List of counties in Michigan

The boundaries of in the  of  have not changed since. However, throughout the 19th century, the state legislature frequently adjusted county boundaries. County creation was intended to fulfill the goal of establishing government over unorganized territory, but a more important goal was encouraging settlement by surveying the land and dividing it into saleable sections.

The creation of counties generally occurred in two stages. First the boundaries of a county were declared and given a name. The county appeared on maps, even though this may have been the entire extent of a county's tangible existence for several years. During this period, the as yet unorganized county was attached to another already organized county for administrative purposes. The legislature frequently changed the administrative attachment of these unorganized counties. Residents of such an attached county could petition the legislature for organization, which was the granting of full legal recognition to the county.

There are many in Michigan, including its capital,. For a few years during the early 1970s, split cities briefly had authority to petition to change the county boundaries to accord with the city boundaries. The only city to take advantage of this brief opportunity was (previously split between Macomb County and St. Clair County; now completely in Macomb). This transfer of territory from St. Clair to Macomb was the first and only county boundary change in Michigan since the early 20th century.

The state Constitution of 1850 permitted an incorporated city with a population of at least 20,000 to be organized into a separate county of its own. The Constitution of 1908 retained this provision, but raised the population threshold to 100,000. No city was ever organized into an independent county in this fashion and when a new Constitution took effect in 1963, the provision was removed.

Defunct counties

 * 1)  formed in 1818 from unorganized territory when  was expanded to include area west of  upon formation of the state of . Transferred to  in 1836 and continues as.
 * 2) formed in 1840 from part of Mackinac County. Renamed Charlevoix County in 1843. Annexed to Emmet County in 1853. Reformed as Charlevoix County from Emmet County in 1869.
 * 3)  formed in 1818 from unorganized territory when  was expanded to include area west of  upon formation of ths state of . Transferred to Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and continues as.
 * 4)  formed in 1834 from unorganized territory. Transferred to Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and continues as.
 * 5)  formed in 1834 from unorganized territory. Transferred to Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and continues as.
 * 6)  formed in 1830 from part of Crawford County. Transferred to Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and continues as.
 * 7)  formed in 1875 from part of . Returned to it in 1897.
 * 8)  formed in 1855 from parts of Emmet County and Leelenau County. County government was disorganized in 1861 and attached for administrative purposes to Mackinac County. In 1865, it was attached to Leelanau and reattached to Mackinac in 1869. County was abolished in 1895 and absorbed by  and.
 * 9)  formed in 1834 from part of Brown County. Transferred to Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and continues as.
 * 10)  formed in 1840 from part of . Annexed to  in 1853.
 * 11)  formed in 1840 from part of Mackinac County. Annexed to  in 1853.

External links and sources

 * maps of Michigan county formation
 * History of County Creation
 * Table of dates counties laid out and organized
 * County name etymolgies