Jamestown Charter Township, Michigan
| Jamestown Charter Township, Michigan | |
|---|---|
| Charter township | |
| Nickname(s): Jamestown | |
 Jamestown Charter Township, Michigan
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| Coordinates: 42°49′12″N 85°50′24″W / 42.82000°N 85.84000°WCoordinates: 42°49′12″N 85°50′24″W / 42.82000°N 85.84000°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Ottawa |
| Government | |
| • Supervisor | Ken Bergwerff |
| Area | |
| • Charter township | 92.2 sq mi (238.8 km2) |
| • Land | 92.2 sq mi (238.8 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) 0.03% |
| Elevation | 722 ft (220 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Charter township | 7,034 |
| • Density | 76.3/sq mi (29.5/km2) |
| • Metro | 1,306,768 (Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland MSA) |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 49427 (P.O. box only) |
| Area code(s) | 616 |
| FIPS code | 26-41520 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1626537 |
| Website | http://www.twp.jamestown.mi.us/ |
Jamestown Charter Township is a charter township of Ottawa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,062 at the 2000 census.
Interest in Jamestown Township had its beginning when Grandville on the east and Holland on the west was being settled. Rex Robinson induced people of the east to come this way and the area was covered with a fine forest. Grandville was the central point of settlement and land offices were established there. In 1831 the land was surveyed and labeled as Township 5,Range 13 West.
James Cronkright and his wife were the first settlers in the township. In 1843 they settled in Section 11 in where they built a 16 X 22 foot house. The closest neighbors were over four miles away and there were no roads. Bears, wolves, deer and other wild animals were common. Some were important for food. S.L. Gitchel first settled on the SW corner of Sec.1 in 1845 and finally on Sec.33. He became a specialist in making small bridges and corduroy roads. Monsur Brown, parents of Mrs. Gitchel, followed in 1846 settling in the SE corner of Sec. 11 with a son James M. Brown who was married three years later. He also settled in Sec.11. More families followed from the east but some Hollanders were entering from the west. Later Germans entered from the south.
Until 1849, Georgetown and Jamestown were under the same jurisdiction. All taxes were paid in Jenison. Evidently there were no printed blanks, for tax receipts were written out in full.
Twelve voters were required in what is now Jamestown before the towns could be separated. In 1849 there were a sufficient number and steps were taken to bring this about. The meeting took place at the James Cronkright Jr. home in Sec. 11. In April, Mrs. Cronkright prepared a dinner for the men and spent the day with her mother. Twelve men attended and were assisted by a Mr. James Scott from Grandville. Each was elected to an office.
Of the twelve men present one-third were named James, so this new township was named Jamestown. Six men living in the township were not there. It is believed that four men from the western part of the township could not yet speak English.
There were fifteen residents on the first 1849-tax roll covering seventeen parcels of land. These seventeen parcels were found in only 9 of the 36 sections of the township. Six of those sections were in the west one third of the township. Eleven family names were included in those fifteen residents.
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Wikipedia