Okemos, Michigan

Okemos Michigan is located with Meridian Township in Ingham County Michigan. Okemos was originally founded as the City of Hamilton in 1839 by Freeman Bray as a trading point with the surrounding Ojibwa people and as a farming community. In 1859 one year following the death of Chief John Okemos (on whose treaty lands the city was built), the city was renamed Okemos to honor the Native American Chief.

The results of the 2000 census bureau indicated that the population in Okemos was at 22,805. There were 9,194 households and 5,645 families. The median age was 35. The Median income for a household was $62,810, and the median income for a family was $88,459.

Okemos schools is consistently named in the top 14% of the nation’s schools as a “What Parents Want” school district, and Okemos students score high on standardized tests. The district consistently earns recognition through meeting or exceeding state benchmarks in many areas of curriculum, including the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports Exemplary Physical Education Award for attending the Highest Achievement Level 8 in 2002. At that time, one of only three districts in the state to attain this level.

Okemos is surrounded by an abundance of nature that includes many parks and walking paths. There is an abundance of shopping and dining within Okemos. A short distance away is the campus of Michigan State University, Lake Lansing Park, and also the state capital Lansing.