Newaygo

History

Newaygo's recorded history goes back to the 1600s and the French coureur des bois (independent trappers) and, later, fur company voyageurs that travelled by canoe via the Muskegon River. It was ostensibly named after Chief Nuwagon, an Ojibwe leader who signed the Treaty of Saginaw in 1819, or for an Algonquian word meaning "much water". John Brooks came to harvest lumber in 1836, and was the town's first postmaster in 1847. Proximity to the river made it a center for floating logs to the mills in Muskegon during the lumber boom of the late 1800s.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. including the Muskegon River, which runs through the town and is often used for canoe trips, tubing, and fishing. The county is considered part of West Michigan. Newaygo is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids. The Muskegon River flows through the north side of the town beneath and a train bridge. * *

Race & ethnicity