Carney began as a station on the Chicago and North Western Railway in 1879.

[5] The village was named for Frederick Carney, who owned a warehouse at the town site.

[6] Carney is in central Menominee County along U.S. Route 41, which leads south 34 miles (55 km) to Menominee, the county seat, and north 7 miles (11 km) to U.S. Route 2 at Powers.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the village of Carney has a total area of 1.37 square miles (3.55 km2), all land.

[1] Poterfield Creek, a tributary of the Little Cedar River, flows southward just to the west of the village.

27.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

About 12.7% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.0% of those under the age of eighteen and 7.4% of those 65 or over.