Welcome to Pontiac ...
The city of Pontiac is located in Oakland County<1> and is the County Seat for Oakland County.
Pontiac was established in 1818.
When the people of Pontiac refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Pontiacker<2>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Pontiac has a population of 59,441 people<3> (see below for details).
The community of Pontiac is 970 feet [296 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Pontiac lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
Telephone area codes for Pontiac: (248) and (947)<5>
The ZIP codes for Pontiac: 48340-48343<6>
Websites for Pontiac ...
Official Website: www.pontiac.mi.us/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Pontiac had an population of 59,441 people. This is a decrease of 0.12% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 10.4% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Pontiac had a population of 59,515 people. This makes Pontiac the county's 5th most populous community.
The population of Pontiac represents 0.6% of the population of Michigan (which has 9,883,640 people), making it the state's 19th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 59,515 people, the population of Pontiac decreased 10.28% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 66,337 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Pontiac.
Communities Also Named Pontiac ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 16 communities that are also named Pontiac - they are located in Arkansas, Illinois (2), Indiana (2), Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Quebec (3), Rhode Island, South Carolina and Washington.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Pontiac.
Communities near Pontiac ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Pontiac.
- Warren
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warren have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
- Warren is located in Macomb County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 132,877 people
- Warren has also been known as:
- Cottageville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Warren <8>
- Sterling Heights
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sterling Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sterling Heights
- Sterling Heights is located in Macomb County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 131,709 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sterling Heights <8>
- Livonia
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livonia
- Livonia is located in Wayne County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93,189 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Livonia <8>
- Troy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
- Troy is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 83,589 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <8>
- Farmington Hills
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmington Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmington Hills
- Farmington Hills is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80,017 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Farmington Hills <8>
- Rochester Hills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rochester Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester Hills
- Rochester Hills is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 74,111 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rochester Hills <8>
- Southfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southfield
- Southfield is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 72,174 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Southfield <8>
- Novi
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Novi
- Novi is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 60,852 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Novi <8>
- Royal Oak
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Oak
- Royal Oak is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 58,963 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Royal Oak <8>
- Madison Heights
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison Heights
- Madison Heights is located in Oakland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 29,633 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madison Heights <8>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Pontiac. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Pontiac.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Pontiac. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pontiac.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Pontiac. Our list includes 45 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Pontiac.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Pontiac ...
Looking for more information about Pontiac? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Pontiac, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Pontiac.
Adding Pontiac to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Pontiac in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Pontiac was on a map titled Road Map for Michigan (from Shell Oil, 1956).
We also found Pontiac in the book titled Table of U.S. Post Offices in the United States (Jan. 1851).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Pontiac.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Pontiac: www.pontiac.mi.us/
The official website for Oakland County: www.co.oakland.mi.us/
The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Michigan's counties, including Oakland, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Pontiac refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Pontiac may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Pontiac. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Pontiac - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | Area code (947) is an overlay for area code (248). |
| <6> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Pontiac). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Pontiac or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). Our list of ZIP Codes for Pontiac includes: 48340, 48341, 48342 & 48343. |
| <7> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <8> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |