Ronald Township is a civil township of Ionia County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,861 at the 2020 census.
Ronald Township was formed in 1845 from parts of Lyons and Ionia townships, and given its name by state representative A. L. Roof, who said he was inspired by the lead character in a novel he was reading at the time. (This may have been Sir Walter Scott's narrative poem The Lord of the Isles, in which the protagonist is named Ronald.)
Communities
- Palo is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in the northern part of the township at . It began on land owned by Matthew and John Van Vleck. The name "Palo" [pronounced Pay-Low, locally] was suggested by John in honor of the victory by General Zachary Taylor at the Battle of Palo Alto, the first major battle of the Mexican–American War fought on May 8, 1846. A post office was established on July 14, 1857, with Dr. Orla H. Taylor as the first postmaster. The community was first platted and recorded on March 12, 1867 by William H. Freeman. The Palo post office was discontinued on February 4, 1995, although the Palo ZIP code 48870 continues to provide P.O. Box only service through use of the local store Joe's Market and a postal contract.
The Palo CDP is in the Carson City-Crystal Area School District<!--UNI 08130-->.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , of which is land and (0.44%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census