West Michigan

Region of Michigan, United States

This article is about the geographic region of Western Michigan. For the university, see Western Michigan University. For the university's athletic program, see Western Michigan Broncos.

Place in Michigan, United States

West Michigan

A broad definition of West Michigan.

Country| United States
State| Michigan
Largest city| Grand Rapids
Other cities|

List

* In Region:
* Kalamazoo
* Muskegon
* Holland
* Benton Harbor
* Grand Haven

Map of the region, employing a narrow definition.

West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for an arbitrary region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Generally, it refers to the Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Peninsula's Lake Michigan shoreline, but there is no official definition.

## Definition[edit]

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In general, "West Michigan" often refers to the area bounded by the cities of Muskegon (in the north), Grand Rapids (in the northeast), Kalamazoo–Battle Creek (in the southeast) and St. Joseph–Benton Harbor (in the southwest). However, definitions of the boundaries of the region vary widely; in some contexts, the term "West Michigan" is applied only to the counties of Allegan, Kent, Muskegon, and Ottawa, which together compose the Grand Rapids-Kentwood-Muskegon CSA. Other definitions include the Kalamazoo–Battle Creek and Benton Harbor–St. Joseph regions, which can be considered distinct regions or parts of other regions such as Michiana, Southern Michigan, or Southwest Michigan,[1][2][3] the latter according to one definition being comprised of Berrien County, Cass County, and Van Buren County.[4]

The northern boundary of the region is also poorly defined; the population density, land use, economic and cultural character, and physical geography most often associated with West Michigan fades in northern Muskegon and Kent Counties, however areas as far north as Ludington and White Cloud may be included because of their close economic ties to the cities to the south. Other areas, such as Montcalm County in the northeast corner of the region, are transitional areas that straddle Michigan regions but are sometimes included for classification purposes. Greenville, in Montcalm County's southwest corner, is closely tied economically with Grand Rapids; however, the northeastern corner, around Vestaburg and Edmore, has historically more closely associated with the cities of Mount Pleasant and Alma, which are almost universally reckoned as part of Central Michigan.

## Geography[edit]

See also List of Michigan state parks and Geography of Michigan.

* Counties in the area are part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids[5] or the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kalamazoo.
* In northwest Kent County is Fruit Ridge, which is a prime fruit-growing region; that accounts for 65% of all Michigan apple production.

## Municipalities[edit]

Grand Rapids at night in 2016 from the International Space Station. Grand Rapids is the largest city in western Michigan.

The following table contains the largest municipalities of West Michigan according to the 2010 Census. This defines the region fairly broadly, but not at its most broadly; if Battle Creek were included, it would be ranked fourth.

Rank  | Municipality  | County  | Population

|
|
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1  | Grand Rapids | Kent | 198,917
2  | Wyoming | Kent | 76,501
3  | Kalamazoo | Kalamazoo | 73,598
4  | Kentwood | Kent | 54,304
5  | Georgetown Charter Township | Ottawa | 54,091
6  | Portage | Kalamazoo | 48,891
7  | Muskegon | Muskegon | 38,318
8  | Holland Charter Township | Ottawa | 38,276
9  | Holland | Ottawa/Allegan | 34,378
10  | Plainfield Charter Township | Kent | 33,535
11  | Gaines Charter Township | Kent | 28,812
12  | Walker | Kent | 25,132
13  | Norton Shores | Muskegon | 25,030
14  | Kalamazoo Charter Township | Kalamazoo | 21,918
15  | Oshtemo Charter Township | Kalamazoo | 21,705
16  | Allendale Charter Township | Ottawa | 20,708
17  | Byron Township | Kent | 20,317
18  | Muskegon Charter Township | Muskegon | 17,840
19  | Park Township | Ottawa | 17,802
20  | Cascade Charter Township | Kent | 17,134
21  | Grand Rapids Charter Township | Kent | 16,661
22  | Grandville | Kent | 15,378
23  | Grand Haven Charter Township | Ottawa | 15,178

Five of the above cities, Wyoming, Kentwood, Portage, Norton Shores, and Walker, are former suburban townships that incorporated in the 1960s in order to prevent annexation by an adjacent city. The presence of these cities in the top ten reflects both the large geographic area of these cities, as well as the long and continuing growth of suburban areas in West Michigan.

