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Benzie County
Benzie County
County
	Old Benzie County Courthouse in Beulah
	Location within the U.S. state of Michigan
	Michigan's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 44°38′N 86°15′W / 44.63°N 86.25°W
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Founded	1863 (created); 1869 (organized)
Named for	Betsie River
Seat	Beulah
Largest city	Frankfort
Area
• Total	860 sq mi (2,200 km2)
• Land	320 sq mi (800 km2)
• Water	540 sq mi (1,400 km2) 63%
Population (2020)
• Total	17,970
• Estimate (2023)	18,441
• Density	55/sq mi (21/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.benzieco.net

Benzie County (/bɛnziː/ BEN-zee) is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,970.^[2] The county seat is Beulah.^[3] The county was initially set off in 1863 and organized in 1869.^[1]^[4] At 321 square miles (830 km²), Benzie County is the smallest of the 83 counties in Michigan in terms of land area.

Benzie County is part of the Traverse City metropolitan area. Part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is located within the county. It is also home to Crystal Mountain, one of Michigan's top-rated ski resorts.^[5]

History

Today's Benzie County was originally part of Leelanau County. Leelanau County was separated from Michilimackinac County in 1840, and was attached to Grand Traverse County.^[6] In 1863, The northern section of Leelanau County was organized, and the southern section, now named Benzie County, was left attached to Grand Traverse County.^[7] Benzie County was organized in its own right in 1869.^[1]^[4]

Etymology

The name "Benzie" is derived from the French la rivière aux Bec-scies, "the river of sawbills", bec-scie ("bill-saw") being a type of ducks. Americans altered the pronunciation of the river's name, which became known as the "Betsie River". A similar alteration in pronunciation produced "Benzie".^[1]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 860 square miles (2,200 km²), of which 320 square miles (830 km²) is land and 540 square miles (1,400 km²) (63%) is water.^[8] It is the smallest county in Michigan by land area.

Benzie County is located in the northwest of the Lower Peninsula, in the "little finger" position of the mitten-shaped peninsula and is considered to be part of the Northern Michigan region. Lake Michigan is to the west, Leelanau County and the Leelanau Peninsula are to the north. Grand Traverse County and Traverse City are to the east. Wexford County is to the southeast and Manistee County to the south. The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore extends into the northwest portion of the county. Crystal Lake is a prominent physical feature of the area. The Platte River rises out of a lake district around Lake Ann in the northeast of the county and flows southwest and the northwest into Big Platte Lake before emptying into Lake Michigan at Platte River Point. The Betsie River rises in neighboring Grand Traverse County, flowing southwest across the southeast corner of the county into Manistee County, where it bends northwest until just south of Benzonia where it receives the outflow of Crystal Lake and then flows mostly west through Elberta and Frankfort and into Lake Michigan.

Portions of the Pere Marquette State Forest lie within the county and offer several trails including a 10-mile (16 km) route along the Betsie River and a 5.8-mile (9.3 km) trail near Lake Ann. There are state forest campgrounds at Platte River and Lake Ann. The Betsie River State Game Area is located just east of Elberta. 50 miles (80 km) of the Betsie River is a state-designated Natural River from Grass Lake, just west of the Grand Traverse County line, to its inlet into Lake Betsie just east of Elberta. The natural and scenic richness of the area has made it a host to a variety of conservation, education, and recreation programs, including Crystalaire, the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, and others.

Major highways

US 31 enters the county from the south, passes through Benzonia and Beulah on the south end of Crystal Lake before turning to exit the county to the east.
M-22 traverses the western edge of the county, providing a scenic drive along the shore of Lake Michigan.
M-115 enters the county from the south, angling northwest, and merges with US 31 for a couple of miles until Benzonia where M-115 continues west to end in Frankfort.

Previously, an additional highway, M-168, ran in the village of Elberta, serving the former Ann Arbor Railroad ferry docks. The route was handed back to local control in 2012.^[9]

Adjacent counties

By land

Leelanau County - north
Grand Traverse County - east
Manistee County - south
Wexford County - adjacent at the southeast corner

By water

Door County, Wisconsin - northwest across Lake Michigan
Kewaunee County, Wisconsin - southwest across Lake Michigan

Communities

City

Frankfort

Villages

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Ghost towns

Townships

Indian reservations

The Grand Traverse Indian Reservation, which has territory in five counties, occupies a small area in southern Joyfield Township in Benzie County.

