Gwinn is an unincorporated community in Marquette County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a census-designated place (CDP) for statistical purposes and has no legal status as an incorporated municipality. The population of the CDP was 1,784 at the 2020 census.

History

left|thumb|Houses near downtown Gwinn

left|thumb|Police station in downtown Gwinn

left|thumb|Building near river in downtown Gwinn

The area was acquired by the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Company (CCI) in 1902, which opened the Gwinn Mine in 1905. In 1906, the president of CCI, William Gwinn Mather, commissioned the well-known Boston landscape designer Warren H. Manning to design a residential community to support the mining operations. Mather named the community after his mother Elizabeth Lucy Gwinn. Streets were laid out and ground was broken for the first houses in 1907. Manning emphasized Gwinn's connection to the surrounding environment by preserving many of the existing trees and planting new ones. Although it began as a company town, the direct involvement of Cleveland-Cliffs in the affairs of the Gwinn gradually decreased, and by the Great Depression the company had no hand in the operation of the town.

Geography

Gwinn is in southeastern Marquette County, in the northern part of Forsyth Township. It is south of Marquette, the county seat, southeast of Negaunee, and northwest of Gladstone.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 3.80%, are water.

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Gwinn had a population of 1,784. The median age was 44.9 years. 21.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 87.7 males age 18 and over.

0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 788 households in Gwinn, of which 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 48.4% were married-couple households, 20.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Notable people

  • Shadi Petosky, television writer
  • Bonita Pietila, casting director for The Simpsons
  • Mike Shaw, professional WCW wrestler known as Norman the Lunatic

References

  • Gwinn Sawyer Chamber of Commerce
  • Gwinn Area website
  • Gwinn Area Community Schools