## Events[edit]

* ArtPrize in Grand Rapids
* National Baby Food Festival in Fremont
* Big Rapids Riverdays in Big Rapids
* Celebration on the Grand in Grand Rapids (now defunct)
* Coast Guard Festival in Grand Haven
* Festival of the Arts in Grand Rapids
* Fruitport Old Fashioned Days in Fruitport
* Spring Lake Heritage Festival in Spring Lake
* Kalamazoo Irish Fest in Kalamazoo
* Michigan Irish Music Festival in Muskegon
* Muskegon Bike Time in Muskegon
* Muskegon Air Show (now defunct)
* Muskegon Film Festival
* Muskegon Summer Celebration (now defunct)
* Rebel Road in Muskegon
* Red Flannel Festival in Cedar Springs
* Rothbury Music Festival in Rothbury
* Tulip Time Festival in Holland
* Unity Christian Music Festival in Muskegon
* Venetian Festival in St. Joseph
* Waterfront Film Festival in Saugatuck

## Attractions[edit]

* Croton Dam
* Dutch Village
* Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park
* Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum
* Grand Haven Musical Fountain
* Grand Haven State Park
* Grand Rapids Art Museum
* Grand Rapids Children's Museum
* Hardy Dam
* Holland State Park
* John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids
* Kalamazoo Air Zoo
* Kruizenga Art Museum
* Manistee National Forest
* Michigan's Adventure amusement park
* Newaygo State Park
* P.J. Hoffmaster State Park
* Public Museum of Grand Rapids
* Timber Ridge Ski Area
* Binder Park Zoo

## Universities and colleges[edit]

* Andrews University
* Aquinas College
* Baker College
* Calvin University
* Cornerstone University
* Davenport University
* Ferris State University
* Grand Rapids Community College
* Grand Valley State University
* Hope College
* Kalamazoo College
* Kendall College of Art and Design
* Kuyper College
* Muskegon Community College
* Western Michigan University

## Business[edit]

Prominent West Michigan corporations include:

* Amway/Alticor/Quixtar, an Ada multi-level marketing company
* Bissell, a Walker vacuum cleaner maker
* Borroughs, a Kalamazoo office equipment manufacturer
* Foremost Insurance, a Farmers Insurance Group company
* Gentex, a Zeeland auto-dimming automobile mirror manufacturer
* Gerber Products Company, a Fremont baby food manufacturer
* Gordon Food Service, a Wyoming food supplier
* Herman Miller, a Zeeland office equipment manufacturer
* Haworth, a Holland office equipment manufacturer
* Howard Miller a Zeeland manufacturer of longcase clocks
* Kellogg's, a Battle Creek breakfast cereal producer
* Meijer, a Walker hypermarket chain
* Old Orchard Brands, a Sparta juice producer
* Perrigo, an Allegan pharmaceutical company
* Spartan Stores, a Byron Township grocery chain
* Steelcase, a Grand Rapids office equipment manufacturer
* Stryker, a Kalamazoo surgical equipment manufacturer
* Whirlpool, a Benton Harbor manufacturer of major home appliances
* Wolverine World Wide/Hush Puppies, a Rockford shoe maker
* X-Rite, a Grand Rapids manufacturer of color matching products

* Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital, in Grand Rapids

## Transportation[edit]

### Major airports[edit]

* Gerald R. Ford International Airport
* Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport
* Muskegon County Airport

### Railways[edit]

* Coopersville and Marne Railway
* CSX
* Grand Trunk Western Railway, subsidiary of Canadian National Railway.
* Grand Elk Railroad
* Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad
* Michigan Shore Railroad
* Michigan Southern Railroad
* Norfolk Southern Railway
* West Michigan Railroad

Amtrak operates its Pere Marquette service in West Michigan, with daily service between Grand Rapids and Chicago.

### Major roads[edit]

#### Interstate highways[edit]

* I-96, running from Muskegon to Detroit
* I-196, splitting from I-96 in Grand Rapids and going west-southwest and merging with US 31 near Holland before intersecting I-94 near Benton Harbor
* I-94, running from Billings, Montana, to Port Huron, Michigan

#### US highways[edit]

* US 12 Michigan Avenue and Chicago Road
* US 31, running from Mackinaw City, Michigan, to Mobile, Alabama
* US 131, running from north of Middlebury, Indiana, to Petoskey, Michigan
* Grand River Avenue, running from Grand Rapids to Detroit
* The S-Curve, a famously crooked stretch of US 131 in downtown Grand Rapids

