Sawyer County

Sawyer County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, its population was 18,074. Its county seat is Hayward. The county is largely rural, with no community outside Hayward exceeding 400 people. It partly overlaps with the reservation of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. The U.S. Department of Agriculture considers the county a high-recreation and high-retirement destination.

Before settlement, the county was covered by virgin timber - home and hunting grounds for Native Americans. During the late 1800s that timber was cut, and the wealth generated started Hayward and the other towns of today. Since then, the area's economy has diversified into farming, then government services and tourism.