Wexford County Obituary Records
Wexford County obituaries and death records are held by the County Clerk in Cadillac, with records going back to 1840. Searching these records connects you to the Cadillac area's past, including families tied to the county's long lumber industry history. The Wexford County MIGenWeb page provides free genealogical indexes, and early death records from 1897 through 1952 are searchable at no cost through the state's Michiganology portal.
Wexford County Overview
Wexford County Clerk Office
The Wexford County Clerk in Cadillac is the official office for death certificates filed in the county. Under MCL 333.2882, death records are public in Michigan. Any person may request a copy. You do not need to be a family member or explain why you want the record. The fee for Wexford County is approximately $10 to $13 per certified copy, which is on the lower end of the range for Michigan counties.
Public Act 194 of 1867 established Michigan's statewide system for death registration, requiring local clerks to collect and report death information. Wexford County has maintained records under this system since then. Earlier records from 1840 onward exist in various forms, though the quality and completeness of pre-1867 records varies. For the most consistent searching, the clerk's index covers the post-1867 period, and the state's Michiganology system provides online access to records from 1897 through 1952.
To request a death certificate from the Wexford County Clerk, you will need the full name of the deceased and the approximate year or date of death. Walk-in requests are handled at the office in Cadillac on weekdays. Mail requests are accepted; include a check or money order and a copy of your photo ID. The clerk's office follows standard Monday through Friday business hours.
| Office | Wexford County Clerk |
|---|---|
| Address | 437 E. Division Street Cadillac, MI 49601 |
| Fee | Approximately $10-13 per certified copy |
| Hours | Monday through Friday, standard business hours |
Wexford County Obituary Indexes and Genealogy Resources
The Wexford County MIGenWeb page is one of the better starting points for local genealogical research. It hosts cemetery transcriptions, surname indexes, and links to other Wexford County record sets. Volunteers have compiled materials from local cemeteries, and some of these lists include death dates pulled from headstones that predate the formal state registration system. Cemetery records can fill gaps when official certificates are missing or hard to read.
The Wexford County Historical Society operates out of the Carnegie Library museum in Cadillac. The society holds local history materials, family files, and historical photographs. Their collection includes items from the county's lumber era, when Cadillac and the surrounding area saw significant population movement as workers came and went. Families from that period can be difficult to trace through state records alone, and the Historical Society's files sometimes hold clues that official records do not.
The Wexford Genealogy Organization has compiled its own research materials over the years. Local genealogical societies in smaller Michigan counties often hold surname files, obituary clippings, and index cards that were never digitized. Contacting the organization directly can save time if you are looking for a specific family.
The Cadillac News has served the county for many decades. Obituaries printed in that paper are the most common form of public death notice in Wexford County. The paper's archives are not fully digitized, but some years are accessible through library microfilm. The Cadillac area library system may have local holdings of the paper that researchers can view in person. For a broader search, the FamilySearch Wexford County wiki page lists available record sets and explains what each one covers.
The Wexford County MIGenWeb page above indexes cemetery transcriptions, local history files, and genealogical links that are specific to Wexford County and not found in the statewide databases.
Note: If local images are not available for a specific record set you need, the state Michiganology portal covers Wexford County deaths from 1897 through 1952 at no cost.State Death Records Covering Wexford County
Michigan death records from 1897 through 1952 that include Wexford County are searchable for free through michiganology.org. That site is run by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and contains official state records, not newspaper scans. The GENDIS database at michiganology.org/gendis covers early death records that predate the 1897 formal indexing. Both tools require no fee and no account to use.
For Wexford County deaths after 1952, Public Act 73 of 2006 blocks online access to death record images that are less than 75 years old. You must contact the county clerk or the state MDHHS office to get a certified copy of a more recent record. MDHHS charges $34 for the first copy and $16 for each additional copy of the same record. Orders can be placed through VitalChek, which adds a $12.95 service fee. Call MDHHS at 517-335-8666 to ask about record availability or to check the status of a request.
When the county clerk's fee and the MDHHS fee are compared, the local clerk is usually less expensive for Wexford County residents. The clerk's fee of $10 to $13 is well below the state fee of $34. If you can make a weekday trip to Cadillac, that is the better choice for cost. Mail requests to the county clerk are also an option if travel is not practical.
FamilySearch has indexed portions of Michigan death records and some Wexford County deaths are findable through their free search tools. Church registers are another resource in this county. Many early Wexford County families were members of Catholic or Protestant congregations that kept their own burial and death records. Local churches and the Diocese of Gaylord may have older parish registers that supplement state records.
Cities in Wexford County
Cadillac is the county seat and largest city in Wexford County. All death records for Wexford County residents are filed with the county clerk in Cadillac, regardless of which city or township the person lived in.
No cities in Wexford County meet the population threshold for a dedicated page on this site. Communities in Wexford County include Cadillac, Manton, Lake City (which is actually in Missaukee County), and several townships. For records related to any of these areas, contact the Wexford County Clerk directly.
Nearby Counties
These counties share borders with Wexford County. If a family member lived near a county line or you are unsure which county holds a record, checking adjacent counties can help. Death certificates list the county of residence at the time of death, which tells you where the record was filed.