Union County, Ohio: deer harvest and public hunting land
Union County covers 437 square miles around Marysville. Hunters checked 1,401 deer here in the 2025-26 season, 649 of them by archers, by the Division of Wildlife's final report. That is up 2% from 2024, and the most in the 4 years shown. 1.1% of Union County is public land open to the public, the largest share metro parks, county and city land (2,114 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 landUnion CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 279,611 acres (437 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025-26 | 1,401 (584 antlered, 817 antlerless) |
| Archery and gun, 2025-26 | 649 archery, 752 gun |
| Public land | 1.1% (3,139 acres) |
| ODNR hunting areas | None mapped |
| Towns in and near it | Marysville, Richwood, Milford Center, Plain City, West Mansfield and North Lewisburg |
How many deer are harvested in Union County?
Hunters checked 1,401 deer in Union County in 2025-26: 584 antlered and 817 antlerless. Archers took 649 and gun hunters 752.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 1,401 | 584 | 817 | 649 | 752 |
| 2024-25 | 1,372 | 592 | 780 | 658 | 714 |
| 2023-24 | 1,228 | 579 | 649 | 620 | |
| 2021-22 | 1,136 |
Source: the Division of Wildlife's 2025-26, 2024-25 and 2023-24 final deer harvest reports and Publication 5304 (2021-22), Union County. 2022-23 is not shown. For 2021-22 Publication 5304 gives 530 bucks, 498 does and 108 button bucks; the final reports of later seasons count bucks with shed or very short antlers as antlerless.
How much public land is in Union County?
3,139 of Union County's 279,611 acres are public land open to the public (1.1%). The biggest share is metro parks, county and city land: 2,114 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Union County |
|---|---|---|
| Metro parks, county and city land | 2,114 | 0.8% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 859 | 0.3% |
| Other state land | 166 | 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 3,139 | 1.1% |
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.
How do you get to Union County?
Highways through it: US 33 (about 50 miles inside), OH 4 (about 30 miles inside), OH 739 (about 25 miles inside), OH 31 (about 19 miles inside) and OH 47 (about 17 miles inside). Towns inside: Marysville, Richwood, Milford Center, Magnetic Springs, Unionville Center and New California. Nearby: Plain City (on the line), West Mansfield (on the line), North Lewisburg (on the line) and Dublin (on the line).
Which counties border Union County?
Union County touches 7 other counties. Their latest ODNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Logan County | 2,712 | 2025 | 2.6% |
| Hardin County | 2,053 | 2025 | 0.4% |
| Marion County | 1,384 | 2025 | 4.2% |
| Madison County | 767 | 2025 | 0.8% |
| Delaware County | 1,877 | 2025 | 7.6% |
| Franklin County | 709 | 2025 | 9% |
| Champaign County | 1,867 | 2025 | 0.9% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Union County in 2025-26?
1,401: 584 antlered and 817 antlerless (Division of Wildlife). In 2024-25: 1,372.
Is there public hunting land in Union County?
3,139 acres, 1.1% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and ODNR's land boundaries, the largest share metro parks, county and city land (2,114 acres).
How many deer do archers take in Union County?
649 of the 1,401 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 Logan County Hardin County Marion County Madison County Delaware County Franklin County Champaign County