Marquette County 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.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3425 sqmi, of which 1808 sqmi is land and 1616 sqmi (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

Climate

Communities

Cities

Charter townships

Civil townships

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Indian reservations

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:

Historical markers

There are ten historical markers in the county:

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

Transportation

Airports

Transit

Major highways

In addition to the 169.42 mi of state highways in the county, the Marquette County Road Commission maintains 283.85 mi of primary county roads which include County Road 492 (CR 492), and 988.25 mi 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.