thumb|right|250px|East Jordan City Hall
East Jordan is a city in Charlevoix County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,239 at the 2020 census.
The city is at the end of the south arm of Lake Charlevoix at the mouth of the Jordan River. The corporate headquarters of EJ, an international company formerly known as East Jordan Iron Works, is located in East Jordan. EJ was founded in East Jordan in 1883.
History
The area was first settled by Canadian William Empey in 1873. He built the first store here in 1874 at the mouth of the Jordan River at the southernmost point of Lake Charlevoix. He became the first postmaster when the post office opened on May 31, 1878. The community absorbed the nearby village of South Arm and incorporated as the village of East Jordan in 1887. It incorporated as a city in 1911.
East Jordan grew quickly, and by 1890, it boasted a large ironworks company now known as EJ. The city was serviced by two railroads. With these two railroad connections, and the ability to ship cargo up Lake Charlevoix to Lake Michigan, East Jordan quickly grew into a major manufacturing center. To this day, four industrial corporations still operate within the town. In 1899, the Detroit and Charlevoix Railroad built their mainline through the East side of the city, and in 1901, the East Jordan and Southern Railroad began operations on the western end of the city. In 1932, the Detroit and Charlevoix was abandoned, and the East Jordan and Southern closed in 1961 after the East Jordan Iron Works ended shipping by rail.
East Jordan contains two listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The East Jordan Lumber Company Store Building and the Votruba Block were both built in 1899 and are located next to each other in the city's downtown area.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (23.47%) is water.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, East Jordan had a population of 2,239. The median age was 38.9 years. 23.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 85.8 males age 18 and over.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 946 households in East Jordan, of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 38.3% were married-couple households, 18.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. of 2010, there were 2,351 people, 952 households, and 613 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,189 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.0% White, 0.2% African American, 1.6% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.3% of the population.
There were 952 households, of which 35.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.6% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.01.
The median age in the city was 37.1 years. 27.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.4% were from 25 to 44; 24.5% were from 45 to 64; and 15.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.
2000 census
As of the census