Grawn was founded in the 1870s as Blackwood after its first settler, James B. Blackwood.[3] The Chicago and West Michigan Railway was built through Blackwood in 1890,[4] and the village was renamed to Grawn Station, after Charles T. Grawn, the former superintendent of Central Michigan Normal School, and later the superintendent of Traverse City Area Public Schools.[5] In the same year, the name was shortened to Grawn, and the village was given a post office with William H. Gibbs serving as the first postmaster.[6] By 1905, potatoes had become the main crop of Grawn.[7]
In December 1995, a fire broke out at Carl's Tire Retreading Company in Grawn. The fire burned for 20 days and led to the evacuation of locals and of Blair Elementary School. In 2003, PFAS were found at the site and in local wells as a result of chemicals used to extinguish the fire.[8][9]
The community of Grawn was listed as a newly organized census-designated place for the 2010 census, meaning that it now has officially defined boundaries and population statistics.[10]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 0.63 square miles (1.63 km2), all land.[11]
Major highways
US 31 runs west–east at this portion of its route through the center of the community.
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