Newaygo, Michigan, United States

🇺🇸 Newaygo is a rural city in Newaygo County in the U.S. state of Michigan.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.90 square miles (10.10 km²), of which 3.74 square miles (9.69 km²) is land and 0.16 square miles (0.41 km²) is water. including the Muskegon River, which runs through the town and is often used for canoe trips, tubing, and fishing. The county is considered part of West Michigan. Newaygo is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids.

The Muskegon River flows through the north side of the town beneath M-37 and a train bridge.

Transport: Road • M-37 • M-82.

History Newaygo's recorded history goes back to the 1600s and the French coureur des bois (independent trappers) and, later, fur company voyageurs that travelled by canoe via the Muskegon River. It was ostensibly named after Chief Nuwagon, an Ojibwe leader who signed the Treaty of Saginaw in 1819, or for an Algonquian word meaning "much water". John Brooks came to harvest lumber in 1836, and was the town's first postmaster in 1847. Proximity to the river made it a centre for floating logs to the mills in Muskegon during the lumber boom of the late 1800s.

Demographics As of the census of 2010, there were 1,976 people, 786 households, and 502 families living in the city. The population density was 528.3 inhabitants per square mile (204.0/km²). There were 892 housing units at an average density of 238.5 per square mile (92.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.6% White, 0.9% African American, 1.2% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.6% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.3% of the population.

There were 786 households, of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.7% were married couples living together, 20.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.1% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.10.

The median age in the city was 32.4 years. 29.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.7% were from 25 to 44; 21.3% were from 45 to 64; and 14.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 46.1% male and 53.9% female.