Wexford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 32,735. The county seat is Cadillac. When established in 1840 by the Michigan Legislature, the county was given the name Kautawabet, a Potawatomi phrase meaning "broken tooth" and the name of an area Potawatomi chief. In 1843, legislators renamed the county Wexford, after County Wexford in Ireland.