Hancock County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Hancock County covers 534 square miles around Findlay. Hunters checked 2,345 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 953 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is up 10% from 2024, and the most in the 4 years shown. 0.8% of Hancock County is public land open to the public, the largest share land trusts and other open land (1,210 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the Division of Wildlife's harvest reports, 2021-22 to 2025-26. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land layer.
Land on ODNR's hunting mapMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landHancock CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 341,514 acres (534 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 2,345 (993 antlered, 1,352 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 953 archery, 1,392 gun |
| Public land | 0.8% (2,600 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 8 (628 acres inside Hancock County) |
| Towns in and near it | Findlay, McComb, Arlington, Bairdstown, Bloomdale and Bluffton |
How many deer are harvested in Hancock County?
Hunters checked 2,345 deer in Hancock County in 2025-26: 993 antlered and 1,352 antlerless. Archers took 953 and gun hunters 1,392.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 2,345 | 993 | 1,352 | 953 | 1,392 |
| 2024-25 | 2,127 | 921 | 1,206 | 912 | 1,215 |
| 2023-24 | 1,974 | 906 | 1,068 | 967 | |
| 2021-22 | 1,561 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Hancock County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 712 bucks, 703 does and 146 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Hancock County?
2,600 of Hancock County's 341,514 acres are public land open to the public (0.8%). The biggest share is land trusts and other open land: 1,210 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Hancock County |
|---|---|---|
| Land trusts and other open land | 1,210 | 0.4% |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 750 | 0.2% |
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 628 | 0.2% |
| Other state land | 12 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 2,600 | 0.8% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and ODNR's land boundaries with hunting status. Hunting rules differ by manager: ODNR wildlife areas, hunting areas and forests marked open follow Ohio's statewide seasons, and those marked restricted limit hunting by place, season or permit; national forest is open; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; metro parks and city land are closed to most hunting.
ODNR areas open to hunting in Hancock County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Hancock County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Van Buren State Park: 294 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 9 Wildlife Area: 57 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 41 Wildlife Area: 53 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 25 Wildlife Area: 51 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 32 Wildlife Area: 47 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 45 Wildlife Area: 46 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 43 Wildlife Area: 40 acres
- Wildlife Production Area 46 Wildlife Area: 40 acres
How do you get to Hancock County?
Highways through it: I-75 (about 51 miles inside), OH 15 (about 44 miles inside), US 30 (about 38 miles inside), OH 12 (about 28 miles inside) and US 224 (about 26 miles inside). Towns inside: Findlay, McComb, Arlington, Arcadia, Mount Blanchard and Mount Cory. Nearby: Bairdstown (on the line), Bloomdale (on the line), Bluffton (on the line) and Fostoria (on the line).
Which counties border Hancock County?
Hancock County touches 7 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wood County | 1,434 | 2025 | 0.8% |
| Allen County | 1,831 | 2025 | 1.1% |
| Henry County | 1,181 | 2025 | 0.8% |
| Hardin County | 2,053 | 2025 | 0.4% |
| Putnam County | 1,376 | 2025 | 0.1% |
| Seneca County | 3,017 | 2025 | 0.6% |
| Wyandot County | 2,405 | 2025 | 3.9% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Hancock County in 2025-26?
2,345: 993 antlered and 1,352 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 2,127.
Is there public hunting land in Hancock County?
2,600 acres, 0.8% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries, the largest share land trusts and other open land (1,210 acres). ODNR's layer shows 8 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Hancock County?
953 of the 2,345 deer checked in 2025-26 were taken with a crossbow or longbow (Division of Wildlife).
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and ODNR's land boundaries with hunting status. ODNR areas open to hunting: ODNR lands hunting status.
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife. Numbers are copied from ODNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Ohio hunting Wood County Allen County Henry County Hardin County Putnam County Seneca County Wyandot County