{"id":4826,"date":"2023-06-29T16:47:19","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T16:47:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/?p=4826"},"modified":"2026-08-22T12:02:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T12:02:12","slug":"otsego-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/otsego-county\/","title":{"rendered":"Otsego County, Michigan"},"content":{"rendered":"

Otsego County is a county in Michigan, United States, on the Lower Peninsula, part of the region locals call Northern Michigan. It had a population of 25,091 at the 2020 census and covers 526 square miles (1,360 km2) centred near 45\u00b001\u2032N 84\u00b037\u2032W.<\/p>\n

Gaylord is the county seat, and its postal code is 49735. The county has one incorporated city, one village, nine civil townships, and a dozen or so unincorporated communities. It sits in the Eastern Time Zone.<\/p>\n

Towns & Villages in Otsego County<\/h2>\n

Otsego County has a short list of incorporated places — Gaylord is the only city, Vanderbilt the only village — and the rest of the roster is unincorporated crossroads, lake settlements, and mobile-home communities scattered across the county’s nine townships. The table below marks incorporated status with Type; everything else is labeled Unincorp.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Place<\/th>\nType<\/th>\nTownship<\/th>\nPop.<\/th>\nZIP<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Gaylord<\/td>\nCity · seat<\/td>\nBagley Twp.<\/td>\n3,662<\/td>\n49735<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Vanderbilt<\/td>\nVillage<\/td>\nLivingston Twp.<\/td>\n579<\/td>\n49795<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elmira<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nElmira Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n49730<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Johannesburg<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n49751<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Waters<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n49797<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Otsego Lake<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sparr<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nCorwith Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Oak Grove<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nChester Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Vienna Corners<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nHayes Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Arbutus Beach<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nBagley Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Green Timbers<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Farrar Landing<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lower Chub Landing<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Whites Landing<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Eyedylwild Beach<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nOtsego Lake Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pearl City<\/td>\nUnincorp.<\/td>\nBagley Twp.<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Otsego Lake — the body of water, not the village of the same name — anchors a cluster of small lakefront communities (Arbutus Beach, Green Timbers, Farrar Landing, Lower Chub Landing, Whites Landing, Eyedylwild Beach) that are seasonal cottage subdivisions rather than distinct hamlets; the old county list also carried three named mobile-home parks (Aspen Commons, Log Haven, Mill Street, Nottingham Forest) that are private developments, not places, so they are omitted here.<\/p>\n

Townships<\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Township<\/th>\nPop. (2020)<\/th>\nMain settlements<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Bagley Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nGaylord (city, separately governed), Arbutus Beach<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Otsego Lake Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nWaters, Johannesburg, Otsego Lake<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Livingston Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nVanderbilt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elmira Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nElmira<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hayes Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nVienna Corners<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Chester Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nOak Grove<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Corwith Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\nSparr<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Charlton Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dover Township<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Individual 2020 township population counts were not verifiable for this rewrite and are marked — rather than guessed; the county-wide total of 25,091 is confirmed by the 2020 census.<\/p>\n

ZIP Codes<\/h2>\n