Ghost towns

Allyn Station (Pratts)
Almira
Aral
Cedar Run
Edgewater
Gilmore
Grant House (Homestead)
Homestead
Inland
Joyfield
Kentville
Melva
Osborn
Oviat
Platte
Playtte River (Melva)
Pratts
Stormer
Success (Ransom Creek)
Wallin
Weldon

Source:^[10]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1870	2,184		—
1880	3,433		57.2%
1890	5,237		52.5%
1900	9,685		84.9%
1910	10,638		9.8%
1920	6,947		−34.7%
1930	6,587		−5.2%
1940	7,800		18.4%
1950	8,306		6.5%
1960	7,834		−5.7%
1970	8,593		9.7%
1980	11,205		30.4%
1990	12,200		8.9%
2000	15,998		31.1%
2010	17,525		9.5%
2020	17,970		2.5%
2023 (est.)	18,441	^[11]	2.6%
U.S. Decennial Census^[12] 1790-1960^[13] 1900-1990^[14] 1990-2000^[15] 2010-2018^[2]

As of the 2000 census,^[16] there were 15,998 people, 6,500 households, and 4,595 families residing in the county. By 2020, its population was 17,970.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $37,350, and the median income for a family was $42,716. Males had a median income of $30,218 versus $21,730 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,524. About 4.7% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

For most of its history, Benzie County has primarily supported Republican presidential candidates, with the only times they failed to carry to the county prior to 1992 being in 1912 & 1964. Starting with the 1992 election, the county has become a Republican-leaning bellwether county, with 2012 and 2020 being the only two presidential elections it did not vote for the national winner from 1980 on as of 2024.

United States presidential election results for Benzie County, Michigan^[17]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	6,895	53.57%	5,780	44.91%	196	1.52%
2020	6,601	53.83%	5,480	44.69%	181	1.48%
2016	5,539	54.16%	4,108	40.16%	581	5.68%
2012	5,075	51.26%	4,685	47.32%	141	1.42%
2008	4,687	45.47%	5,451	52.88%	171	1.66%
2004	5,284	54.04%	4,383	44.83%	111	1.14%
2000	4,172	51.68%	3,546	43.93%	354	4.39%
1996	2,856	42.09%	3,081	45.41%	848	12.50%
1992	2,438	35.58%	2,715	39.62%	1,699	24.80%
1988	3,240	56.52%	2,437	42.52%	55	0.96%
1984	3,590	65.25%	1,866	33.91%	46	0.84%
1980	3,054	55.55%	1,842	33.50%	602	10.95%
1976	3,085	61.23%	1,891	37.53%	62	1.23%
1972	2,686	66.26%	1,310	32.31%	58	1.43%
1968	2,138	60.91%	1,147	32.68%	225	6.41%
1964	1,674	45.71%	1,983	54.15%	5	0.14%
1960	2,484	65.45%	1,306	34.41%	5	0.13%
1956	2,620	71.18%	1,046	28.42%	15	0.41%
1952	2,752	73.04%	980	26.01%	36	0.96%
1948	2,013	65.17%	964	31.21%	112	3.63%
1944	2,026	64.48%	1,084	34.50%	32	1.02%
1940	2,320	61.62%	1,429	37.95%	16	0.42%
1936	1,742	47.62%	1,686	46.09%	230	6.29%
1932	1,595	50.22%	1,432	45.09%	149	4.69%
1928	1,849	84.28%	321	14.63%	24	1.09%
1924	1,922	73.84%	198	7.61%	483	18.56%
1920	1,520	72.00%	422	19.99%	169	8.01%
1916	900	47.19%	770	40.38%	237	12.43%
1912	568	29.69%	326	17.04%	1,019	53.27%
1908	1,437	62.97%	551	24.15%	294	12.88%
1904	1,582	74.06%	295	13.81%	259	12.13%
1900	1,472	66.28%	626	28.19%	123	5.54%
1896	1,366	60.39%	803	35.50%	93	4.11%
1892	774	52.47%	498	33.76%	203	13.76%
1888	710	57.58%	412	33.41%	111	9.00%
1884	556	54.89%	380	37.51%	77	7.60%

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. — are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.