Leslie, MI

Leslie sits on gently rolling ground in Ingham County, about 28 miles south of Lansing and 17 miles north of Jackson. The 2020 census counted 2,167 residents, and the city is surrounded by Leslie Township even though the two are separate governments. Elijah Woodworth built the first log cabin here in 1836. The settlement was first called Meekerville, after pioneer Benjamin Meeker; when its post office took the name Leslie in 1841, that name stuck. The village incorporated in 1869 and became a city in 1968.

Water helps give the center its shape: Huntoon Creek runs from Huntoon Lake through downtown, and the city roads spread toward the farms and state-park country around it. Mid-August brings the Blackhawk Festival and its road race, one of the dates that pulls the surrounding area into town. Leslie Public Schools serve the local district, and White Pine Academy adds another school presence. Meridian-Baseline State Park is nearby, but the more telling local detail is the creek crossing downtown: Leslie's old settlement pattern still shows up in the way water, streets, and civic buildings meet.