West Bloomfield Township, Michigan is in the northwestern Metro Detroit Region.

Although the township is very well developed, with a population nearing seventy thousand, there are no incorporated villages within the township, and the only named community is Westacres, in the northwestern part of the township.

Although West Bloomfield is a township, and not a village or city, we are including it here because it has a large population, is well developed, and the only named community in the township is unincorporated and is served by the West Bloomfield post office.

West Bloomfield is bounded by Orchard Lake, Keego Harbor, and Sylvan Lake to the northeast, by Waterford Township to the north, Commerce Township to the west, Farmington Hills to the south, and Bloomfield Township to the east. Together, Waterford Township, Orchard Lake, Keego Harbor, and Sylvan Lake are known as Greater West Bloomfield.

Although West Bloomfield is heavily developed and part of the Detroit Metro Region, no major highways pass through the township, although US-24 is east of the city limits and I-696 is south of its border.

Cooley Lake Road forms its northern border, 14 Mile Road forms its southern border, Haggerty Road forms its western border, and Inkster Road forms its eastern border. Other routes include Commerce Road, Farmington Road, Halsted Road, Lone Pine Road, Long Lake Road, Maple Road, Middlebelt Road, Oakley Park Road, Orchard Lake Road, Pontiac Trail, Quarton Road, Richardson Road, Square Lake Road, Walnut Lake Road, and Wise Road.

Cities and villages within twenty miles of West Bloomfield include Orchard Lake, Keego Harbor, Sylvan Lake, Walled Lake, Bloomfield Hills, Pontiac, Farmington Hills, Franklin, Wolverine Lake, Wixom, Bingham Farms, Birmingham, Farmington, Beverly Hills, Lake Angelus, Southfield, Novi, Lathrup Village, Milford, Berkley, Auburn Hills, Clawson, Oak Park, Clarkston, Northville, Royal Oak, Huntington Woods, Troy, Rochester Hills, Pleasant Ridge, Ferndale, Rochester, Hazel Park, Sterling Heights, and Plymouth.

Situated in the northwest part of the township, the Westacres subdivision was developed to provide affordable housing for factory-wage families, and to boost the economy as part of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal. Oakland Housing was formed in 1935 to build low-cost housing for low-income industrial workers who were subject to seasonal unemployment, and to provide a lot large enough that owners could grow a sufficient quantity of vegetables, which was an important part of the project.

West Bloomfield is peppered with small and medium-sized lakes, the largest being Cass Lake, Union Lake, Upper Straits Lake, and Pine Lake.

Although not much is known of the area's early inhabitation, it is believed to have been inhabited by Paleo-Indians as early as 10,000 to 8,000 BC, by Archaic-Indians from 8,000 to 1,000 BC, and by Woodland-Indians from 1,000 BC to the arrival of European-Americans. The Ottawa, Potawatomi, and Ojibwa were known to have been in the area.

European-Americans began migrating to the area after the War of 1812, most of them coming from the Northeast. John Ellenwood is credited as the first white settler, having come from New York in 1825, and settling on the eastern shore of Pine Lake, although John Huff had previously built a cabin just north of there.

In 1819, there were only two townships in Oakland County, Oakland Township and Bloomfield Township, with the latter making up the southern two-fifths of the county. In 1827, Bloomfield Township was reduced to what is now West Bloomfield, Bloomfield Township, Bloomfield Hills, and Southfield. On March 8, 1833, a post office was developed, with Nathaniel J. Daniels as postmaster. The post office was initially named Marion.

On April 22, 1833, West Bloomfield Township was officially created, and the post office was renamed West Bloomfield on March 31, 1834, and moved to a public house operated by a Mr. Rundel.

In 1896, a parcel of land was acquired north of Pontiac Trail and east of Hidden Valley Drive, in what is now the Hickory Pointe subdivision. A wooden structure was built there to serve as the town hall, although nothing remains of it today. It was replaced with a brick structure on Orchard Lake Road in 1923, and the current town hall was built on Walnut Lake Road in 1989.

Today, West Bloomfield is home to the largest Jewish population in Michigan.

West Bloomfield is the sixth-largest township in Michigan, and one of the most expensive places to live.

Police and fire protection are provided by the West Bloomfield Department and the West Bloomfield Fire Department, the latter of which also provides emergency medical services.

West Bloomfield Township and the unincorporated community of Westacres, and anything within the township, are the focus of topics in this part of our web guide.

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