History · Alanson

Alanson’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Alanson. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

1875established

0old images & papers

7recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Alanson ( ə-LAN-sən) is a village in Emmet County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 778 at the 2020 census. Alanson is in Littlefield Township on U.S. Highway 31 at the junction with M-68. Petoskey is about 12 miles (19 km) southwest on US 31 and Mackinaw City and the Mackinac Bridge are about 25 miles (40 km) north. Interstate 75 is about 11 miles (18 km) to the east on M-68 at Indian River. Alanson was first settled in 1875. The Alanson post office opened with the name Hinman on January 17, 1877, and changed to Alanson on June 22, 1882.

Alanson was established in 1875. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 738 to 778 (+5%). Half of its homes were built before 1982.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Alanson yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

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Alanson, decade by decade

Before
2000

No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

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