Mason (2008 est. pop 8099) is the county seat of Ingham County. It is named after the state's first governor, Stevens T. Mason. Mason is the only city in the U.S. that serves as a county seat ahead of a state capital, with Lansing also in Ingham County. Despite being the county seat, many county offices and courtrooms are located in Lansing.
Mason is about an hour from Ann Arbor and is reachable by freeway (take I-94 to US-127 North) or by back roads (take M-36 west from Whitmore Lake).
Snow's Sugarbush hosts an annual Maple Syrup Festival at their syrup making operations south of town; the 2010 event runs February 20th - April 18th on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings. [1]
