Marquette County, Michigan

Marquette County ( mar-KET) is a county located in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 66,017. The county seat is Marquette. The county is named for Father Marquette, a Jesuit missionary. It was set off in 1843 and organized in 1851. Marquette County is the largest county in land area in Michigan, and the most populous county in the Upper Peninsula.

Marquette County comprises the Marquette, MI micropolitan statistical area.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,425 square miles (8,870 km²), of which 1,808 square miles (4,680 km²) is land and 1,616 square miles (4,190 km²) (47%) is water. It is the largest county in Michigan by land area and fourth-largest by total area.

The Huron Mountains are located in the county. To the north of the county is Lake Superior.

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

• Hiawatha National Forest (part)
• Huron National Wildlife Refuge
• Ottawa National Forest (part)

Climate

Communities

Cities

• Ishpeming
• Marquette (county seat)
• Negaunee

Charter townships

• Chocolay Charter Township
• Marquette Charter Township

Civil townships

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Indian reservations

• The L'Anse Indian Reservation, which is primarily based in Baraga County to the west, has a small portion within Chocolay Township.
• The Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians, which is headquartered in Sault Ste. Marie in Chippewa County, occupies a very small piece of property within the city limits of Marquette.

Demographics

In 2020, the population of the county was 66,017.

Economy

Top employers

Last updated June 8, 2021.

According to the Lake Superior Community Partnership website, the top employers in the county are:

*Bolded values have been updated for 2021.

Education

Northern Michigan University is a four-year university in Marquette. It was established in 1899.

School districts

Marquette County is divided into the following school districts:

• Gwinn Area Community Schools
• Ishpeming Public School District
• Marquette Area Public Schools
• Negaunee Public Schools
• NICE Community School District
• Powell Township Schools
• Republic-Michigamme School District

Historical markers

There are ten historical markers in the county:

• Cliffs Shaft Mine
• Dandelion Cottage
• Father Marquette Park
• First Steam Railroad in Upper Peninsula
• Ishpeming: Historic Ski Center
• Jackson Mine
• Marquette County Courthouse
• Marquette Iron Range
• Northern Michigan University
• Sam Cohodas Lodge / Sam Cohodas

Government

Marquette County was reliably Republican following the American Civil War; its voters went Republican (or Republican-splinter) in every election from 1876 through 1932. However, that shifted in 1936; since then, the Republican nominee has carried the county in only five out of 22 elections through 2020, four of which were nationwide Republican landslides and the other had native Michigander Gerald Ford as the Republican nominee. At present, it has since become the only Democratic-leaning county in the Upper Peninsula.

The county government operates Sawyer International Airport, the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, records deeds, mortgages, and vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of social services. The county board of commissioners controls the budget and has limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions—police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc.—are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Elected officials

• County Clerk: Linda Talsma
• County Treasurer: Jacqueline Solomon
• Drain Commissioner: P. Michael Farrell
• Mine Inspector: Steve Bertucci
• Prosecuting Attorney: Jenna M. Nelson
• Register of Deeds: Aidan Mckindles
• Sheriff: Gregory S. Zyburt

Transportation

Airports

• Sawyer International Airport, a county-owned public-use facility, twenty miles (32 km) south of Marquette on the site of K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base, which closed 29 years ago in 1995.

Transit

• MarqTran provides local transit services in and around Marquette.
• Indian Trails provides intercity bus service.

Major highways

• US 41
• M-28
• M-35
• M-94
• M-95
• M-553

In addition to the 169.42 miles (272.66 km) of state highways in the county, the Marquette County Road Commission maintains 283.85 miles (456.81 km) of primary county roads which include County Road 492 (CR 492), and 988.25 miles (1,590.43 km) of secondary county roads. The road commission provides maintenance such as snow removal under contract with the Michigan Department of Transportation for the state trunklines. In 2010, the commission planned to build CR 595. The project was canceled after the permit was denied by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the project funding was diverted.

See also

• List of Michigan State Historic Sites in Marquette County, Michigan
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Marquette County, Michigan

References

External links

• Marquette County web site