| Official Name: | Forest Township, Michigan |
| Settlement Type: | Civil township |
| Pushpin Map: | Michigan#USA |
| Pushpin Label Position: | left |
| Pushpin Label: | Forest Township |
| Mapsize: | 250 |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Michigan |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Missaukee |
| Leader Title: | Supervisor |
| Leader Name: | Catherine Molitor |
| Leader Title1: | Clerk |
| Leader Name1: | Margie Phillips |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Established Date: | 1879 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 35.16 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 35.13 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.03 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 1184 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 33.7 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation M: | 182 |
| Elevation Ft: | 597 |
| Coordinates: | 44.38°N -85.1572°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
| Postal Code: | 49651 (Lake City) |
| Area Code: | 231 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 26-113-29440[3] |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 1626297 |
Forest Township is a civil township of Missaukee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,184 at the 2020 census.[2]
The township is in central Missaukee County and is bordered to the southwest by Lake City, the county seat. According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 35.16sqmi, of which 35.13sqmi are land and 0.03sqmi, or 0.08%, are water.[1] The West Branch of the Muskegon River rises in the eastern part of the township.
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,082 people, 431 households, and 305 families residing in the township. The population density was 30.8sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 678 housing units at an average density of 19.3sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the township was 98.06% White, 0.37% Native American, and 1.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.74% of the population.
There were 431 households, out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.2% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.86.
In the township the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $33,359, and the median income for a family was $38,047. Males had a median income of $30,912 versus $20,375 for females. The per capita income for the township was $15,417. About 10.0% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.1% of those under age 18 and 16.0% of those age 65 or over.