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. It is the most populous county in the Upper Peninsula. 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 comprises the Marquette, MI micropolitan statistical area.
Contents
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 Big Garlic River is located in the county.
The Huron Mountains are located in the county. To the north of the county is Lake Superior.
National protected areas
Hiawatha National Forest (part)
Huron National Wildlife Refuge
Ottawa National Forest (part)
Communities
Cities
Ishpeming
Marquette (county seat)
Negaunee
Charter townships
Chocolay Charter Township
Marquette Charter Township
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
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 66,017. The median age was 40.5 years. 18.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 105.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 106.4 males age 18 and over.
As of the 2020 census, the racial makeup of the county was 90.2% White, 1.2% Black or African American, 1.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 5.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.0% of the population.
As of the 2020 census, 54.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 45.5% lived in rural areas.
As of the 2020 census, there were 27,681 households in the county, of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 45.9% were married-couple households, 21.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 24.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
As of the 2020 census, there were 33,454 housing units, of which 17.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.1% were owner-occupied and 30.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.8%.
Economy
As of 2025, Marquette County makes up about a quarter of the Upper Peninsula's GDP.
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 23 elections through 2024, 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. It was the only Upper Peninsula County to vote for Democratic presidential candidates in 2016, 2020, and 2024.
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 31 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.