Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026.
Washburn County, Wisconsin, has about 17,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Washburn County is held at the county jail, run by the Washburn County Sheriff's Office, and the jail's record of each person held is a public record. This guide says where to look for someone in custody, what the jail holds and who books people into it.
This guide covers the search, the jail, who books people, state prison and common questions.
Related guides: Washburn County public records, Washburn County arrest records, Washburn County warrants, Washburn County criminal records, Washburn County court records, Wisconsin arrest records and Wisconsin inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Washburn County
The county jail, run by the Washburn County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Washburn County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Washburn County Sheriff's Office at washburnsheriff.org/jail (page title: Washburn County Jail | Washburn County Sheriff's Office), 421 Highway 63, Shell Lake, WI 54871, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster.
The Washburn County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2025 the jail held about 10 people, down from about 32 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2025 was 30 beds, and it ran at 32 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Washburn County has about 17,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 6 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Washburn County Jail
The Washburn County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Spooner and Birchwood make the arrests that end in a booking in Washburn County.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Spooner's 185 for 2025, the Washburn County Sheriff's Office's 161 for 2025 and Birchwood's 5 for 2023.
Together, the two agencies in Washburn County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 346 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the county jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Washburn County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
The jail holds people awaiting trial and people serving short sentences. A person sentenced to prison in Washburn County serves the sentence in a facility of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/welcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Washburn County?
Ask the Washburn County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at washburnsheriff.org/jail.
How many people are in the Washburn County jail?
About 10 on an average day in 2025, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 30 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Washburn County go?
To a facility of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at appsdoc.wi.gov/lop/welcome.
Is this the official Washburn County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.