"[1][6][7][8] This was part of a much larger effort to rename a great many of the Michigan counties at the time.

[8] The Thunder Bay Band of Chippewa and Ottawa, the original indigenous inhabitants of the area, merged with the Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians in the mid 1800s under Chief Way-ge-maw-waw-be.

The Mackinaw State Forest occupies large tracts of land in the county.

The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is offshore adjacent to the county.

The 45th parallel bisects the county, meaning it is halfway between the North Pole and the equator.

A large portion of the area is so-called Grayling outwash plain, consisting of broad outwash plain including sandy ice-disintegration ridges; jack pine barrens, some white pine-red pine forest, and northern hardwood forests.

The county government operates the jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services.

The county board of commissioners controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances.

In Michigan, most local government functions — police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc.