East Jordan

History

The area was first settled by Canadian William Empey in 1873. He built the first store here in 1874 at the mouth of the Jordan River at the southernmost point of Lake Charlevoix. He became the first postmaster when the post office opened on May 31, 1878. The community absorbed the nearby village of South Arm and incorporated as the village of East Jordan in 1887. It incorporated as a city in 1911. East Jordan grew quickly, and by 1890, it boasted a large ironworks company now known as EJ. The city was serviced by two railroads. With these two railroad connections, and the ability to ship cargo up Lake Charlevoix to Lake Michigan, East Jordan quickly grew into a major manufacturing center. To this day, four industrial corporations still operate within the town. In 1899, the Detroit and Charlevoix Railroad built their mainline through the East side of the city, and in 1901, the East Jordan and Southern Railroad began operations on the western end of the city. In 1932, the Detroit and Charlevoix was abandoned, and the East Jordan and Southern closed in 1961 after the East Jordan Iron Works ended shipping by rail. East Jordan contains two listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The East Jordan Lumber Company Store Building and the Votruba Block were both built in 1899 and are located next to each other in the city's downtown area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (23.47%) is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  3,543
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  2,966
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,888
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,540
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,496
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,454
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,103
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,984