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History · Freeman

Freeman’s history is
mostly unwritten

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

0old images & papers
2recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Freeman Township is a civil township of Clare County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,125 at the 2020 census.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,157 to 1,125 (-3%). Half of its homes were built before 1991.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Freeman 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.

Be one of the first

Start Freeman’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Freeman’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from FreemanWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Freeman.Meet them →
By decade

Freeman, 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.
📷 Add from your album
Today2 photos
Freeman Township, MichiganCommonsFreeman Township, Michigan2022Freeman Township, MI locationCommonsFreeman Township, MI location2019
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Freeman is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Freeman has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Evart Downtown Historic District in Evart, 11.8 miles away.

Freeman and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Freeman. Tap a dot.
Evart Downtown Historic DistrictGeorge and Martha Hitchcock HouseSherman City Union ChurchClare Congregational ChurchClare Downtown Historic DistrictMorgan West Wheatland Cemetery

Closest to Freeman

Evart Downtown Historic DistrictEvart · District11.8miGeorge and Martha Hitchcock HouseSurrey · Building11.9miSherman City Union ChurchSherman · Building16.1miClare Congregational ChurchClare · Building16.3miClare Downtown Historic DistrictClare · District16.4mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Evart Downtown Historic District’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Freeman?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Freeman’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Redding📜 Sylvan📜 Lincoln📜 Garfield

From Wikimedia Commons (2). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Freeman, MIClare CountyView boundary

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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