Emmet County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 32,694. The county seat is Petoskey. The county was formed April 1, 1840, from Mackinac County. It was first named Tonedagana County and renamed Emmet County on March 8, 1843. Emmet County remained attached to Mackinac County for administrative purposes until county government was organized in 1853. The county was named for the Anglo-Irish patriot Robert Emmet, who was hanged as a traitor to the British government at the age of 23 for leading a rebellion in Dublin. See List of Michigan county name etymologies.