Emmet County is a county in Michigan, United States, at the northern tip of the Lower Peninsula on the Straits of Mackinac. It had a population of 34,112 at the 2020 census and covers 882 square miles (2,280 km2), of which 467 square miles (1,210 km2) is land, centred near 45°35′N 84°59′W.
Petoskey is the county seat, and its postal code is 49770. The county has 2 cities, 3 incorporated villages, and 16 civil townships, plus a scatter of unincorporated lakeshore communities. Emmet County is in the Eastern time zone.
Towns & Villages in Emmet County
Emmet County’s places range from the county-seat city of Petoskey down to single-crossroads communities along Lake Michigan and the Straits of Mackinac. Petoskey and Harbor Springs are incorporated cities; Alanson, Mackinaw City and Pellston are incorporated villages (Mackinaw City straddles the Emmet–Cheboygan county line); everything else below is an unincorporated community or lakeshore subdivision, listed under "Unincorp."
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petoskey | City · seat | Bear Creek (adjacent) | 5,877 | 49770 |
| Harbor Springs | City | Little Traverse (adjacent) | 1,274 | 49740 |
| Alanson | Village | Center | — | 49706 |
| Mackinaw City | Village | Wawatam (partial) | — | 49701 |
| Pellston | Village | Friendship / Littlefield | — | 49769 |
| Ayr | Unincorp. | Maple River | — | — |
| Bay Shore | Unincorp. | Resort | — | — |
| Bay Shore Estates | Unincorp. | Resort | — | — |
| Bay View | Unincorp. | Bear Creek | — | — |
| Bliss | Unincorp. | Bliss | — | — |
| Brutus | Unincorp. | Maple River | — | 49716 |
| Canby Corners | Unincorp. | Center | — | — |
| Carp Lake | Unincorp. | Carp Lake | — | 49718 |
| Cecil | Unincorp. | Carp Lake | — | — |
| Chalet Estates | Unincorp. | Bear Creek | — | — |
| Conway | Unincorp. | Resort | — | 49722 |
| Cross Village | Unincorp. | Cross Village | — | 49723 |
| Epsilon | Unincorp. | Friendship | — | — |
| Forest Beach | Unincorp. | Little Traverse | — | — |
| Good Hart | Unincorp. | Cross Village | — | 49737 |
| Harbor Point | Unincorp. | West Traverse | — | — |
| Harbor Springs Estate | Unincorp. | Springvale | — | — |
| Lake Michigan Heights MH Park | Unincorp. | Bear Creek | — | — |
| Levering | Unincorp. | McKinley | — | 49755 |
| Marsh Corner | Unincorp. | Center | — | — |
| Menonaqua Beach | Unincorp. | Little Traverse | — | — |
| Middle Village | Unincorp. | Springvale | — | — |
| Oden | Unincorp. | Readmond | — | 49764 |
| Patons Corner | Unincorp. | Littlefield | — | — |
| Pleasant View | Unincorp. | Pleasantview | — | — |
| Ponshewaing | Unincorp. | Readmond | — | — |
| Radio City Village MH Park | Unincorp. | Bear Creek | — | — |
| Ramona Park | Unincorp. | Bear Creek | — | — |
| Roaring Brook | Unincorp. | West Traverse | — | — |
| Stutsmanville | Unincorp. | McKinley | — | — |
| Van | Unincorp. | Maple River | — | — |
| Wequetonsing | Unincorp. | Little Traverse | — | — |
Mackinaw City is the county’s one split community: its historic downtown and ferry docks sit in Cheboygan County, while a share of its housing and the Mackinac Bridge approach lie in Emmet County’s Wawatam Township, so the village government and ZIP code (49701) serve residents on both sides of the line.
Townships
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Bear Creek | — | Bay View, Chalet Estates, Ramona Park |
| Bliss | — | Bliss |
| Carp Lake | — | Carp Lake, Cecil |
| Center | — | Alanson, Canby Corners, Marsh Corner |
| Cross Village | — | Cross Village, Good Hart |
| Friendship | — | Epsilon |
| Little Traverse | — | Harbor Springs (adjacent), Wequetonsing, Menonaqua Beach |
| Littlefield | — | Pellston, Patons Corner |
| Maple River | — | Ayr, Brutus, Van |
| McKinley | — | Levering, Stutsmanville |
| Pleasantview | — | Pleasant View |
| Readmond | — | Oden, Ponshewaing |
| Resort | — | Bay Shore, Conway |
| Springvale | — | Middle Village, Harbor Springs Estate |
| Wawatam | — | Mackinaw City (partial) |
| West Traverse | — | Harbor Point, Roaring Brook |
ZIP Codes
- 49770 — Petoskey (also serves Bay View, Bay Shore Estates, Lake Michigan Heights and Radio City Village MH Park)
- 49740 — Harbor Springs (also serves Wequetonsing, Menonaqua Beach and Harbor Point)
- 49706 — Alanson (also serves Canby Corners and Marsh Corner)
- 49769 — Pellston (also serves Patons Corner)
- 49701 — Mackinaw City (shared with Cheboygan County)
- 49755 — Levering (also serves Stutsmanville)
- 49718 — Carp Lake (also serves Cecil)
- 49716 — Brutus (also serves Ayr and Van)
- 49722 — Conway (also serves Bay Shore)
- 49764 — Oden (also serves Ponshewaing)
- 49723 — Cross Village
- 49737 — Good Hart
Bliss, Chalet Estates, Epsilon, Harbor Springs Estate, Middle Village, Pleasant View and Roaring Brook have no ZIP code of their own and are served by the nearest post-office town listed above.
