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Lake County, Michigan

55 topographic sheets cover 16 settlements here, and 4 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Research this county

From the record

4 National Register listings published here.

Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service

Michigan within the United States
Lake County within Michigan

What the record shows

  • 228 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 4 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 4 districts.
  • 2 of the 4 listings were added during the 1970s.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 16 populated places in this county; 16 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.

Places on the National Register

4

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Idlewild Historic Districtdistrict197979001160
Idlewild Historic District (Boundary Increase)district201009001062
Marlborough Historic Districtdistrict197272000630
John and Katharine Tunkun Podjun Farmdistrict200202000160

Wildfire, 1992 to 2020

686 fires

Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 686 of them, burning about 2,533 acres. 13 started naturally and 52 were recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.

Reported cause Fires
Debris and open burning268
Missing data/not specified/undetermined127
Power generation/transmission/distribution68
Recreation and ceremony67
Arson/incendiarism52
Equipment and vehicle use38
Misuse of fire by a minor17
Natural13
Fireworks12
Smoking11
Railroad operations and maintenance7
Other causes6

The five largest, by the area the report gives. One of them was set deliberately.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
23 April 1994Recreation and ceremony910 acresHuron-Manistee National ForestCOUNTY LINE
9 May 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined152 acresMichigan Department of Natural ResourcesLAKE 01
1 May 2010Natural118 acresHuron-Manistee National ForestNOUD LAKE
6 July 1999Natural51 acresHuron-Manistee National ForestSOUTH JENKS
14 May 2019Arson/incendiarism42 acresHuron-Manistee National Forest8 MILE
28 July 1998Missing data/not specified/undetermined40 acresHuron-Manistee National ForestBITELY
4 June 1997Equipment and vehicle use40 acresHuron-Manistee National ForestCRASHING ROSES
25 April 1998Missing data/not specified/undetermined40 acresHuron-Manistee National Forest12 MILE

Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.

Storms, 1961 to 2026

60 of 79 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 79 reports for this county, causing no deaths, no injuries and about $8,638,000 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Thunderstorm Wind46
Hail21
Flash Flood6
Tornado4
Flood2