#### Michigan highways[edit]

* M-6, also known as the South Beltline, bypasses Grand Rapids connecting to I-96 east of town and I-196 west of town
* M-37, running from the southwest corner of Battle Creek at exit 92 on I-94 to the Mission Point Light on Old Mission Point in Grand Traverse County.
* M-43, a highway in southwestern and central Michigan from South Haven to Webberville
* M-45 (Lake Michigan Drive), running east–west from Grand Rapids through Allendale and ending at Lake Michigan.
* M-46, a cross-peninsular road, running across the entire mitten of the Lower Peninsula including the Thumb, from Port Sanilac on the Lake Huron shore, through Saginaw near Saginaw Bay, and on to Muskegon on the Lake Michigan shore.[6]
* M-40 running North and South from Mottville, Michigan, to Holland, Michigan.

### Other[edit]

* Eastern port of the Lake Express High Speed Car Ferry; Muskegon
* The SS Badger in Ludington
* The West Michigan Tourist Association promotes the region from a tourism standpoint[7]

## Notable residents or former residents[edit]

This article's list of residents may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are residents, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations. (March 2011)

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More comprehensive lists are available at individual cities, villages, etc.

* Justin Abdelkader, Detroit Red Wings forward
* Gillian Anderson, actress
* Jim Bakker, television evangelist
* Johnny Benson, stock car driver
* Dan Bylsma, NHL hockey coach
* Roger B. Chaffee, NASA astronaut
* Kirk Cousins, quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings
* Terry Crews, actor
* Betsy DeVos, U.S. Secretary of Education
* Debarge, music group
* Thomas White Ferry, U.S. Senator
* Nancy Anne Fleming, Miss America 1961
* Gerald R. Ford, President of the United States
* James Frey, writer
* Frank Daniel Gerber, founder of the Gerber Products Company
* Al Green, R&B/Gospel artist
* Mark Grimmette, Olympics luger
* Ernie Hudson, actor
* Iggy Pop, punk rock icon
* Tom Izzo, Michigan State Spartans Basketball coach
* Derek Jeter, New York Yankees shortstop
* Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers wide receiver
* Maynard James Keenan, Tool and A Perfect Circle vocalist
* W.K. Kellogg, Kellogg Company founder
* Anthony Kiedis, Red Hot Chili Peppers vocalist
* Stanley Ketchel, Middleweight Champion boxer
* Taylor Lautner, actor
* Buster Mathis, heavyweight boxer
* Floyd Mayweather, professional boxer
* Nate McLouth, professional baseball player
* Harry Morgan, actor
* Jason Newsted, musician, Metallica
* Mustard Plug, ska band
* Pop Evil, hard rock band
* Andy Richter, television entertainer
* Del Shannon, musician
* Sinbad, actor and comedian
* Wayne Static, Static-X lead singer/guitarist
* Bill Szymczyk, music producer for the Eagles, The Who, and others
* Sojourner Truth, abolitionist
* Vonda Kay Van Dyke, Miss America 1965
* Brian Vander Ark, Verve Pipe frontman
* Dick York, actor

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ "About the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission". Southwest Michigan Planning Commission [Metropolitan planning organization]. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
2. ^ "Southwestern Michigan Tourist Council". www.swmichigan.org. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
3. ^ "The Newspaper for Southwest Michigan". The Herald-Palladium. 11 March 2021. p. A1. Retrieved 4 January 2023. [representative sample]
4. ^ Knot, Juliana (June 24, 2023). "Smaller and Shrinking: Southwest Michigan population decline spells trouble for region's economy". The Herald-Palladium. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
5. ^ "Diocese of Grand Rapids, Michigan". dioceseofgrandrapids.org. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
6. ^ "M-46 Endpoint Photos". state-ends.com. Archived from the original on 14 April 2005. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
7. ^ "About The West Michigan Tourist Association - WMTA". wmta.org. Retrieved 23 March 2018.

## See also[edit]

* List of counties in Michigan
* Michiana
* Southern Michigan
* Michigan

## External links[edit]

* West Michigan Tourist Association
* Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University, Bibliography on Michigan (arranged by counties and regions)
* Michigan Geology -- Clarke Historical Library, Central Michigan University.
* Great Lakes Coast Watch
* Info Michigan, detailed information on 630 cities
* Michigan Department of Natural Resources website, harbors, hunting, resources and more.
* List of Museums, other attractions compiled by state government.
* Michigan Historic Markers
* Michigan's Official Economic Development and Travel Site.
* "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Michigan". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
* Map of Michigan Lighthouse in PDF Format.
* Seeing the Light, Terry Pepper on lighthouses of the Western Great Lakes.

