Van Buren County, Michigan

Van Buren County Education, Geography, and History

Van Buren County is a county located in the state of Michigan. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 76,258. The county seat is Paw Paw. The county was founded in 1829 and organized in 1837. The county was named for Martin Van Buren before he became president.

Van Buren County is included in the Kalamazoo-Portage, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology - Origin of Van Buren County Name

Van Buren County named for United States Secretary of State Martin Van Buren (later eighth President of the United States), and is a Cabinet county.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Van Buren County History

Van Buren County named for United States Secretary of State Martin Van Buren (later eighth President of the United States), is a Cabinet county.

Set Off: 1829, attached to Cass County

Organized: 1837

Much of the county is farmland dotted with small towns. Areas near Kalamazoo County are becoming suburbanized. Many of the inland lakes are ringed with homes, either by people living year-round or cottagers, generally people who live the rest of the time in Chicago. Tourism is a major industry in the areas near Lake Michigan.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,090 square miles (2,800 km²), of which 607 square miles (1,570 km²) is land and 482 square miles (1,250 km²) (44%) is water.

Much of the county is farmland dotted with small towns. Areas near Kalamazoo County are becoming suburbanized. Many of the inland lakes are ringed with homes, either by people living year-round or cottagers, generally people who live the rest of the time in Chicago. Tourism is a major industry in the areas near Lake Michigan.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Allegan County - northeast
• Kalamazoo County - east
• St. Joseph County - southeast
• Cass County - south
• Berrien County - southwest
  

Education

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