History
Raisinville Township was first organized in 1823 within Monroe County in the Michigan Territory. Riley Ingersoll, one of the area's first settlers, served as the first township supervisor. Several later townships within the county were organized from the township's original boundaries.
The Bridge School is recognized as the first public school district in the state of Michigan (then the Michigan Territory) when it opened in 1828. It operated until 1946 before being closed down and absorbed into Dundee Community Schools. The building was later donated to the township and began serving as the township hall in 1982. The Bridge School was listed as a Michigan State Historic Site on December 17, 1987.
On January 9, 1997, Comair Flight 3272 crashed into a corn field in Raisinville Township. The Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia aircraft, operated by COMAIR Airlines, Inc., experienced icing conditions and crashed during a rapid descent. All 26 passengers and three crewmembers died in the crash.
Geography
Raisinville is in central Monroe County, between Monroe, the county seat, to the southeast and Dundee to the west. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 48.54 square miles (125.72 km2), of which 48.14 square miles (124.68 km2) are land and 0.40 square miles (1.04 km2), or 0.82%, are water.
The River Raisin flows through the center of the township, and Sandy Creek flows through the northeast corner.
Major highways
M-50 (South Custer Road) runs west–east through the center of the township.
M-130 (North Custer Road) was a designated state highway from 1929 to 1955.
Demographics
Historical population
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|
| 1850 | 967 | | — |
|---|
| 1860 | 1,448 | | 49.7% |
|---|
| 1870 | 1,793 | | 23.8% |
|---|
| 1880 | 2,035 | | 13.5% |
|---|
| 1890 | 1,830 | | −10.1% |
|---|
| 1900 | 1,811 | | −1.0% |
|---|
| 1910 | 1,693 | | −6.5% |
|---|
| 1920 | 1,541 | | −9.0% |
|---|
| 1930 | 1,840 | | 19.4% |
|---|
| 1940 | 1,990 | | 8.2% |
|---|
| 1950 | 2,225 | | 11.8% |
|---|
| 1960 | 3,277 | | 47.3% |
|---|
| 1970 | 4,009 | | 22.3% |
|---|
| 1980 | 4,797 | | 19.7% |
|---|
| 1990 | 4,634 | | −3.4% |
|---|
| 2000 | 4,896 | | 5.7% |
|---|
| 2010 | 5,816 | | 18.8% |
|---|
| 2020 | 5,903 | | 1.5% |
|---|
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As of the census of 2000, there were 4,896 people, 1,691 households, and 1,423 families residing in the township. The population density was 101.6 inhabitants per square mile (39.2/km2). There were 1,762 housing units at an average density of 36.6 per square mile (14.1/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 97.94% White, 0.49% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.21% of the population.
There were 1,691 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.1% were married couples living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.8% were non-families. 13.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.16.
In the township the population was spread out, with 26.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.0 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $62,734, and the median income for a family was $69,896. Males had a median income of $50,727 versus $29,459 for females. The per capita income for the township was $26,520. About 1.4% of families and 2.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.1% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.