* v
* t
* e

West Michigan

Central cities|

* Grand Rapids
* Kalamazoo
* Battle Creek

Counties|

* Allegan
* Barry
* Calhoun
* Ionia
* Kalamazoo
* Kent
* Lake
* Mason
* Mecosta
* Muskegon
* Newaygo
* Oceana
* Osceola
* Ottawa
* Van Buren

| Southwest / Michiana|

* Berrien
* Branch
* Cass
* St. Joseph

|

Geography|

* Black River
* Fruit Ridge
* Grand River
* Kalamazoo River
* Lake Michigan
* Muskegon River
* Muskegon Lake
* Pere Marquette River
* St. Joseph River

Transportation|

* Gerald R. Ford International Airport
* Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport
* Lake Express
* Muskegon County Airport
* Amtrak Pere Marquette
* Battle Creek Transit
* Harbor Transit
* Macatawa Area Express
* Metro Transit
* Muskegon Area Transit System
* The Rapid
* Twin Cities Area Transportation Authority

Economy|

* Bell's Brewery
* Founders Brewing Company
* Gerber
* Herman Miller
* Kellogg
* Meijer
* Steelcase
* Whirlpool

* Michigan
* Central Michigan
* Northern Michigan
* Southeast Michigan
* Upper Peninsula

* v
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* e

State of Michigan

Lansing (capital)

Topics|

* Climate change
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Society|

* Abortion
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Regions|

| Upper Peninsula|

* Copper Country
* Gogebic Range
* Keweenaw Peninsula

|

Lower Peninsula|

* Central Michigan
* Metro Detroit
* Michiana
* Northern Michigan
* Southeast Michigan
* The Thumb
* West Michigan

Largest
municipalities|

* Ann Arbor
* Battle Creek
* Bay City
* Bloomfield Township
* Canton
* Chesterfield Township
* Clinton Township
* Commerce Township
* Dearborn
* Dearborn Heights
* Detroit
* East Lansing
* Farmington Hills
* Flint
* Georgetown Township
* Grand Blanc Township
* Grand Rapids
* Holland Charter Township
* Independence Township
* Kalamazoo
* Kentwood
* Lansing
* Lincoln Park
* Livonia
* Macomb Township
* Meridian Charter Township
* Midland
* Muskegon
* Novi
* Orion Township
* Pontiac
* Portage
* Redford
* Rochester Hills
* Roseville
* Royal Oak
* Saginaw
* Saginaw Township
* St. Clair Shores
* Shelby Charter Township
* Southfield
* Sterling Heights
* Taylor
* Troy
* Warren
* Waterford Township
* West Bloomfield
* Westland
* Wyoming
* Ypsilanti Charter Township

Counties|

* Alcona
* Alger
* Allegan
* Alpena
* Antrim
* Arenac
* Baraga
* Barry
* Bay
* Benzie
* Berrien
* Branch
* Calhoun
* Cass
* Charlevoix
* Cheboygan
* Chippewa
* Clare
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* Crawford
* Delta
* Dickinson
* Eaton
* Emmet
* Genesee
* Gladwin
* Gogebic
* Grand Traverse
* Gratiot
* Hillsdale
* Houghton
* Huron
* Ingham
* Ionia
* Iosco
* Iron
* Isabella
* Jackson
* Kalamazoo
* Kalkaska
* Kent
* Keweenaw
* Lake
* Lapeer
* Leelanau
* Lenawee
* Livingston
* Luce
* Mackinac
* Macomb
* Manistee
* Marquette
* Mason
* Mecosta
* Menominee
* Midland
* Missaukee
* Monroe
* Montcalm
* Montmorency
* Muskegon
* Newaygo
* Oakland
* Oceana
* Ogemaw
* Ontonagon
* Osceola
* Oscoda
* Otsego
* Ottawa
* Presque Isle
* Roscommon
* Saginaw
* Sanilac
* Schoolcraft
* Shiawassee
* St. Clair
* St. Joseph
* Tuscola
* Van Buren
* Washtenaw
* Wayne
* Wexford

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