[4] The county is named after Bishop Frederic Baraga, a Catholic missionary who ministered to the Ojibwa Indians in the Michigan Territory.

The villages of Baraga and L'Anse are located at the base of Lake Superior's Keweenaw Bay.

Point Abbaye projects north into the lake, enclosing Huron Bay.

Baraga County operates the county jail, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, records deeds, mortgages, and vital records, administers public health regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of social services.

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

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