Shelby Charter Township is one of the fastest-growing communities in Metro Detroit.

[5] Shelby Township was set off by an act of the Michigan Territorial Legislature on April 12, 1827, and a civil government was organized the following May.

Utica, located on the southern edge of the township, originally incorporated as a village on March 9, 1838, although that corporation was dissolved soon afterwards.

[11] Only a few homes and a namesake on old county road maps remain of this now forgotten historic place.

See also: "The Lost Village of Disco" on the Shelby Township Historical Society website.

The cities of Utica and Sterling Heights border the township to the south.

[1] The township is drained by the Clinton River, a tributary of Lake St. Clair.

The U.S. Census Bureau defined Shelby Charter Township as a census-designated place (CDP) in the 2000 Census so that the community would appear on the list of places (like cities and villages) as well on the list of county subdivisions (like other townships).