Livingston

Formed January 1, 1833 (36^th county)

Livingston County (193,869), Howell (10,071)

A red brick Richardsonian Romanesque courthouse was erected in 1890 on Grand River Avenue, State Street, Clinton Avenue, and Court Street.  Interstate Highway 96 Business is Grand River Avenue.  Alfred E. French was the courthouse designer.  The courthouse was restored in 1979.  It features a bell tower with a working clock.  Veteran memorials are on the grounds.  There was an 1847 version previously also in Howell, the only county seat.  A Judicial Center was added in 2000, a Law Center was built in 1975, and an Administration Center was constructed in 1988.  Livingston County was established on January 1, 1833 from parts of Shiawassee and Washtenaw counties as the 36^th county.  It is named for United States Secretary of State Edward Livingston.  Howell got its name for the friend of one of the city founders. 

Livingston County government consists of a sheriff, an administrator, an attorney, a treasurer and a clerk (executive).  It has 9 Commissioners (legislative.)  Two Circuit Court Judges, Four District Court Judges, One Probate Court Judge and court clerk serve Livingston County (judicial.) Livingston County is in the southeast part of the southern peninsula.  Lansing, Michigan is west and Detroit, Michigan is southeast of the county.  The county center is 5.9 miles East-Northeast of Howell.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Genesee, Oakland, Wayne, Washtenaw, Jackson, Ingham, and Shiawassee counties. 

The area of the county is 585 square miles.  It is 55 out of 83 in the state.  It ranks 10 out of 83 in population in the state.  It has a density of 331.4 persons per square mile making it 9 out of 83 in the state.  Livingston County has 11.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 96 crosses the county east to west from Oakland County to Ingham County.  United States Highway 23 goes north to south from Genesee County to Washtenaw County.  The county is a rectangle.  Howell is located slightly southwest of the center of the county.  Howell is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 5.2% of the county population.  This county is in the Detroit-Warren-Livonia Metropolitan Statistical Area.