| Official Name: | Crystal, Michigan |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Pushpin Map: | Michigan#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | Crystal |
| Coordinates: | 43.2642°N -84.9442°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Michigan |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Montcalm |
| Subdivision Type3: | Township |
| Subdivision Name3: | Crystal |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 4.04 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 2.76 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 1.28 |
| Area Total Km2: | 10.46 |
| Area Land Km2: | 7.15 |
| Area Water Km2: | 3.30 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 888 |
| Population Density Km2: | 124.17 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 321.62 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 801 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
| Postal Code: | 48818 |
| Area Code: | 989 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 26-19060 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 2804351 |
Crystal is a census-designated place (CDP) comprising the main community in Crystal Township, Montcalm County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 888.[2] The CDP includes the village proper of Crystal, at the east end of Crystal Lake, as well as all of the land surrounding the lake.
The first settlers in the area were lumbermen, brothers John W. and Humphrey Smith in 1853. The present community began in 1857 when Enos P. Drake built a sawmill on land he co-owned with Samuel Burtch. Asa Ward recorded a plat for the settlement, and Alfred A. Proctor became the first postmaster on March 2, 1857. It is named for the nearby Crystal Lake.[3]
The community was first listed as a census-designated place prior to the 2020 census.
Crystal is in eastern Montcalm County, in the northeast part of Crystal Township. It is 10miles by road east-southeast of Stanton, the county seat, 9miles northwest of Carson City, and southwest of Alma.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Crystal CDP has a total area of 4.04sqmi, of which 2.76sqmi are land and 1.28sqmi, or 31.6%, are water.[1] Crystal Lake occupies the center of the CDP limits, while Mud Lake is in the northeast. The settlement of Crystal is centered on the east shore of Crystal Lake. Water drains from Crystal Lake, at above sea level, into Mud Lake, at, then east and south toward Fish Creek, a tributary of the Maple River and part of the Grand River watershed leading west to Lake Michigan.