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Michigan County
Antrim County, Michigan
Torch Lake and Michigan's Chain of Lakes - from Torch Lake (consistently ranked among the most beautiful lakes in the world, Torch Lake's extraordinary Caribbean-blue waters stretch 19 miles through Antrim County - the shallow sandy bottom refracts sunlight to create colors more typical of tropical waters than a Great Lakes state, and the lake's sandbar party culture on summer weekends has made it one of Michigan's most iconic destinations) to the Chain of Lakes (a series of interconnected lakes running the length of Antrim County allows boaters to travel by water from Torch Lake in the east to Lake Michigan in the west, creating one of the finest freshwater boating corridors in the Great Lakes region).
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Office: Antrim County Emergency Management/LEPC – PO Box 333, Bellaire, MI 49615-0333 | (231) 533-6569 | Email: [email protected].
Sheriff: Antrim County Sheriff’s Office – 209 Portage Dr, Suite A, Bellaire, MI 49615 | (231) 533-8627 | Fax: (231) 533-5803 | Email: [email protected]; Sheriff Kevin S. Hoch (appointed September 2023); Hours: Mon-Fri 8 AM-4 PM (lobby vestibule open 24 hours for drop-box services).
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: M-88 and US-131 serve Bellaire, the county seat, in Michigan’s northern Lower Peninsula.
Notes: Antrim County was originally called Meguzee/Meegisee County (named for a Chippewa chief) when set off in 1840, renamed Antrim in 1843, and formally organized in 1863; the county seat moved from Elk Rapids to Bellaire in 1879-1880. Roughly 23,430-24,540 residents across 283.7 square miles of land (399.2 total with water).
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Antrim County Courthouse (built 1905; present county building occupied 1978) – Bellaire, MI 49615.
Notes: Antrim County is genuinely home to Torch Lake, Michigan’s longest inland lake and its second-largest, reaching depths of 285 feet – its extraordinary clarity and turquoise-blue color have drawn comparisons to Caribbean waters and led National Geographic to name it among the most beautiful lakes in the world. Local Ojibwe/Chippewa people called it Was-Wah-gonink, or “lake of the torches,” for the torchlight fish-spearing once practiced there. Shanty Creek Resort and the Elk River Chain of Lakes anchor a substantial regional tourism economy that expanded significantly after World War II.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Antrim County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via antrimcountymi.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Confirm current Bellaire-area public library address/phone via antrimcountymi.gov.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Torch Lake, the Elk River Chain of Lakes Water Trail, Grass River Natural Area (founded 1960s, over 7 miles of trails through bogs and wetlands), Barnes Park, and Shanty Creek Resort are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine, internationally recognized beauty of Torch Lake is one of the most distinctive natural-heritage facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Antrim County Equalization Office – confirm current contact via antrimcountymi.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Antrim County Animal Shelter (Animal Control) – 4660 M-88 Hwy, Bellaire, MI 49615 | (231) 533-6421 | Email: [email protected].
AC Paw-Rescue (foster/placement) – (231) 587-0738.
Notes: A beloved local story involves Scout, a dog who twice escaped the Antrim County Animal Shelter to sneak into a Bellaire nursing home before staff decided to let him become a full-time resident there – a story that drew national attention.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Antrim County – confirm current contact via antrimcountymi.gov.
NOTES: Antrim County is the fifth county in the first batch of the Michigan v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine, internationally recognized beauty of Torch Lake is one of the most distinctive natural-heritage facts covered anywhere in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Antrim County
Antrim County is northern Michigan’s Torch Lake Caribbean-blue water and Chain of Lakes county – the world-renowned Torch Lake and the interconnected Chain of Lakes boating corridor define one of Michigan’s most spectacular resort counties, where the blue-green waters and sandy beaches draw visitors from across the Midwest each summer.
Bellaire (the county seat, population ~1,100) is Antrim County’s governmental hub while Elk Rapids, Central Lake, and the lakeside communities drive the county’s resort economy.
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Antrim County Assessor at 203 E. Cayuga Street, Bellaire, MI 49615, phone 231-533-6265.
Courts & Legal
Antrim County Probate Court at 203 E. Cayuga Street, Bellaire, MI 49615, phone 231-533-6353, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
203 E. Cayuga St., Bellaire, MI 49615
(231) 533-6353
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Antrim County Probate Court (estate/probate case files – see Probate section above).
The 1904 Antrim County Courthouse, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and a Michigan State Historic Site, is a significant local landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Antrim County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Antrim County Probate Court Antrim County Building, 205 Cayuga Street, Bellaire, MI 49615 (231) 533-6681
Antrim County is in Michigan’s northwest Lower Peninsula, seated in Bellaire. The 1904 Antrim County Courthouse, Late Victorian in style, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a Michigan State Historic Site.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Michigan probate is governed by the Estates and Protected Individuals Code (EPIC), MCL 700.1101 et seq.
Transfer by Affidavit (Small Estate Affidavit) – under MCL 700.3982/700.3983, available when the estate’s gross value (after funeral and burial expenses) doesn’t exceed a threshold that’s adjusted annually for inflation (roughly $51,000-$53,000 in recent years). No real estate can be involved. At least 28 days must pass after death before this affidavit can be used. The affidavit isn’t filed with the court; it’s presented directly to whoever holds the asset (a bank, for instance), along with a death certificate.
Petition and Order for Assignment (PC 556) – a small estate process for estates at or below the same statutory threshold, but this one CAN include real property. An heir or the person who paid the funeral bill files this petition with the probate court; the judge reviews and signs the order, and there’s a filing fee plus a statutory inventory fee based on estate value.
Informal Probate – the standard track for most estates above the small-estate threshold. Filed using Application for Informal Probate and/or Appointment of Personal Representative (PC 558); the court issues Letters of Authority (PC 573) to the personal representative without a hearing when the application is straightforward.
Formal/Supervised Administration – required when the will is contested, there’s a dispute over who should serve as personal representative, or the estate needs ongoing court supervision.
Step 2: filing for probate
Gather the death certificate, the will (if any), and an inventory of the decedent’s assets to determine which path fits.
File the appropriate petition or application with the Probate Court in the county where the decedent lived.
For informal probate, the court reviews the application and issues Letters of Authority appointing the personal representative, typically without a hearing.
The personal representative gathers and inventories assets, notifies and pays valid creditors, and – no earlier than 12 months after appointment – files a Sworn Closing Statement (PC 584) for informal probate, or a Petition for Complete Settlement (PC 585) followed by a court Order of Complete Settlement (PC 586) for formal administration.
What it costs
Michigan probate generally runs 7 to 18 months and costs roughly 3% to 7% of the estate’s value in typical cases.
Filing fees vary by petition type; a statutory inventory fee, set by MCL 600.871, is calculated based on the estate’s total value and applies to most probate filings.
Michigan does not require an attorney for probate, though many people use one for anything beyond a very simple estate.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
205 E. Cayuga St., Bellaire, MI 49615
(231) 533-8627
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
203 E. Cayuga St., Bellaire, MI 49615
(231) 533-6353
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MI DHHS — Northwest Region
(231) 533-6340
Munson Healthcare Cadillac
munsonhealthcare.org (Cadillac, Wexford County — accessible regional hospital)
Munson Medical Center
munsonhealthcare.org (Traverse City — accessible; major regional hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Antrim County Health Department – confirm current phone via antrimcountymi.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Bellaire
Population: 24,000
Area: 477 sq mi
Established: 1863
Tier: 3
Public Records
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