Baraga County, Michigan

Major highways

• US 41: runs north–south through the upper central part of county. The highway enters at the northeast corner of the county on the west shore of Keweenaw Bay and runs south along the shoreline to Baraga and L'Anse, then turns inland (south) past Alberta, then east through Nestoria and Three Lakes. It exits into Marquette County at Imperial Heights.
• US 141: runs south from its intersection with US-41 south of Alberta into Iron County.
• M-28: enters the west side of the county then runs east and east-northeast to the intersection with US-141 at Covington.
• M-38: runs east–west through the northwest corner of county. It enters from Alston in Houghton County, then runs east to intersection with US-41 at Baraga.

Adjacent counties

• Marquette County (east)
• Iron County (south)
• Houghton County (west)

National protected areas

• Keweenaw National Historical Park (part)
• Ottawa National Forest (part)

Villages

• Baraga
• L'Anse (county seat)

Civil townships

Census-designated places

• Covington
• Pelkie
• Skanee
• Three Lakes
• Zeba

Other unincorporated communities

Indian reservations

• The L'Anse Indian Reservation occupies two sections of Baraga County within portions of Baraga, L'Anse, and Arvon townships. The reservation also has very small portion in Chocolay Charter Township in neighboring Marquette County to the east.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 8,158. The median age was 46.3 years. 17.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 122.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 129.6 males age 18 and over.^[11]

The racial makeup of the county was 70.8% White, 7.4% Black or African American, 13.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.4% from some other race, and 7.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.3% of the population.^[12]

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.^[13]

There were 3,328 households in the county, of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.3% were married-couple households, 23.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.^[11]

There were 5,052 housing units, of which 34.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.1% were owner-occupied and 22.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.2%.^[11]

2010 census

The 2010 United States census indicated Baraga County had a population of 8,860.^[14] This was an increase of 114 people from 2000. In 2010 there were 3,444 households and 2,209 families in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile (3.9 people/km²). There were 5,270 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (2.3/km²). Among the county, 75.0% of the population was White, 13.1% Native American, 7.2% Black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.2% of some other race and 4.4% of two or more races; 1.0% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). Additionally, 22.5% were of Finnish, 9.1% German, 8.8% French, French Canadian or Cajun, 5.6% English and 5.5% Irish ancestry.^[15]

In 2010, there were 3,444 households, out of which 25.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families. Of all households, 31.6% were made up of individuals, and 13% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.82. The age distribution of the county population was the following: 20.2% were under the age of 18, 7% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 29.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.9 years; 54.9% of the population was male, 45.1% was female.

As of 2010, the median income for a household in the county was $40,115, and the median income for a family was $50,996. The per capita income for the county was $19,076. About 9.5% of families and 13% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.2% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.

2021 estimates

By the 2021 census estimates, its median household income was $45,792.^[3]