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The date was November 27, 1866, the
place was the Houghton County Clerk's
office, and the attendance was the Board
of Supervisors for the County of
Houghton. The matter at hand was the
erection and formation of a new township
to be taken from the Township of
Franklin. The first meeting of Calumet
Township was held on Monday, December
17th, 1866 at the Calumet Mining Company
for the purpose of electing officers.
Calumet Township covers 33.2 square
miles and is 13 miles of north of the
Portage Ship Canal on US 41. It has 3
villages within its borders, the Village
of Calumet, the Village of Laurium and
Copper City Village. It is the largest
township in Houghton County with a
population of 6489 in the 2010 Census.
Calumet Township has a unique blend of
history and recreation with a small town
atmosphere.
The headquarters for the Keweenaw
National Historical Park is in Calumet
Township. Established by congress in
1992, the KNHP's main offices and
archives occupy two magnificent
buildings in Calumet Township which date
from the Calumet and Hecla Mining Days.
A state-of-the-art Visitors Center
opened in November of 2012 recognizing
our historical significance and over 100
years of mining history.
Calumet Township has year-round
recreation. In the summer, we have the
Calumet Township Waterworks Park for
picnicking, beach sitting, rock hunting
and just relaxing on the shore of Lake
Superior. For hikers and four wheelers,
this is an absolute paradise with a
trail system in excess of 100 miles
which includes our township. In the
winter the Swedetown Cross Country ski
trails are the pride of Houghton County
(used for bike trails in the summer).
Snowmobiling has become a huge winter
attraction bringing people from all over
the Midwest.
The Calumet Public Schools of
Calumet-Laurium and Keweenaw currently
educates approximately 1,600 students
from Houghton and Keweenaw County. The
pride of the Keweenaw, Calumet Schools
has an outstanding and diverse
curriculum. They offer many clubs,
organizations and athletic opportunities
for the student body. The North Star
Battalion is the 2nd oldest Junior ROTC
programs in the Nation. The school
system today possesses microcomputers,
cable TV, video cameras, recorders and
other modern audio-visual aids. Michigan
Technological University and Finland
University are both within 12 miles of
the Calumet Public Schools.
Healthcare in Calumet Township is
provided by Aspirus Keweenaw Hospital.
In 1903, an established physician opened
the Northern Michigan General Hospital
and Training School for Nurses in
Laurium Village. In 1908 this private
hospital was reborn as the non-profit
Calumet Public Hospital but continued
the legacy of public healthcare for the
people of the Keweenaw. Many changes
have come upon this rural hospital since
its infancy, today it reaches the
community on a variety of fronts. It is
become the epicenter of local medical
care with walk in clinics in Lake Linden
and Houghton, a Rehab and Fitness Center
in Laurium and Houghton and the
Northridge Pines Assisted Living Center
opening its doors to Senior Citizens.
Our shops range from local gifts and
clothing, unique art galleries,
wonderful antique stores, discount and
dollar stores along with grocery and
party stores. For food & beverages we
have coffee shops, historical taverns,
and brew pubs and restaurants ranging
from pizza, and sandwiches, to dinners
and Mexican and Irish Cuisine. For
overnight accommodations we have cozy
mom and pop places to rest your head, a
national chain complete with pool and
continental breakfast and several
historically quaint bed & breakfasts.
We are proud of our community and
heritage. Our friendly and caring
community makes our quality of life
second to none.
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