Thompson State Fish Hatchery, on M-149 at Manistique, puts 7,240,990 fish into Michigan water in a year by the current DNR production count, and anyone can walk through it at no charge. The DNR established it in 1922. It is one of six state fish hatcheries, and by our reading of the DNR’s list, one of two in the Upper Peninsula.
The visitor center and the tour are self-guided and open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The buildings lock at 3:30, but the DNR says visitors are still welcome to tour outside after that. Fish are on view in the outside buildings from September through May, which makes right now the window.
Groups can book a guided tour by calling ahead, 906-341-5587, ext. 2. Everyone else just shows up.
What Thompson State Fish Hatchery raises
The hatchery produces four species for both inland and Great Lakes water: Chinook salmon, muskellunge, steelhead and walleye. Walleye carry the number. The DNR’s current count lists 6,150,010 walleye fry, about 85 percent of the total by our count.
Steelhead come in two sizes. The count shows 246,268 fall fingerlings and 595,759 spring yearlings, 842,027 steelhead by our count. Chinook salmon add 248,953 spring fingerlings. The DNR lists muskellunge on the hatchery page without a number.
The muskie number shows up elsewhere. In a January 2026 release on fall stocking, the DNR said Thompson stocked 3,008 Great Lakes strain muskellunge that weighed 304 pounds, into Lake Hudson and Thornapple Lake. The same release said Thompson also stocked 329,085 fall fingerling steelhead weighing 2,413 total pounds in six locations.
Where the fish go
The DNR’s August 2025 stocking release put Thompson’s run to that point at 2,397,307 fish, 69,598 pounds in total, across 51 sites, the majority on the Great Lakes. That included yearling steelhead, spring fingerling Chinook salmon, yearling muskellunge and spring fingerling walleye. Statewide, the DNR said it had stocked 18,958,970 fish by that point in 2025.
The other U.P. hatchery
The DNR says it operates six fish hatcheries, five permanent egg collection stations and up to 40 rearing ponds. Its August 2025 release counts six state hatcheries and two cooperative hatcheries, one of them a teaching hatchery at Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie.
The other state hatchery in the U.P. is Marquette State Fish Hatchery, at 488 Cherry Creek Road. The DNR established it in 1920, and it raises brook trout, lake trout, splake and Arctic grayling. It is open to the public daily, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The DNR said Marquette’s 2025 fall fingerlings went to 27 locations in the Upper Peninsula.
Thompson is the walleye and salmon house. Marquette is the trout house. Between them, the U.P. has two free hatchery tours, and Thompson is the one with fish on view through the cold months.
If you go: Thompson State Fish Hatchery, 944 S. State Highway M-149, Manistique, MI 49854. The self-guided tour and visitor center are open daily, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at no charge. Fish are on view in the outside buildings September through May. Phone 906-341-5587. To see where the fish went, the DNR points people to its Fish Stocking Database at MichiganDNR.com/FishStock.
Seven million fish, no ticket, and the viewing season just opened.
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Sources, credits, and reporting details
Sources & accountability
How this story was reported
Editorial methodService and public-interest reporting
Last verifiedOct. 19, 2026
Corrections statusNo material correction note is recorded on this article.
AI assistanceResearched and drafted with AI tools. Reviewed and approved by editor Keegan O’Brien.
Verification note: Written October 19, 2026 for the 2026-10-24 edition; sources read and checked Oct. 19, 2026. AI-assisted drafting, staff desk piece.
Primary sources
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Thompson State Fish Hatchery — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "Below are Thompson's current production statistics: … TOTAL 7,240,990"
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Thompson State Fish Hatchery — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "This facility was established in 1922 and produces the following species for both inland and Great Lakes waters: Chinook salmon, Muskellunge, Steelhead, Walleye"
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Thompson State Fish Hatchery — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "Open at no charge to the public. Tours and visitor center are self-guided and open daily, 7:30 am to 3:30 pm. Buildings are locked after 3:30 pm, but visitors are still welcome to tour outside."
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Thompson State Fish Hatchery — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "Fish viewing in outside buildings September – May … 944 S. State Highway M149 Manistique, Michigan, 49854 … Please call in advance to schedule guided group tours: 906-341-5587 ext. 2."
Additional reporting
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Fish hatcheries — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "We operate six fish hatcheries, five permanent egg collection stations and up to 40 rearing ponds."
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Marquette State Fish Hatchery — Michigan DNR
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "488 Cherry Creek Road Marquette, Michigan, 49855 … This facility was established in 1920 … Brook trout, Lake trout, Splake, Arctic grayling … open to the public daily from 8:30am to 3:30pm."
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Michigan DNR has stocked 18.9 million fish so far in 2025 — Michigan DNR
Published Aug. 11, 2025. Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "Thompson State Fish Hatchery (near Manistique)stocked 2,397,307 fish, which included yearling steelhead, spring fingerling Chinook salmon, yearling muskellunge and spring fingerling walleye. These fish weighed 69,598 pounds in total. This hatchery stocked 51 sites, the majority located on the Great Lakes."
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Michigan DNR has stocked 18.9 million fish so far in 2025 — Michigan DNR
Published Aug. 11, 2025. Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "a total of 18,958,970 fish … In Michigan, there are six state hatcheries and two cooperative hatcheries … A cooperative teaching hatchery at Lake Superior State University (in Sault Saint Marie) … check out the DNR's Fish Stocking Database at MichiganDNR.com/FishStock."
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Fall fingerlings stocked in Michigan waters near you! — Michigan DNR
Published Jan. 8, 2026. Accessed Oct. 19, 2026.
Fetched Oct 19, 2026: "stocked 3,008 Great Lakes strain muskellunge that weighed 304 pounds … Thompson also stocked 329,085 fall fingerling steelhead weighing 2,413 total pounds in six locations. … These fish were stocked at a total of 27 locations in the Upper Peninsula."
Photo and media credits
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Young lake trout stocked into a hatchery raceway in Michigan, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo — Wikimedia Commons / USFWSmidwest
Featured image record. Accessed Oct. 19, 2026. Public domain.
Media ID 4412; resized to 2000px; credit in caption and alt
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Walleye fry in a jar, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo — Wikimedia Commons / USFWS Mountain-Prairie
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026. Public domain.
Supports: Body image 2: Walleye fry in a jar, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service photo
Media ID 4413; resized to 2000px; credit in caption and alt
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Aerial view of Manistique, Michigan, on Lake Michigan — Wikimedia Commons / U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, photographer not specified or unknown
Accessed Oct. 19, 2026. Public domain.
Supports: Body image 3: Aerial view of Manistique, Michigan, on Lake Michigan
Media ID 4414; resized to 2000px; credit in caption and alt
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_Fry.jpg){kind=link}
