Central Michigan, often called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the central area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Central Michigan corresponds roughly to the palm. The region consists mainly of farmland and some cities of moderate size.
Definitions
For the most part Central Michigan and Mid Michigan are synonymous with each other, representing generally the same geographic area of Michigan. However, some definitions of Central Michigan and Mid Michigan can vary significantly, depending on one's point of reference.
Economy
Central Michigan's economy is primarily agricultural, and some automobile manufacturing.
Agriculture
Major crops grown in this region include corn, sugar beets, and soy beans. The Michigan Sugar Company, which is a cooperative owned by 1,250 farmers, operates factories in Bay City, Caro, Croswell, and Sebewaing.
Manufacturing
General Motors operates the Flint Truck Assembly factory in Flint and Powertrain plants in Flint, Bay City, Saginaw, and Delhi Township, Michigan. Until 2004, Mid-Michigan (specifically Lansing) was also known for being the location of the main Oldsmobile plant for General Motors. The world headquarters of Nexteer Automotive, a car parts supplier, is located in Saginaw. S.C. Johnson and Son has a manufacturing facility in Bay City making Ziploc products.
The Dow Chemical Company and Dow Corning have their world headquarters based in Midland.
Government
Since Lansing is the State Capitol, the number one employer in the Greater Lansing area is the State of Michigan.
International Trade Corridor
The I-69 International Trade Corridor is a strategic commercial gateway between the Midwestern United States and Ontario, Canada, with multi-modal transportation infrastructure that offers a wide range of distribution options.The I-69 International Trade Corridor Next Michigan Development Corporation (NMDC) offers economic incentives to growing businesses, both existing and new, that utilize two or more forms of transportation to move their products and are located within the territory of the NMDC. The I-69 International Trade Corridor Next Michigan Development Corporation is the largest in the state of Michigan with 35 municipal partners.[1]
Constituent counties of the trade corridor are: Shiawassee, Genesee, Lapeer, and St. Clair Counties.[2]
Geography
Central Michigan is mostly rural with population swells in the Tri-Cities, Flint, and Lansing areas.
See also: List of Michigan state parks and geography of Michigan.
The region includes many rivers including the Grand River, Red Cedar River, Saginaw River, Tittabawassee River, Shiawassee River and Flint River. A continental divid occurs in Central Michigan, causing the Grand River to flow west into Lake Michigan and the Saginaw River to empty into the Saginaw Bay. The terrain has rolling hills and plains with fertile soil. Agriculture dominates in the rural areas, where corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and hey are grown. The region has mostly small towns with a few cities of notable size. Most of the area is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lansing[3]
Principal Cities
See also: Michigan Municipalities by Population
Central Michigan has several cities of regional and geographic importance:
Colleges and universities
Major educational institutions in Central Michigan, See Also: Southern Michigan for colleges not listed.
Media
Newspapers
The Lansing State Journal is the sole daily newspaper published in metropolitan Lansing, and is owned by Gannett, which also owns the daily Port Huron Times Herald and USA Today. The Flint Journal[4] is available in the Flint and Lapeer areas and is published four times a week. Editions of the Bay City Times,[5] Midland Daily News and Saginaw News[6] are available in the greater Tri-Cities area. The Times and the Saginaw News published three times a week, while the Midland Daily News publishes daily. The Great Lakes Bay Edition, a joint publication between the Saginaw News and the Bay City Times, focuses on those two cities, as well as Midland, and publishes once a week. The Hearst Corporation owns the Midland Daily News and the Huron Daily Tribune. Mount Pleasant is served by a daily newspaper called The Morning Sun.[7]
The Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News are available throughout the area.
Radio
The region is served by multiple radio stations. For a complete listing of stations, see one of the following markets:
Broadcast television
Television in the Central Michigan area varies from market to market. Availability of stations depend on reception of aerial signals, as well as availability on cable and satellite in a particular area. In some areas of the region, broadcasts from all three markets can be received over the air.
Transportation
Airports
Scheduled airline service is offered from Lansing Capital Region International Airport.[8] Airline service is also available from MBS International Airport[9] near Midland, Michigan and Flint Bishop International Airport.[10] Other portions are proximate to Gerald R. Ford International Airport, east of Grand Rapids, Michigan,[11] and Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport near Kalamazoo, Michigan.[12]
Railroads
Passenger rail is provided by Amtrak and has stations in East Lansing, Durand, Flint, Lapeer, and Port Huron on its Blue Water line.
Major highways
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I-69 from Port Huron to Fort Wayne, Indiana, connecting Flint and Lansing.
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I-75 is a major artery connecting the Tri Cities with Flint and Detroit.
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I-475 in the Flint area
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I-675 in Saginaw
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I-94 from Port Huron to Chicago via Detroit, Jackson, and Battle Creek.
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I-96 from Grand Rapids to Detroit via Lansing.
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I-496 (R.E. Olds Freeway) in the Lansing area
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US 10
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US 12 also known as Michigan Avenue and Chicago Road
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US 23
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US 127 comes from the south, through Lansing, and ends its 758-mile-long (1,220 km) journey at Grayling. It directly connects Northern Michigan (and the Mackinac Bridge via I-75) to Lansing, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee (all the way down to Chattanooga US 127 is the direct link between the state capital in Lansing and the Ingham County seat in Mason.
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M-43 is a highway in southwestern and central Michigan from South Haven to Webberville.
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M-46— a cross peninsular road, running across the entire mitten including the thumb—from Port Sanilac on the Lake Huron shore; through Saginaw near Saginaw Bay; and then on to Muskegon on the Lake Michigan shore. This east-west surface route nearly bisects the Lower Peninsula of Michigan latitudinally.
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M-13
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M-15
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M-21
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M-46
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M-57
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M-66
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M-87
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M-99
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M-100
Notable people
More comprehensive lists are available at individual cities, villages, etc.
Lansing
Tri-Cities and Flint
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Madonna - singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman (Born in Bay City, MI)
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Michael Moore - filmmaker, screenwriter, author, journalist, actor, and left-wing political activist
See also
References
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^ http://i-69internationaltradecorridor.com/nmdc/ Next Michigan Development Corporation
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^ http://i-69internationaltradecorridor.com/about/ International Trade Corridor
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^ Archdiocese of Lansing home page and history, dioceseoflansing.org
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^
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^
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^
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^
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^ Lansing Capital Region International Airport, flylansing.com
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^ MBS International Airport, mbsairport.com
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^ Flint Bishop International Airport, bishopairport.org
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^ Gerald R. Ford International Airport, grr.org
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^ Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport (AZO), azoairport.com
External links
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Archdiocese of Lansing home page and history
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Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, Bibliography on Michigan (arranged by counties and regions)
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Michigan Geology -- Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University.
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Michigan Department of Natural Resources website, harbors, hunting, resources and more.
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Info Michigan, detailed information on 630 cities
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Michigan's Official Economic Development and Travel Site, including interactive map, information on attractions, museums, etc.
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Michigan Historic Markers
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Michigan's Official Economic Development and Travel Site.
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