Custer is a village in Mason County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 272 at the 2020 census. At the site, known as the Not-A-Pe-Ka-Gon Site, thousands of Mascouten were killed by the Odawa and their heads were placed on sticks, giving the river its original name, "Notipekago" or "Notipekagon", meaning "heads on sticks" in English.
The United States created an Indian reservation where Custer is located in 1855. Custer was platted in 1878 and incorporated as a village in 1895. The village was named for George Armstrong Custer.
A community of Lithuanians began to settle in the village around 1912 and following World War I, the community grew further.thumb|left|Sanders Meats
In 1925, Joseph T. Sanders founded Sanders Meats in Custer, delivering meat products to customers in his Ford Model T. Sanders Meats passed through four generations of the Sanders family, eventually expanding to provide products to businesses and restaurants ranging up to away.
thumb|[[St. Mary's Catholic Church (Custer, Michigan)|St. Mary's Catholic Church, designed by Jonas Mulokas]]
St. Mary's Catholic Church was established in 1933. In 1966, St. Mary's opened its new church, which was designed by architect Jonas Mulokas and shared architectural elements with the award-winning design of the Transfiguration Catholic Church in Queens, New York.
Geography
Custer is in central Mason County, east of Scottville and east of Ludington, the county seat. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 285 people, 110 households, and 72 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 137 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.2% White, 0.7% African American, 0.4% Native American, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.9% of the population.
There were 110 households, of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.5% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 8.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.5% were non-families. 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.06.
The median age in the village was 39 years. 23.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.7% were from 25 to 44; 28.1% were from 45 to 64; and 16.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 51.4% male and 48.6% female.
2000 census
As of the census