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2013FloodIrons$3,000,000Significant flooding occurred on rivers and streams across Lake county due to significant rainfall from early to mid April.
June 2008Flash FloodPeacock$2,000,000Damage resulting from flash flooding included a 30 foot wide by 10 foot deep sinkhole which developed near the 18 Mile bridge five miles west of Irons. Numerous roads were washed out and several mudslides were also reported. ||Rainfall totals across the areas hardest hit ranged from five to eleven inches, all of which fell in only a six to eight hour time period. Damage to public infrastructure was estimated at about two million dollars, mainly due to all of the road and bridge washouts. A presidential disaster declaration for flooding was also issued for Lake county.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindBranch$1,110,000Michigan State Police EMD's Damage and Injury Assessment Report indicated $89,176 in public damage costs and the Lake County Star newspaper reported $514,850 in private property damage and $502,500 in clean-up costs. No injuries were reported. Hardest hit townships included Lake, Peacock, and Yates. The newspaper reported an entanglement of trees, limbs, and power lines were left throughout the county, with the area from just south of Big Star Lake in Lake Township northeast through Idlewild having been especially hard-hit. Public buildings in Baldwin incurred minor damage and Michigan Highway 37, 4 miles south of Baldwin, was closed for a period on May 31st for tree and debris removal. Lake County declared a local state of emergency, which was lifted late in the day on Monday, June 1st.
July 2019FloodIrons$800,000Between 6 and 10 inches of rain fell with local reports of up to 12 inches of rain. This resulted in at least 48 homes across Lake county being affected by floodwaters.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindWolf Lake$250,000Numerous trees were blown down across much of Lake county.
July 2005Tornado (F1)Baldwin$150,000no account filed
June 2023Thunderstorm WindBranch$100,000Several trees and power lines were downed across the county.
August 2018Tornado (EF0)Baldwin$100,000An EF-0 tornado with estimated max winds of 85 mph caused tree and property damage in the village of Baldwin. A few bulidings had collapsed walls, damage to siding, or loss of roofing material.
August 2018Tornado (EF1)Baldwin Muni Arpt$100,000An EF-1 tornado with maximum winds of 100 mph caused tree and property damage just east of the village of Baldwin near Idlewild. Tree damage was immense with trunks snapped in a narrow zone.
August 2013Thunderstorm WindIrons$100,000Lake county emergency management reported that numerous trees were blown down throughout Lake county with widespread power outages.
August 2001Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$100,000Very strong winds from a microburst brought down many trees and power lines across mainly the southern third of Lake county. In Idlewild, an area of trees a 100 yards long was blown down.
February 2001Flash FloodCountywide$100,000no account filed
August 2024Thunderstorm WindBaldwin Muni Arpt$75,000A few trees and limbs were blown down and damaged vehicles in the area.
May 2012Flash FloodBranch$70,000Radar estimated that up to 5 to 7 inches of heavy rain fell across a fairly large part of Lake county resulting in several roads that were either flooded or washed out.
August 2021Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$50,000Numerous trees and power lines were blown down in and near Baldwin.
November 2020Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$50,000Multiple trees and power lines were blown down in and near Baldwin and Idlewild.
August 2000HailLuther$50,000no account filed
August 2024Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$25,000The public reported several large trees and limbs down near Big Star lake.
September 2021HailBaldwin$25,000Hail up to two and a half inches in diameter was reported.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$25,000no account filed
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$25,000no account filed
August 2001Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$25,000no account filed
June 2000Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$25,000no account filed
July 2000Thunderstorm WindCountywide$25,000no account filed
April 2008Thunderstorm WindIrons$20,000A Lake county official reported that several trees were blown down in and near the Irons area.
September 2005Thunderstorm WindPeacock$20,000Numerous power lines and trees were blown down in Peacock.
June 2003HailBaldwin$20,000Three quarters inch diameter hail was reported three miles south of Baldwin.
May 2000HailBaldwin$20,000no account filed
May 2020Thunderstorm WindIdlewild$10,000Several tree limbs were blown down in Yates township.
June 2020Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$10,000Power outages were reported in Baldwin and law enforcement reported scattered trees down across the county.
July 2018Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$10,000Law enforcement reported that several trees were blown down over portions of western Lake county.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindLittle Manistee$10,000A few trees were blown down in portions of Lake county.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$10,000Lake county officials reported that several trees and power lines were blown down just south of Baldwin.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindIrons$10,000The public reported that numerous trees were blown down on North Bass Lake Rd. south of 10 1/2 Mile Rd.
August 2011Flash FloodNirvana$10,000Law enforcement reported flooding about 3 miles west of the town of Chase, where a 3 foot deep road washout occurred at 56th and Queens highway in Yates township.
July 2004Thunderstorm WindIrons$10,000Several reports of trees and wires blown down were received from aorund Irons and the Big Bass Lake area.
August 2004Thunderstorm WindChase$10,000A couple of trees were blown down in Chase and one tree was blown down across M-37 two miles south of Baldwin.
May 2003HailBristol$10,000Seven eighths inch diameter hail was reported in Bristol.
May 2001HailBaldwin$10,000An isolated severe thunderstorm developed over Baldwin in Lake county, producing three quarters inch hail in the town of Baldwin. Three quarters inch hail was also reported 2 miles west of Baldwin, also in Lake county.
July 1999Thunderstorm WindIrons$10,000Trees were downed in Irons.
February 1999Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$10,000A 60 mile per hour wind gust was reported in Baldwin, and 18" diameter trees were downed.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$10,000Trees were downed by thunderstorm wind gusts in Baldwin.
August 1998Flash FloodNorthwest Portion$10,000slow moving thunderstorms produced very heavy rain during the evening and overnight
May 1998Thunderstorm WindIrons$10,000Trees and power lines downed in Irons.
May 2008Thunderstorm WindBaldwin Muni Arpt$5,000An emergency manager reported that several trees were blown down at Big Star Lake.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindIrons$4,000Severe storms brought down a couple of trees near Irons.
August 2005Thunderstorm WindLuther$4,000Law enforcement in Luther reported two trees were blown down.
June 2007Thunderstorm WindChase$3,000Three trees were blown down one mile south of Chase.
May 1998Thunderstorm WindBaldwin$1,000Large tree uprooted in Baldwin.
April 2002Thunderstorm WindNirvana$1,000no account filed
May 2025Thunderstorm WindOlivers-Several large trees down.
April 2025HailLittle Manistee-Hail on 1.5 inches in diameter was reported.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindBaldwin-Law enforcement reported trees and power lines blown down in Baldwin.
April 2011HailWolf Lake-Law enforcement near Wolf Lake reported hail the size of a quarter (one inch) in diameter.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindWolf Lake-The storms that moved through Lake County produced reports of tree damage and subsevere hail. The hardest hit location appeared to be near the Wolf Lake area, where trees and power lines were downed and a report of hail estimated at 0.88 inch diameter fell.
July 2008HailBaldwin-A county official reported one inch diameter hail at the court house in Baldwin.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindIdlewild-Winds estimated at 60 to 70 mph blew down 50 to 60 trees, some of which blocked area roads. Three quarters of Lake county was reported to be without power after the storms.
March 1998HailBaldwin-The Lake County Sheriff's Department reported hail fell from 2:05 to 2:10 pm EST, ranging in size from one-half to one inch in diameter.
March 1998HailBaldwin-A local television station in Cadillac, MI, relayed a spotter report of 1.75 inch diameter hail approximately 3 miles southwest of Baldwin, in Pleasant Plains Township.
September 1998HailWolf Lake-3/4" hail produced by supercell moving east.

Mines and quarries

8 recorded

The Survey's mineral resources record lists 8 workings inside this county. 7 still produce and 1 is closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.

Commodity Workings
Sand and Gravel, Construction7
Clay1

The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Northern Cement Co Clay PitClayPast Producer
Fischer Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Lake County Road Comm. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Lake County Road Comm. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Lake County Road Comm. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Lake Sand & Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Leavitt Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Webber Pit and MillSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every populated place in the county

16

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.