Best Web Design in Oxford (Charter Township), MI (2026)

Web Design for Oxford (Charter Township), Michigan

Oxford Charter Township sits in northern Oakland County and surrounds the Village of Oxford, about 40 miles north of Detroit. Built atop a massive Ice Age glacial gravel vein, it became known in the 20th century as the 'Gravel Capital of the World,' and many of its old mining pits are now lakes. It is also the hometown of Brace Beemer, the radio voice of the Lone Ranger.

AppWT serves Oxford (Charter Township) and the surrounding Michigan area from Livonia, Michigan.

About Oxford (Charter Township)

Also known as. Gravel Capital of the World. Baga Capital of the World (rutabaga). Hometown of the Lone Ranger.

History. Settled in the 1830s under names including Demingsburgh and Oxford Corners; Oxford Corners was founded in 1836 and Oxford was organized as a township in 1837, the year Michigan became a state. The arrival of the Detroit & Bay City (Detroit Mackinaw) Railroad around 1870 opened the area to commerce and travel. Early agriculture made the area a major shipper of apples and rutabagas, earning the tongue-in-cheek title 'Baga Capital of the World.' Gravel mining began around 1908-1911 when W.O. Smith set up a rock-crushing plant and tapped the glacial gravel vein beneath the town. On November 30, 2021, a mass shooting at Oxford High School killed four students and wounded seven other people, a tragedy that drew national attention.

Local economy. Gravel and aggregate mining defined the 20th-century economy; by the 1920s the area was shipping around 5 million tons of gravel a year, and by the 1950s about five companies mined roughly 5 million tons annually. Aggregate operators including American Aggregates, Wolverine Sand & Gravel, and Koenig Sand & Gravel worked the local pits. Earlier farm economy centered on apples and rutabagas shipped out by rail. Today the township is a residential and recreational community, with many former gravel pits converted into lakes and ponds.

Culture and community. The annual Lone Ranger Festival and Parade celebrates the town's ties to Brace Beemer, who played the Lone Ranger on radio. A fall Scarecrow Festival is a recurring community tradition. Rural-to-suburban character with lake recreation, small-town downtown events, and community gatherings.

What makes Oxford (Charter Township) distinct. Its lakes are largely man-made, the flooded remains of a century of gravel excavation. The 'Baga Capital of the World' nickname refers to rutabagas once shipped in huge quantities from local farms. Oxford was the retirement home of Brace Beemer, the Lone Ranger's radio voice, who ran a 300-acre horse ranch just outside town.

Oxford (Charter Township) Landmarks and Local Life

• The many spring-fed lakes and ponds created from former gravel pits - part of a township with around 50 lakes and several parks
• The Village of Oxford's historic downtown - which the township surrounds
• Oxford High School - site of the 2021 shooting and a focal point of the community