Meigs County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Meigs County covers 433 square miles around Pomeroy. Hunters checked 1,060 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 524 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is down 71% from 2024, and the fewest in the 4 years shown. 3.8% of Meigs County is public land open to the public, the largest share land on ODNR's hunting map (6,396 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 mapFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesOther state landMetro parks, county and city landLand trusts and other open landMeigs CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 277,103 acres (433 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 1,060 (632 antlered, 428 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 524 archery, 536 gun |
| Public land | 3.8% (10,620 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | 10 (6,395 acres inside Meigs County) |
| Towns in and near it | Pomeroy, Middleport, Syracuse, Wilkesville, Cheshire and Albany |
How many deer are harvested in Meigs County?
Hunters checked 1,060 deer in Meigs County in 2025-26: 632 antlered and 428 antlerless. Archers took 524 and gun hunters 536.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 1,060 | 632 | 428 | 524 | 536 |
| 2024-25 | 3,614 | 1,636 | 1,978 | 1,571 | 2,043 |
| 2023-24 | 2,964 | 1,358 | 1,606 | 1,283 | |
| 2021-22 | 3,418 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Meigs County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 1,577 bucks, 1,607 does and 234 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Meigs County?
10,620 of Meigs County's 277,103 acres are public land open to the public (3.8%). The biggest share is land on ODNR's hunting map: 6,396 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Meigs County |
|---|---|---|
| Land on ODNR's hunting map | 6,396 | 2.3% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 4,016 | 1.4% |
| Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes | 138 | under 0.1% |
| Metro parks, county and city land | 48 | under 0.1% |
| Other state land | 20 | under 0.1% |
| National wildlife refuges | 2 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 10,620 | 3.8% |
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 Meigs County
ODNR areas open to hunting in Meigs County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Shade River State Forest: 3,043 acres
- AEP Southern Ohio Recreation Area: 2,349 acres
- Forked Run State Park: 848 acres
- Ohio River Access - Forked Run Wildlife Area: 34 acres
- Ohio River Access - Old Town Creek Wildlife Area: 33 acres
- Ohio River Access - Shade River Wildlife Area: 29 acres
- Ohio River Access - Racine Wildlife Area: 21 acres
- Ohio River Forked Run State Park: 15 acres
- Ohio River Lock & Dam 23 Wildlife Area: 12 acres
- Ohio River Lock & Dam 21 Wildlife Area: 11 acres
How do you get to Meigs County?
Highways through it: OH 124 (about 68 miles inside), OH 7 (about 29 miles inside), OH 681 (about 29 miles inside), OH 143 (about 19 miles inside) and OH 248 (about 9 miles inside). Towns inside: Pomeroy, Middleport, Syracuse, Rutland, Racine and Tuppers Plains. Nearby: Wilkesville (on the line), Cheshire (on the line), Albany (2 miles) and Vinton (2 miles).
Which counties border Meigs County?
Meigs County touches 3 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athens County | 917 | 2025 | 11.9% |
| Gallia County | 2,956 | 2025 | 11.8% |
| Vinton County | 1,931 | 2025 | 18.9% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Meigs County in 2025-26?
1,060: 632 antlered and 428 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 3,614.
Is there public hunting land in Meigs County?
10,620 acres, 3.8% 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 on ODNR's hunting map (6,396 acres). ODNR's layer shows 10 areas open to hunting here.
How many deer do archers take in Meigs County?
524 of the 1,060 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.