Iron County is a county in Michigan, United States, on the far western end of the Upper Peninsula. It had a population of 11,631 at the 2020 census and covers 1,166 square miles (3,020 km2) of land plus 45 square miles (120 km2) of water, centred near 46°13′N 88°31′W.
Crystal Falls is the county seat, and its postal code is 49920. The county has four incorporated cities, one village, and seven civil townships, plus a scatter of unincorporated communities and former mining locations. Iron County observes Central Time, unlike most of the rest of the Upper Peninsula, which runs on Eastern Time.
Towns & Villages in Iron County
Iron County’s settlement pattern still traces the old mining boom: a handful of incorporated cities near the ore ranges, one village, and dozens of small unincorporated “locations” that grew up around individual mine shafts. Most of those locations have since shrunk to a few houses or vanished outright. Type key: City = incorporated city, Village = incorporated village, CDP = census-designated place, Unincorp. = unincorporated community or historic mining location.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crystal Falls | City · seat | Crystal Falls Twp. | — | 49920 |
| Iron River | City | Iron River Twp. | — | 49935 |
| Caspian | City | Stambaugh Twp. | — | 49915 |
| Gaastra | City | Stambaugh Twp. | — | 49927 |
| Alpha | Village | Mansfield Twp. | — | 49902 |
| Amasa | CDP | Hematite Twp. | — | 49903 |
| Stambaugh | Unincorp. | Stambaugh Twp. | — | 49964 |
| Beechwood | Unincorp. | Bates Twp. | — | — |
| Balsam | Unincorp. | Mansfield Twp. | — | — |
| Basswood | Unincorp. | Mansfield Twp. | — | — |
| Bates Junction | Unincorp. | Bates Twp. | — | — |
| Colony Corners | Unincorp. | Mastodon Twp. | — | — |
| Elmwood | Unincorp. | Iron River Twp. | — | — |
| Erickson Landing | Unincorp. | Iron River Twp. | — | — |
| Fortune Lake | Unincorp. | Crystal Falls Twp. | — | — |
| Gibbs City | Unincorp. · ghost town | Hematite Twp. | — | — |
| Mansfield | Unincorp. | Mansfield Twp. | — | — |
| Mapleton | Unincorp. | Mastodon Twp. | — | — |
| Mastodon | Unincorp. | Mastodon Twp. | — | — |
| Mineral Hills | Unincorp. | Iron River Twp. | — | — |
| Panola | Unincorp. | Stambaugh Twp. | — | — |
| Pentoga | Unincorp. | Hematite Twp. | — | — |
| Rogers | Unincorp. | Iron River Twp. | — | — |
| Stager | Unincorp. | Crystal Falls Twp. | — | — |
Several old “locations” from the mining era — Bates Location, Dunn Location, Forbes Location, Hiawatha Location, Homer Location, Kimball Location, Mansfield Location, Monongahela Location, New Bristol Location, Odgers Location, Rogers Location, Shafer Location, Tobin Location, Virgil Location and Western Location — were company housing clusters attached to specific iron mines. Most have no remaining population and are not listed as active places today; a few, including Mansfield Location and Rogers, persist as small road-junction communities and are noted above.
Townships
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Iron River Township | — | Iron River (city), Elmwood, Mineral Hills |
| Stambaugh Township | — | Caspian, Gaastra, Stambaugh, Panola |
| Crystal Falls Township | — | Crystal Falls (city), Fortune Lake, Stager |
| Mansfield Township | — | Alpha (village), Mansfield, Balsam, Basswood |
| Bates Township | — | Beechwood, Bates Junction |
| Hematite Township | — | Amasa, Pentoga, Gibbs City |
| Mastodon Township | — | Mapleton, Colony Corners |
ZIP Codes
- 49920 — Crystal Falls (also serves Stager and Fortune Lake)
- 49935 — Iron River (also serves Elmwood and Mineral Hills)
- 49915 — Caspian
- 49927 — Gaastra
- 49903 — Amasa (also serves Pentoga)
- 49902 — Alpha
- 49964 — Stambaugh
Smaller unincorporated places without their own post office, such as Beechwood, Mansfield and Colony Corners, use the ZIP of the nearest post-office town listed above.
Geography
Iron County sits on the Wisconsin border in the western Upper Peninsula, a landscape of second-growth forest, small lakes and the rolling terrain left by a century of iron mining. Part of the Ottawa National Forest lies within the county. Iron County is one of only two Upper Peninsula counties with no Great Lakes shoreline — the other is Dickinson County, its neighbor to the east.
Iron County borders Dickinson County to the east, Marquette County to the northeast, Baraga and Houghton counties to the north, Ontonagon County to the northwest, and Gogebic County to the west, all in Michigan. Across the state line to the south lie Florence County (southeast), Forest County (south) and Vilas County (southwest), all in Wisconsin.
Demographics
The county’s population was 11,631 at the 2020 census, down from 11,817 in 2010. Iron River is the largest community and Crystal Falls, the county seat, is the second-largest. Iron County’s median household income runs well below the Michigan median of $69,183, reflecting the decline of the mining economy that once drove the region. Population density is roughly 10 people per square mile, among the lowest in the state.
Economy & Local Life
Iron ore mining built the county’s cities in the late 1800s and early 1900s; today the economy leans on healthcare, forestry and wood products, tourism, and small-scale manufacturing. Snowmobiling and ATV trails, built over old rail and mining-access grades, draw visitors in winter and summer alike, and the county’s lakes support a seasonal cabin economy.
History
Iron County was organized on April 3, 1885, from land previously part of Marquette and Menominee counties. It takes its name directly from the iron ore deposits that were being actively mined in the area at the time of organization. The Stambaugh-Caspian-Gaastra cluster of cities grew up around competing iron mines within a few miles of each other, giving the county an unusually dense concentration of small incorporated cities for a rural Upper Peninsula county.
Getting There
US 2 crosses the southern part of the county and US 141 runs north-south through Crystal Falls and Iron River, connecting to Wisconsin at the state line.
- Iron Mountain, Michigan — 25 miles east
- Marquette, Michigan — 75 miles northeast
- Rhinelander, Wisconsin — 65 miles south
- Green Bay, Wisconsin — 130 miles southeast
The nearest commercial airport is Ford Airport (IMT) in Kingsford, near Iron Mountain in Dickinson County.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Iron County, Michigan?
It is on the western end of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, bordering Wisconsin, between Dickinson and Gogebic counties.
What is the population of Iron County?
11,631 people, per the 2020 census.
How big is Iron County?
1,211 square miles total (1,166 square miles of land, 45 square miles of water), or 3,140 km2.
What is the county seat of Iron County?
Crystal Falls.
How many towns are in Iron County?
Four incorporated cities (Crystal Falls, Iron River, Caspian, Gaastra), one village (Alpha), and dozens of smaller unincorporated communities and former mining locations.
What ZIP codes are in Iron County?
49920 (Crystal Falls), 49935 (Iron River), 49915 (Caspian), 49927 (Gaastra), 49903 (Amasa), 49902 (Alpha) and 49964 (Stambaugh).
Why is it called Iron County?
It was named for the iron ore deposits discovered in the area, which drove the county’s mining economy from the 1880s onward.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Michigan.