, Oxford Community Schools was featured as one of the "Best Schools In Michigan". Two of the elementary schools Leonard Elementary and Lakeville Elementary both won Michigan Blue Ribbon Awards, making all Oxford elementary schools Michigan Blue Ribbon Schools. In the 2010-2011 year, Oxford High School moved from the Flint Metro League to the Oakland Activities Association.