St. Helen, Michigan

St. Helen is an unincorporated community in Richfield Township, Roscommon County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a census-designated place (CDP) for statistical purposes and has no legal status as an incorporated municipality. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 2,993. The ZIP code is 48656.

Contents

1 History 2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 External links

History

In the 1870s, lumber baron Henry Stephens established a large lumber operation at St. Helen, considered at the time to be among the largest and best equipped in the state. The mills were estimated to have produced more than 1 billion board feet (2,000,000 m³) of lumber within a period of fourteen years.

The St. Helen Development Company was organized to sell land and promote development of the area, and over seven years sold 80,000 acres of land and helped to build more than 30 miles (50 km) of roads and over 80 miles (130 km) of fencing.

The Detroit, Bay City & Alpena Railroad (later the Michigan Central, then the Detroit & Mackinac and presently the Lake State Railway Company) built a line through the area with a station at St. Helen. The now decommissioned Michigan State Highway 76 passed through St. Helen and portions are still signed as "Old 76".

Geography

The area of the CDP covers an area on the southeast side of Lake St. Helen, which is the headwaters for the south branch of the Au Sable River.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 15.3 km² (5.9 mi²). 13.1 km² (5.0 mi²) of it is land and 2.3 km² (0.9 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 14.86% water.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 2,993 people, 1,380 households, and 873 families residing in the CDP. The population density is 229.3/km² (593.6/mi²). There are 2,617 housing units at an average density of 200.5/km² (519.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP is 98.46% White, 0.07% African American, 0.63% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.07% from other races, and 0.63% from two or more races. 0.77% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 1,380 households out of which 20.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% are married couples living together, 10.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7% are non-families. 32.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 17.0% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.17 and the average family size is 2.67.

In the CDP the population is spread out with 20.3% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 25.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 48 years. For every 100 females there are 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 88.8 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP is $24,104, and the median income for a family is $30,268. Males have a median income of $30,521 versus $20,461 for females. The per capita income for the CDP is $17,198. 19.5% of the population and 12.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 32.6% of those under the age of 18 and 9.1% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

External links

• A history of northern Michigan and its people (http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=micounty;cc=micounty;sid=919206273df14f5ef463c3eada19472e;q1=St.%20Helen;rgn=full%20text;idno=BAC9250.0001.001;view=image;seq=00000592) Powers, Perry Francis. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1912. pp. 554-555
• History of Michigan. (http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=micounty;cc=micounty;sid=919206273df14f5ef463c3eada19472e;q1=St.%20Helen;rgn=full%20text;idno=BAC8762.0002.001;view=image;seq=00000083) Moore, Charles. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1915. p. 709