Ypsilanti, Michigan

Ypsilanti, Michigan
City of Ypsilanti
Images from top to bottom, left to right: Ypsilanti Performance Space, Depot Town, Eastern Michigan University's Starkweather Hall, Ypsilanti District Library, and Depot Town Merchants Row
Nicknames: 
Ypsi
Motto: 
"Pride. Diversity. Heritage."
Location within Washtenaw County
Ypsilanti
Location within the State of Michigan
Ypsilanti
Location within the United States
Coordinates: 42°14′34″N 83°37′06″W / 42.24278°N 83.61833°W / 42.24278; -83.61833
CountryUnited States
StateMichigan
CountyWashtenaw
Settled1823
Incorporated1832 (village)
1858 (city)
Named afterDemetrios Ypsilantis
Government
 • TypeCouncil–manager
 • MayorNicole Brown
 • Mayor pro-temSteve Wilcoxen
Area
 • Total
4.47 sq mi (11.58 km2)
 • Land4.29 sq mi (11.12 km2)
 • Water0.18 sq mi (0.46 km2)
Elevation
719 ft (219 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
20,648
 • Density4,810.1/sq mi (1,857.19/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)
48197, 48198
Area code734
FIPS code26-89140
GNIS feature ID1616910
Websitecityofypsilanti.com

Ypsilanti (/ˌɪpsəˈlænti/ IP-sə-LAN-tee), commonly shortened to Ypsi (/ˈɪps/ IP-see), is a city and college town located on the Huron River in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Charter Township and on the west, south, and east by Ypsilanti Charter Township (a separately governed municipality). Ypsilanti is a part of the Ann Arbor–Ypsilanti metropolitan area, the Huron River Valley, and the Detroit–Warren–Ann Arbor combined statistical area.

Ypsilanti is known for being the home of Eastern Michigan University (formerly the Michigan State Normal College) since the university's founding as Michigan's first normal school (teachers' college) in 1849, its location on the historic Detroit–Chicago Road (now US Highway 12), its historic Depot Town commercial district, and for its distinctive Ypsilanti Water Tower constructed in 1890. The city is closely associated with Ford Motor Company's Willow Run Bomber Plant which manufactured over 8,500 Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bombers during World War II; Ypsilanti's Ford Lake was created when Ford Motor Company dammed the Huron River to generate hydroelectric power. Ypsilanti is also home to the first Domino's Pizza location, located near EMU's McKenny Student Union in South Campus.