Menominee County is a county in Wisconsin, United States, about 40 miles northwest of Green Bay. It had a population of 4,255 at the 2020 census, an estimated 4,252 residents by 2024, and covers 358 square miles (930 km2) centred near 45°01′N 88°42′W.
Keshena is the county seat and largest community; its postal code is 54135. The county has no incorporated cities, villages or towns of chartered government — every named place is a census-designated community, and nearly all of the county is organized as a single civil town, the Town of Menominee. It runs on Central Time. Its FIPS code is 55078.
Towns & Villages in Menominee County
Menominee County has 5 named places on record, and all 5 are census-designated places (CDPs) rather than incorporated municipalities — Menominee is the only county in Wisconsin with no incorporated city, village or town government at all. CDP stands for census designated place, an unincorporated community the Census Bureau tracks for statistical purposes.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keshena | CDP · seat | 1,257 | 54135 |
| Legend Lake | CDP | 1,670 | — |
| Neopit | CDP | 616 | 54948 |
| Middle Village | CDP | 290 | — |
| Zoar | CDP | 107 | — |
The five CDPs together hold about 3,940 of the county’s 4,255 residents; the remaining roughly 300 people live on scattered rural land outside any named place. Middle Village is a split case: its CDP boundary crosses the county line into the Town of Red Springs in Shawano County, and its population figure of 290 covers both sides together, not just the Menominee County share. Keshena Falls, a set of rapids on the Wolf River just outside Keshena and a historic sturgeon-spawning site, is a natural landmark rather than a settlement and is not counted as a place.
ZIP Codes
- 54135 — Keshena, the county’s post office town
- 54948 — Neopit
Legend Lake, Middle Village and Zoar have no ZIP code of their own; residents there use the nearest post office’s code for mail delivery.
Geography
Menominee County sits in Wisconsin’s northeastern forest region, almost entirely covered by the Menominee Indian Reservation and its working forest, one of the oldest continuously and sustainably logged forests in the country. Of the county’s 365 square miles of total area, 358 are land and 7.4 are water, about 2 percent. The Wolf River, a federally designated National Scenic River along part of its course, runs south through the county and past Keshena, carrying the Keshena Falls rapids and drawing whitewater paddlers each year.
Oconto County lies to the east, Shawano County to the south, and Langlade County to the northwest. Oconto County, Shawano County and Langlade County all border Menominee directly.
Demographics
Menominee County had a population of 4,255 at the 2020 census, Wisconsin’s smallest of any county, and an estimated 4,252 residents in 2024. Legend Lake and Keshena are the two largest communities, together holding more than two-thirds of the county’s people. Median household income runs about $62,108 (2024 estimate), well below Wisconsin’s statewide figure of $74,631 (2023 ACS). Population density works out to roughly 11.9 people per square mile of land, among the lowest of any county in the state. The 2020 census recorded the county at 85.6 percent American Indian or Alaska Native, reflecting its status as the seat of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin.
Economy & Local Life
Public administration is the county’s largest employment sector, with about 262 workers, followed by arts, entertainment and recreation at 220 and health care and social assistance at 191, out of roughly 1,421 employed residents total. Menominee Tribal Enterprises, the tribally owned forestry and sawmill operation headquartered in Neopit, manages the reservation’s roughly 220,000-acre working forest and harvests about 15 million board feet of timber a year under practices recognized internationally for sustainability. The Menominee Casino and Bingo in Keshena is another major local employer, along with the College of Menominee Nation, a tribal college founded in 1993 and accredited in 1998, and the Menominee Indian School District. The tribe holds its largest annual powwow in Keshena each summer, drawing dancers and visitors from tribes across the country.
History
Wisconsin’s legislature created Menominee County in 1959, anticipating the end of federal trusteeship over the Menominee Indian Reservation. The county began operating in 1961, when the Menominee Termination Act took full effect, ending the tribe’s federal recognition and converting the reservation into an ordinary Wisconsin county carved from portions of Shawano and Oconto counties. The termination years brought heavy logging debt and a corporate structure, Menominee Enterprises Inc., that struggled to support the population; Menominee County soon became the poorest county in the state. The Menominee Restoration Act, signed by President Richard Nixon on December 22, 1973, reversed termination and restored the tribe’s federal recognition and its reservation, though the county itself remained in place as a unit of Wisconsin government layered over tribal land.
Getting There
No interstate highway reaches Menominee County. Wisconsin Highway 47 and Wisconsin Highway 55 are the main routes through the county, both running north–south past Keshena and Neopit.
- Shawano — about 10 miles south
- Green Bay — about 40 miles east
- Antigo — about 30 miles northwest
- Wausau — about 50 miles west
Austin Straubel International Airport in Green Bay is the nearest commercial airport. No Amtrak route reaches this part of Wisconsin; the nearest station is in Milwaukee, roughly 150 miles south.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Menominee County located?
It sits in Wisconsin’s northeastern forest region, about 40 miles northwest of Green Bay, bordered by Oconto, Shawano and Langlade counties.
What is the population of Menominee County?
4,255 at the 2020 census, the smallest of any Wisconsin county, with a 2024 estimate near 4,252.
How big is Menominee County?
365 square miles (950 km2) in total, of which 358 square miles are land.
What is the county seat of Menominee County?
Keshena, a census-designated place and the headquarters of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin.
How many towns and villages are in Menominee County?
Five named places, all census-designated communities rather than incorporated municipalities: Keshena, Legend Lake, Neopit, Middle Village and Zoar.
What ZIP codes does Menominee County use?
54135 for Keshena and 54948 for Neopit; Legend Lake, Middle Village and Zoar use the nearest post office’s code.
What is Menominee County known for?
Being coextensive with the Menominee Indian Reservation and its sustainably managed working forest, one of the oldest continuously logged forests in the United States.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Wisconsin.