Townships were created and defined by the passage of the Land Ordinance of 1785, which laid out a grid work of townships, six miles long by six miles wide, across the frontier that surrounded the Great Lakes, along with the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 which defined the future organization of lands to the north and west of the original 13 states.

Valley Township is one of 1242 Townships in Michigan and is located in the southwest-central section of Allegan County in southwest Michigan (See mini-map at left). The township officials represent the level of government closest and most aware of resident’s wishes.

The duties that the Township is required to perform are assessment administration, elections administration, and tax collection. The Township also has broad powers to enact and enforce ordinances.

State laws authorize other functions of our township for our residents such as planning and zoning, fire protection, cemeteries, and the authority to enter into agreements with other governmental agencies or contract with the private sector to provide township services. The township also has some authority to control utility franchises and can provide special assessments for private road maintenance and street lights.
(See Township Governments in Michigan)

Surveyed in 1831, Valley Township was organized as Pine Plains Township in 1850. This included Clyde and Lee Townships, which would later be separated from Pine Plains in 1859. The area northwest of the river was taken from Heath and given to Pine Plains in 1871. This gave it its current borders. The first settlers arrived circa 1837. The road from Allegan to Saugatuck was surveyed circa 1834. This road intersects the township. A post office was installed at Mill Grove but it would later be shut down. On January 1, 1898, Pine Plains became Valley Township. The reasoning was that the name Pine Plains suggested sandy soil and would create little demand for the sale of farm land.

Statistics

Valley Township has a total area of 93.2km2 or 36mi2. 85.3km2 (23.5mi2) of it is land and 7.9km2 (3 mi2) is water. The total area is 8.45% water. As of the 2000 census, Valley Township had a population of 1,831. Other stats include:

680 Households
531 Families
Population Density: 21.5/km2 (55.6/mi2)

Out of the 680 Households:
34% have children under 18 living with them.
66% are married couples living together
8.4% have a female householder with no husband present
21.8% are non-families
15.9% of all households are made up of individuals
4.7% have someone living alone who is 65 or older
Average household size is 2.68
Average family size is 2.98

Age Distributions:
Under 18: 25.5%
18 to 24: 5.8%
25 to 44: 30.8%
45 to 64: 27.9%
65 and older: 9.9%
The median age is 38

For every 100 females, there are 100.1 males
For every 100 females of age 18 and over, there are 99.7 males
Median income for a household: $48,672
Median income for a family: $52,893
Median income for males: $36,026
Median income for females: $27,278
Township per capita income: $21,990
6.2% of the population and 4.7% of families are below the poverty line
Of the population, 7.3% of those under 18 and 1.1% of people 65 or older are below the poverty line