The men after whom Allegan's downtown streets were named – Elisha Ely, Samuel Hubbard, Charles Christopher Trowbridge, Pliny Cutler, and Edmund Monroe – patented land in the area in 1833.

[citation needed] Allegan was named in a neologism by Michigan historian Henry Rowe Schoolcraft in 1837 to sound like a Native American word.

Land was purchased from government to form the downtown business district; village organization came in 1838 with city incorporation authorized in 1907.

[6] In 1886, a one-lane bridge was built over the Kalamazoo River to connect limited highway M-89 to the downtown area.

32.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Companies previously located in Allegan include Haworth, a seat manufacturer, and Rockwell.

The city is served by Padgham Field, a small general aviation airport.

The theater showed movies and presented vaudeville acts on its stage, and an Art Deco facade was installed in the 1930s.

[14] Allegan County News is a locally owned newspaper publication since 1858.

The County of Allegan comprises 24 incorporated townships, most maintaining their own system of city schools, emergency services and local law enforcement.