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is a civil township of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 13,338. The township was named for the numerous springs in the area.
Springfield Township was established by the Michigan Legislature on March 2, 1836. Civil government was first organized April 3, 1837. Springfield, one of the very first settlements in the area, began with a hotel along the Detroit and Saginaw Turnpike, now known as Dixie Highway. Andersonville, located at the intersection of Andersonville Road and Big Lake Roads, was settled shortly thereafter in 1833, followed three years later by the hamlet of Davisburg.
The Detroit and Milwaukee Railway (now part of Canadian National Railway) was built in 1856, and two stations were in the township, in Andersonville and Davisburg. The railroad provided a major impetus to growth. Agriculture was the mainstay of the local economy and trains allowed the farmers to ship produce and live stock to market and to receive supplies and equipment. By 1860 Springfield Township's population was 1,425.
In 1924, Dixie Highway was paved from Pontiac to Flint. With the decline of agriculture as a major economic activity in the Township, residents began commuting to Pontiac and Flint for employment in the developing automotive factories, marking the beginning of the Township's decline. By 1930, Springfield Township's population had fallen to 923. The township's decline would unexpectedly be reversed in the 1960s with the construction of I-75. The accessibility provided by two interchanges accelerated residential growth in the late 1960s and 1970s. Population improved, going from 1,825 in 1950 to 2,664 in 1960, 4,388 in 1970, 6,502 in 1976, and 8,295 in 1980.
Springfield Township has had a long-standing commitment to Zoning and Planning dating back to the early 1950s. The Township Board adopted an interim Zoning Ordinance in early 1952, which contained five zoning districts. In 1965 an Ordinance which contained 13 different zoning districts was adopted. Planning and Zoning functions were coordinated with the adoption of the Townships first Master Plan in 1972 and subsequently the adoption of an entirely new Zoning Ordinance the following year. The 1973 Ordinance serves as a basis for the current Zoning Ordinance.
Out of concern for the residential growth during the 1970s and its effects on the entire Township, the Planning Commission embarked on a comprehensive review of the Master Plan and the Zoning Map in the early 1980s. As a result, the revised Master Plan and Zoning Ordinance incorporated natural resource protection information and standards. This slowed the growth of Springfield Township during the decade, growing to 9,927 in 1990. Additional comprehensive reviews and updates were done in the early 1990s and again in 2002. The primary basis for the Township’s Planning, Zoning and Land Use decisions for at least the last 20 years has been the protection and preservation of our abundant and very special natural resources.
Today, Springfield Township is home to many parks, including Springfield Oaks County Park, site of the annual Oakland County Fair, and Indian Springs Metropark. The township is also home to several churches, a few schools including Springfield Christian Academy (the township's only high school) and handful of shopping areas. The township's population, which improved by a third in the 1990s, still shows no signs of declining.
Springfield Township is a member of the Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce.