Wexford County, Michigan Genealogy

United States

Michigan

Wexford County

Guide to Wexford County, Michigan ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Michigan Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Cadillac Organized: 30 March 1869 Parent County(s): Mackinac Neighboring Counties Benzie  • Grand Traverse  • Kalkaska  • Lake  • Manistee  • Missaukee  • Osceola See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

The County was named for County Wexford in Ireland. The County is located in the Northern area of the state.

County Courthouse

Wexford County Courthouse
437 E Division St.
Cadillac, MI 49601
Phone: 231-779-9450
Fax: 231-779-0292
Wexford County Website

County Clerk has birth records from 1868, marriage, death, divorce and court records from 1869.

Wexford County, Michigan Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1868	1869	1869	1869	1869	1869	1820
*Statewide registration started in 1867 for births and deaths. General compliance by 1915.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

1840--Wexford County was created 1 April 1840 from Mackinac County. Formerly Kautawaubet County, until name was changed to Wexford 8 March 1843. It was attached to Mackinac, Manistee and Grand Traverse Counties prior to organization 30 March 1869. County seat: Cadillac Interactive Map of Michigan County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Michigan county boundary changes Michigan Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library County Evolution In Michigan, 1790-1897 by Richard W. Welch for the development of the counties in the state

Populated Places

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Cities
Cadillac	Manton
Villages
Buckley	Harrietta	Mesick
Unincorporated communities
Benson Garletts Corner Hoxeyville	Meauwataka Sherman Walton	Yuma
Census-designated places
Boon Caberfae	Haring	Wedgewood
Townships
Antioch Boon Cedar Creek Cherry Grove Clam Lake Colfax	Greenwood Hanover Haring Henderson Liberty Selma	Slagle South Branch Springville Wexford

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Wexford County, Michigan online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find A Grave USGenWeb MIGenWeb Archives Tombstone Project MIInterment Billion Graves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com FamilySearch Places
See Michigan Cemeteries for more information

 

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1870	650	—
1880	6,815	948.5%
1890	11,278	65.5%
1900	16,845	49.4%
1910	20,769	23.3%
1920	18,207	−12.3%
1930	16,827	−7.6%
1940	17,976	6.8%
1950	18,628	3.6%
1960	18,466	−0.9%
1970	19,717	6.8%
1980	25,102	27.3%
1990	26,360	5.0%
2000	30,484	15.6%
2010	32,735	7.4%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

State Census

• 1850-1880 - Michigan Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 at FamilySearch -How to Use this Collection
• 1894 - Michigan Department of State. Census of the State of Michigan, 1894. Vol 3. Lansing, MI: R. Smith & co., state printers, 1896. (Civil War veterans only) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Michigan denominations, view the Michigan Church Records wiki page.

• 1819-1991 - Michigan, Church Records, 1819-1991 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

Directories

• 1863-1922 Michigan State Gazetteers and Business Directories at Hathi Trust, images – includes business directories for towns across the state
  

Emigration and Immigration

• 1929-1966 - Michigan, Crew Lists for various ports, 1929-1966 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
  

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See Michigan Land and Property for additional information about early Michigan land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the Wexford County courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Wexford County. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Michigan Local Histories.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Michigan (1790-1897)
• 1863-1922 Michigan State Gazetteers and Business Directories at Hathi Trust, images – includes business directories for towns across the state
  
• FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

Civil War
Civil War service men from Wexford County served in various regiments. Men often joined a regiment or a company (within a regiment)that originated in their county. Listed below are the military units that were formed in or had many men from Wexford County.

• 1876-1945 - Michigan, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1876-1945 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1894 - Michigan Department of State. Census of the State of Michigan, 1894. Vol 3. Lansing, MI: R. Smith & co., state printers, 1896. (Civil War veterans only) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Michigan, Civil War Centennial Observance Commission, Committee on Civil War Grave Registration, Burial Records at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• Civil War Veterans Roster. MiGenWeb Project

World War I

• 1917-1919 - Michigan, Census of World War I Veterans with Card Index, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War II

• Wexfird County World War II Army Enlistees. MiGenWeb Project
• Wexford County World War II Reserve Corps. MiGenWeb Project
• Wexford County World War II Army and Air Force Honor List of Dead and Missing. MiGenWeb Project

Korean War

• Wexford County Korean War Casualties. MiGenWeb Project

Vietnam War

• Wexford County Vietnam Wall of Honor. MiGenWeb Project

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1837-1993 - Michigan, Eastern and Western Districts, Naturalization Records, 1837-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Newspapers

• Digital Michigan Newspapers at Central Michigan University

Obituaries

• 1820-2006 - Michigan Obituaries, 1820-2006 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Probate Records

In most counties in Michigan, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate packets, and dockets. The records are available at the county courthouse.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1784-1980 - Michigan Wills and Probate Records 1784-1980 at Ancestry $
• 1797-1973 - Michigan Probate Records 1797-1973 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
• 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

Michigan tax records complement land records and can be used to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the Wiki page, Michigan Taxation.

Vital Records

• Birth Records and Death Records from 1867 can be obtained from the Michigan Department of Community Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.
• Marriage Records from 1867 and Divorce Records from 1897 can be obtained from the County Clerk.
  

Birth

• 1867-1902 - Michigan Births, 1867-1902 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1867-1917 - Michigan, County Births, 1867-1917 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• Pre-1900 - Early Michigan Birth Records

Marriage

• 1585-1945 - Michigan, United States Marriages at FindMyPast $
• 1820-1937 - Michigan, County Marriages Index, 1820-1937 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1820-1940 - Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1868-1925 - Michigan Marriages, 1868-1925 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Death

• 1867-1897 - Michigan Deaths, 1867-1897 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1897-1952 - Michigan Death Records at Michiganology - index and images, organized by county and then last name.
• Wexford County Death Index. MiGenWeb Project

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Wexford County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Michigan Archives and Libraries.

Family History Centers

Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local Family History Centers or Affiliate Libraries

• Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
• FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
  

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

• Cadillac Michigan Family History Center

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Wexford County. For state-wide library facilities, see Michigan Archives and Libraries.

Societies

Listed below are societies in Wexford County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Michigan Societies.

Wexford County Historical Society
127 Beech Street
Cadillac, MI 49601
Phone: 231-775-1717
Website Facebook

Wexford Genealogy Organization
601 Chestnut St., Suite B
Cadillac, MI 49601
Website

Cadillac Area Genealogical Society
8499 So. 27 1/2 Mile Rd.
Cadillac 49601

Websites

The usage of "Mormon" and "LDS" on this page is approved according to current policy.

• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county.
• Wexford County MI Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
• FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.