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Michigan · Upper Peninsula · Soo Locks · St. Mary's River
Chippewa County, Michigan
The Soo Locks and one of America's oldest settlements — from the lock chambers that move more freight than the Panama and Suez Canals combined to Tahquamenon Falls' amber-colored cascade (largest waterfall east of the Mississippi), the International Bridge to Ontario, and a city founded in 1668 that is the third-oldest European settlement in what is now the United States.
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Office: Chippewa County Emergency Management/LEPC – 4657 W. Industrial Park Dr, Kincheloe, MI 49788 | (906) 495-7488 | Email: [email protected].
Michigan State Police Sault Ste. Marie Post 82 – 3900 I-75 Business Spur, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783 | (906) 632-2217; covers Chippewa and Luce Counties.
Sheriff: Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office – 325 Court Street, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783 | (906) 635-6355 | Fax: (906) 635-6336; Sheriff Michael D. Bitnar (raised in Paradise, MI; joined the department in 1991); Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30 AM-4:30 PM.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-75 (terminating at the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge to Canada) serves Sault Ste. Marie, the county’s only city and county seat, on the St. Marys River in the eastern Upper Peninsula.
Notes: Chippewa County was set off and organized in 1826, named for the Ojibwe (Chippewa) people. Roughly 36,080-36,790 residents across 1,558 square miles of land (2,698 total with water). Chippewa County is genuinely one of only two U.S. counties with shorelines on two different Great Lakes – Lake Huron and Lake Superior.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Chippewa County Courthouse – Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783.
Notes: Sault Ste. Marie, founded in 1668 by French missionary Father Jacques Marquette, is genuinely Michigan’s oldest city and among the oldest cities in the entire United States – Native peoples had gathered at the St. Marys River rapids for fish and fur for over 2,000 years before European contact. The city is home to the Soo Locks, a National Historic Landmark and set of parallel canal locks (first opened 1855) operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, enabling ships to travel between Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes – among the great American infrastructure engineering achievements of the antebellum era, alongside the Erie Canal. The River of History Museum (opened 1992) and the historic Water Street Homes (including the Johnston House and Henry Rowe Schoolcraft’s office) preserve the area’s Native American, French fur-trading, and early American settlement history.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Chippewa County Veterans Affairs – confirm current contact via chippewacountymi.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Confirm current Sault Ste. Marie public library address/phone via chippewacountymi.gov.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Soo Locks and Soo Locks Park, the River of History Museum, and the historic Water Street Homes are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine “Michigan’s oldest city” distinction and the Soo Locks’ National Historic Landmark status are among the most significant historical facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Chippewa County Equalization Office – confirm current contact via chippewacountymi.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Chippewa County Animal Shelter (Animal Control) – 3660 S Mackinac Trail, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783; a county-managed no-kill-focused shelter staffed by one full-time and two part-time attendants.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Chippewa County – confirm current contact via chippewacountymi.gov.
NOTES: Chippewa County is the fifth county in the third batch of the Michigan v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine “Michigan’s oldest city” distinction and the Soo Locks’ National Historic Landmark status are among the most significant historical 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 Chippewa County
Chippewa County is Michigan’s largest county and Soo Locks gateway – the world’s busiest waterway by cargo tonnage where 1,000-foot freighters pass at eye level and Tahquamenon Falls’ amber waters define the eastern Upper Peninsula’s most iconic natural and engineering landmarks where Sault Sainte Marie anchors the international border with Canada.
Sault Sainte Marie (the county seat, population ~13,000) is Chippewa County’s governmental hub on I-75, a historic Upper Peninsula city on the St. Marys River whose Soo Locks, Lake Superior Ojibwe heritage, Tahquamenon Falls gateway, and Canadian border character anchor its identity.
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Chippewa County Assessor at 319 Court Street, Sault Sainte Marie, MI 49783, phone 906-635-6300. MI assessed at 50% of true cash value.
Courts & Legal
Chippewa County Probate Court at 319 Court Street, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783, phone 906-635-6315, handles estates and probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
319 Court St., Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783
(906) 635-6320
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Chippewa County Probate Court (estate/probate case files dating back to 1828 – see Probate section above).
The 1877 Chippewa County Courthouse, part of the Sault Ste. Marie Historic Commercial District on the National Register of Historic Places, is a significant local landmark.
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians is headquartered in the county, relevant to Native American genealogical research in the area.
Local societies
No dedicated Chippewa 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
Chippewa County Probate Court (17th Probate Court) Chippewa County Courthouse, 319 Court Street, Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783 (906) 635-6338
Chippewa County was founded December 22, 1826, split off from the former Michilimackinaw County, in Michigan’s eastern Upper Peninsula, seated in Sault Ste. Marie. The Chippewa County Probate Court holds records dating back to 1828 – the first Judge of Probate was Hon. Francis Audrain. The 1877 Chippewa County Courthouse, Second Empire in style, is one of the oldest courthouses still in use in Michigan and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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 $50,000-$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
325 Court St., Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783
(906) 635-6355
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
319 Court St., Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783
(906) 635-6320
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MI DHHS — Upper Peninsula Region
(906) 635-4100
War Memorial Hospital
warmemorialhospital.org (Sault Ste. Marie — quality regional hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Chippewa County Health Department – confirm current phone via chippewacountymi.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Sault Ste. Marie
Population: 37,000
Area: 1,561 mi²
Established: 1827
Tier: 3
Public Records
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