A local organization, the Friends of Historic Meridian, has an archive of local historic information and also maintains the historic buildings in the Meridian Historical Village.Īccording to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 31.57 square miles (81.8 km 2), of which 30.49 square miles (79.0 km 2) is land and 1.08 square miles (2.8 km 2) (3.42%) is water. The Township is rich with history and one resident, Joseph Kilbourne, had a major role in the decision in 1847 to relocate the state capitol from Detroit to Lansing (then Lansing Township). In 1857 the Michigan Legislature changed the name of the village officially to Okemos to honor the old chief. The village area was one of his primary camping areas and he traveled frequently between the village and another campsite near present-day Portland, Michigan. Kilbourne was the first postmaster.Ī local Native American, Chief John Okemos, was well known throughout the area. Ī post-office called Sanford was established in the spring of 1840. It was Bray who platted out the southeast corner of his land and sold the lots to newcomers traveling into the mid-state wilderness. They were soon followed by Joseph Kilbourne, who took out land for his brother-in-law, Freeman Bray. The first settlers near the current Village of Okemos (to the south of the former Pine Lake) were Sanford Marsh and his wife who built their cabin in 1839. Currently, the Village of Haslett is located at the south side of Lake Lansing. An amusement park was introduced and enjoyed immense popularity into the mid-20th century. During the late 19th century, the lake became known as a local vacation area served by an 'interurban trolley' which ran from the City of Lansing to the resort on the south side of the lake. The lake was later the site of a Spiritualist Meeting Camp led by John Haslett. The earliest settlers located at Pine Lake (now Lake Lansing) and made use of the numerous stands of pines to build their cabin. In November 1836 Obed Marshall purchased 180 acres (73 ha) of land near present-day Haslett. Meridian Township was first settled by pioneers in 1836. Bordering East Lansing to the west, Meridian Charter Township is the third-largest municipality within the Lansing–East Lansing metropolitan area. The township contains the unincorporated communities of Haslett and Okemos. The township is named after the Michigan meridian, which comprises the eastern border of the township. As of the 2020 census, the township had a population of 43,916. Meridian Charter Township is a charter township of Ingham County in the U.S.

Meridian township zoning districts