[2] The city of Muskegon borders the township to the southwest and is administratively autonomous.

[1] Most of the township is drained by the Muskegon River and its tributaries, while the southernmost portion is drained by Black Creek and its tributary, Little Black Creek.

As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 17,737 people, 6,581 households, and 4,771 families residing in the township.

There were 6,850 housing units at an average density of 287.3 per square mile (110.9/km2).

23.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.