According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It gets its name from the Rapid River which flows through the township.
Major highways
Adjacent townships
Kalkaska County
Coldsprings Township
Kalkaska Township
Clearwater Township
Antrim County
Custer Township
History
The township is home to the former settlement of Leetsville. Today very few original building still stand, but many homes have built around its few roads, and a grocery store and gas station are located near its former location along US 131.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,005 people, 368 households, and 269 families residing in the township. The population density was 28.6 per square mile. There were 556 housing units at an average density of 15.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the township was 97.41% White, 0.10% African American, 0.90% Native American, 0.50% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 1.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.39% of the population. There were 368 households out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.0% were married couplesliving together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.15. In the township the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.8 males. The median income for a household in the township was $37,857, and the median income for a family was $40,865. Males had a median income of $32,083 versus $20,096 for females. The per capita income for the township was $14,670. About 8.4% of families and 10.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.9% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.
