Located on M-89 on the boundary between Manlius Township to the north and Clyde Township to the south, Fennville is located about 11 miles (18 km) southeast of the city of Saugatuck and about 13 miles (21 km) west-northwest of the city of Allegan.

The "official" and widely accepted account of how the city came to be known as Fennville, is that an early white settler by the name of Elam Atwater Fenn[4] built a saw mill in the immediate vicinity of the current community.

This led to people referring to the settlement as "Fenn's Mill" which became the name associated with the post office there.

About that time, the paperwork (timetables and such) for the recently completed Chicago and Michigan Lake Shore Railroad arrived which identified the community's station as "Fennville."

However, Fenn himself recorded that the change in name had been suggested by and mutually agreed upon among certain leaders of the community in conjunction with the establishment of the new railroad station.

[7] A United States atlas from 1895 indicates the town name was in some cases broken into two words, as in "Fenn Ville."

[14] Each October since 1984, Fennville has held an annual local event known as the Goose Festival.

[15] Fennville's Goose Festival promotes the abundance of area game and wildlife, with a special emphasis on thousands of Canada geese as they pass through the nearby Todd Farm Unit of the Allegan State Game Area during their seasonal migration.

[16][17] One impetus for creating the festival was to encourage passenger train visitation via Amtrak on the railway that runs through Fennville.

[18] Tens of thousands of people flock to the small town each year to enjoy the various activities and attractions planned and managed by the volunteer-based Goose Festival organization that operates the Goose Festival.