Essexville, MI

Essexville is a Bay County city on the Saginaw River, with 3,379 residents in the 2020 census. It sits between Bay City and Hampton Township, and its narrow riverfront gives the place a practical industrial edge: grain and construction-material storage use the river and nearby rail connections along about 1.4 miles of shoreline. Most of the rest of the city is residential, so the map shifts quickly from working riverfront to neighborhood streets. The city is part of the Bay City-Saginaw-Midland regional network, with Bay City doing much of the larger shopping and services nearby.

Essexville-Hampton Public Schools tie the city to the surrounding township, while Smith Park and the Saginaw River keep recreation close to the water for residents all year long. Hampton Square Mall, just outside the city in Hampton Township, closed in 2010, a reminder that retail has moved around the region; Essexville itself remains a small river city with industry at the edge and homes behind it.