Geography
Emmet County occupies the top of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, bounded by Lake Michigan on the west and the Straits of Mackinac on the north. Roughly 47 percent of the county’s total area is water. At the mouth of the Bear River, the lower county forms Little Traverse Bay, the shoreline around which Petoskey and Harbor Springs both grew up as resort towns. Inland terrain rises into rolling, forested hills typical of the northern Lower Peninsula, with the Maple River and several inland lakes draining toward Lake Michigan.
Emmet County borders Cheboygan County to the east and Charlevoix County to the south. Across the Straits of Mackinac, reached via the Mackinac Bridge, lies Mackinac County to the north.
Demographics
Emmet County had a population of 34,112 at the 2020 census. Petoskey, the largest community, had 5,877 residents; Harbor Springs, the second city, had 1,274. Median household income in the county runs close to the Michigan median of $69,183, with Petoskey and Harbor Springs’s resort and second-home economy pulling the county average up in some years and down in others depending on seasonal residency. With 467 square miles of land, the county’s overall population density is about 73 people per square mile, though most residents live within a few miles of Little Traverse Bay.
Economy & Local Life
Tourism, health care and small manufacturing anchor the county economy. McLaren Northern Michigan, based in Petoskey, is the county’s largest employer and the region’s referral hospital. Petoskey is also home to Kilwins, the confectionery chain founded there in 1947, and to the Odawa Casino Resort, operated by the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, whose reservation lands lie within the county. Downtown Petoskey’s Gaslight District and the Little Traverse Wheelway, a paved trail along the bay connecting Petoskey, Harbor Springs and Charlevoix, draw summer visitors, while Petoskey stones — the fossilized coral found on local beaches and named the state stone of Michigan — are the county’s best-known natural souvenir.
History
The county was organized on April 1, 1840, under the name Tonedagana County; it was renamed Emmet County in 1843 in honor of Robert Emmet, the Irish nationalist. The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians have lived around Little Traverse Bay for generations before European settlement, and their federally recognized reservation remains centered in the county today. Petoskey grew from a 19th-century lumbering and fishing settlement into a lakeside resort after the railroad reached it in the 1870s, a pattern repeated at Harbor Springs and Bay View, whose Victorian-era summer cottages still line the bay.
Getting There
US 31 runs along the west side of the county through Petoskey and Alanson; US 131 ends in Petoskey after crossing the state from Indiana; I-75 passes just east of the county en route to the Mackinac Bridge, reached via US 23 through Mackinaw City.
- Harbor Springs — 7 miles northwest of Petoskey
- Mackinaw City — 17 miles northeast of Petoskey
- Cheboygan — 25 miles east of Petoskey
- Charlevoix — 17 miles south of Petoskey
Pellston Regional Airport, in Emmet County itself, offers commercial service; Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City is the nearest larger airport, about 65 miles south.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Emmet County?
It sits at the top of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, on Lake Michigan and the Straits of Mackinac, bordering Cheboygan and Charlevoix counties.
What is the population of Emmet County?
34,112 at the 2020 census.
How big is Emmet County?
882 square miles (2,280 km2) in total, of which 467 square miles is land and 415 square miles is water.
What is the Emmet County seat?
Petoskey is the county seat.
How many towns and villages are in Emmet County?
Two cities (Petoskey and Harbor Springs), three incorporated villages (Alanson, Mackinaw City and Pellston) and roughly 30 unincorporated communities across 16 civil townships.
What ZIP codes are in Emmet County?
Twelve, led by 49770 (Petoskey) and 49740 (Harbor Springs); the full list is above.
What is Emmet County known for?
Little Traverse Bay’s resort towns, Petoskey stones, and the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians’ reservation and casino.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Michigan.