Michigan Porch

Manistee County, Michigan

Use this county page to find the right government office or narrow down to a city or township. The service directory covers common county jobs; the local pages add property-tax context, school-district rate ranges, nearby places, and Porch Notes tied to each community.

County snapshot

Cities

1

Townships

14

School districts

7

Primary home (PRE) rates, for homes with Michigan's Principal Residence Exemption, range from 23.8039 mills to 43.637 mills.

Other property, often called non-homestead, usually means rentals, vacation homes, and second homes. Those rates range from 41.8039 mills to 61.637 mills.

Rate rows come from the official Michigan Treasury millage-rate reports . Data used: 2025 Michigan Treasury Total Property Tax Rates. Last reviewed July 12, 2026.

Use this carefully: Michigan Porch uses the statewide published rates as a planning aid. The local assessor or treasurer controls parcel-specific values, due dates, and special assessments.

County service directory

Find the office before you make the trip

Some questions stay with the city or township. Others move to the county, a health district, or a court. Start with the job you need done, then confirm hours, fees, and forms with the office.

Official Manistee County website

County websites are checked against the State of Michigan county website directory . State and court finders are used where one office or district can serve more than one county. Directory reviewed July 12, 2026. Office roles were checked against Michigan Vital Records, Michigan Treasury taxpayer resources, and State Tax Commission guidance.

Local pages

Places in Manistee County

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Porch Notes

Local notes from Manistee County

Stories, practical notes, and local details tied to places in this county.

Manistee County · History and culture

The Ramsdell Theatre, where James Earl Jones first walked on stage

Manistee's lumber-baron opera house opened in 1903 with a green-and-gold horseshoe balcony and a painted dome, and a young James Earl Jones learned his craft on its stage.

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Manistee County · History and culture

The City of Milwaukee carried railroad cars across Lake Michigan

The 1931 City of Milwaukee carried loaded railroad cars across Lake Michigan and is the sole surviving pre-1940, classic-period Great Lakes car ferry.

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Manistee County · History and culture

The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, recognized again in 1994

An Odawa nation tied to the Manistee River for centuries had its federal status quietly erased, then won it back in 1994 — and today runs its own government and a resort north of town.

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Manistee County · History and culture

Guardian Angels Church and the 170-foot tower over Manistee

Built from 1888 to 1890 for a largely Irish and German congregation, Guardian Angels is a Romanesque landmark with a 170-foot steeple.

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Manistee County · History and culture

Manistee's North Pierhead Light and its rare wind-proof catwalk

A little red 1927 lighthouse guards the mouth of the Manistee River, reached by an elevated steel catwalk — one of only a handful left in Michigan after most were torn down.

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Manistee County · History and culture

Manistee's Sleighbell Parade, where a horse team pulls a 30-foot tree upright

Every December, downtown Manistee bans electric lights and recorded music for a candlelit Victorian Christmas parade whose finale is a Belgian draft team standing a 30-foot tree upright on River Street.

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Browse all 22 Manistee County notes →

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