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Lowell, Michigan is mostly situated north of the point where the Flat River meets the Grand River, in eastern Kent County.

Most of the city is in northeastern Lowell Township, although a small section along the Flat River extends north into Vergennes Township. The Grand River flows through the southeastern portion of the city, then forms most of its southern border, while the Flat River forms a small portion of the city's border in the north, then flows south through Lowell's downtown district before feeding into the Grand River. Lee Creek meanders through the city before emptying into the Grand River. Stoney Lake and Natures Place Lake are within the city limits.

The chief route to and through the city is M-21 (Main Street), which runs largely east-west through the center of the city. Cities and villages within twenty miles of Lowell include Saranac, Clarksville, Ionia, Freeport, East Grand Rapids, Belding, Kentwood, Grand Rapids, and Caledonia.

Prior to its settlement by European-Americans, the Ottawa people had several villages along the Grand River. In the early 1800s, the village near the confluence of the Grand River and the Flat River was led by Wabiwindego, and Keewaycooshcum, and later by Cobmoosa, who was the son of Antoine Campau, a Franch-Canadian fur trader who was married to the daughter of an Ottawa chief. In the 1830s, when Native Americans were being displaced by European-Americans, Cobmoosa purchased the land upon which the Ottawa village stood in the name of his father. and the Ottawa remained at this village until 1858, when they were moved to a reservation near Manistee.

In 1831, Daniel Marsac came to the area from Detroit and built a trading post on the south bank of the Grand River, living with the Ottawa people. In 1837, Lewis Robinson, Philander Tracy, Sylvester Hodges, and Alva Jones, came from Scipio, New York, and settled along the Flat River. In 1847, Daniel Marsac acquired land on the north banks of the river, platted a townsite, and named it Dansville.

On June 17, 1851, a post office was established and named Lowell, for the township. George K. White was the first postmaster. In 1854, the townsite was platted by two men named Richards and Wickham, and renamed for the post office. Lowell was incorporated as a village in 1861, and later became a city.

William Seward Burroughs, inventor of the adding machine and the founder of the Burroughs Corporation, and grandfather of the author, William S. Burroughs, graduated from Lowell High School. The crime novelist, Ann Rule, was born in Lowell.

The focus of this category is on the city of Lowell, Michigan, or any businesses, industries, schools, places of worship, organizations, attractions, events, sports programs, or recreational opportunities within the city.

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