Fond du Lac was created on December 7, 1836 from Brown County. The County Seat is Fond du Lac. The County was named for its situation at the end of Lake Winnebago, being a French term for the head of a lake. See also County History and County Courthouse for more details.
Counties adjacent to Fond du Lac County are Winnebago County (north), Calumet County (northeast), Sheboygan County (east), Washington County (southeast), Dodge County (southwest), Green Lake County (west). Fond du Lac County Cities Include Fond du Lac, Ripon, Waupun. Towns Include Alto, Ashford, Auburn, Byron, Calumet, Eden, Eldorado, Empire, Fond du Lac, Forest, Friendship, Lamartine, Marshfield, Metomen, Oakfield, Osceola, Ripon, Rosendale, Springvale, Taycheedah. Villages Include Brandon, Campbellsport, Eden, Fairwater, Mount Calvary, North Fond du Lac, Oakfield, Rosendale, St. Cloud.
PLEASE READ FIRST!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. Additional info below identify the purposes (C=county purposes; J=judicial purposes), the county or counties to which it was attached, and the dates of that attachment.
All Departments below can be contacted by clicking the link below for each department.NOTE: The record dates below are from the earliest date to present time. Fond du Lac County was attached to (C/J)Brown County, 1836–39; (J)Brown County, 1839–44. Some early records may be found there.
Fond du Lac County Register of Deeds Officehas Birth Records from 1879, Marriage Records from 1844, Death Records from 1854 and Land Records from 1836.
In 1848 the Wisconsin Constitution established the Register of Deeds as a permanent element of the County level of governmental structure. The purpose of the Fond du Lac County Register of Deeds is to provide official record keeping for Records or files land record documents authorized by law, such as deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, certified survey maps, plats and Federal Tax liens. Files and indexes Birth, Death and Marriage records, Military Discharges, and issues certified copies upon request.
Fond du Lac County Register in Probate Office has Probate Records from 1839. It is the responsibility of the Register in Probate to maintain and update files regarding probate of estates, guardianships, protective placements, adoptions and mental commitments. This is a statutory office with the position of Register in Probate filled by judicial appointment.
Fond du Lac County Clerk of Court Office has Court Records from 1844. The Clerk of Court is part of the Judicial Branch of local government and as such is required to maintain a record of all documents filed with the courts, keep a record of all court proceedings, and collect various fines and forfeitures ordered by the court and specified by statute.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Court Records by clicking the link below:
Wisconsin Land Records: This database contains information on Wisconsin (U.S.A.) land records. The database comes from the Bureau of Land Management's Wisconsin Pre-1908 Homestead and Cash Entry Patent and Cadastral Survey Plat Index. Information recorded in the collection includes patentee name, land office, legal description, etc.
The earliest tax records in Wisconsin appear to be for real estate. Brown County has an extant tax roll for 1824. Tax rolls are kept by the county treasurer for each county. Many of these records have been transferred to the appropriate Area Research Centers.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
Fond du Lac County Treasurers Office
The County Treasurer's office collects all real estate taxes including postponed and delinquent, all county revenues in addition to the research and issue tax deed applications. Our department is the holder of tax records and assessed values.
Click Here to Search Wisconsin Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.
Wisconsin Division of Health, Vital Records, 1 West Wilson Street, Rm 158, Madison, WI 53701. Thier mailing address is Wisconsin Vital Records Office, P.O. Box 309, Madison, WI 53701-0309. Telephone: For automated assistance 24 hours a day, please call (608) 266-1371. To contact our service counter during the hours of 8:00 A.M. to 4:15 P.M. (C.S.T.), Monday through Friday, please call (608) 266-1373. All fees are not refundable if no record is found. You must enclose a personal check or money order made payable to "Wis. Vital Records". Please do not send cash. Please include a self-addressed, stamped, business-size envelope with your request.
They have the following records:
Birth, Marriage & Death Certificates: In Wisconsin, official registration of births, marriages & deaths vary by county, see the table below for the Earliest available records.
Cost: $20.00 is the cost for the search, which includes one copy of the birth, marriage or death certificate, if found. Additional copies of the same record, requested at the same time as the first, are $3.00 each. The cost is the same whether you request a certified or uncertified copy of the birth certificate.
Processing Time: Filled requests take 3-6 months when ordered by mail (Application for Birth, Marriage or Death) or 2-5 Days when you order online.
Divorces: Divorces on availible since Oct 1907.
Cost: $20.00 is the cost for the search, which includes one copy of the divorce certificate, if found. Additional copies of the same record, requested at the same time as the first, are $3.00 each. The cost is the same whether you request a certified or uncertified copy of the birth certificate.
Processing Time: Filled requests take 3-6 months when ordered by mail (Application) or 2-5 Days when you order online.
Order On-Line: To obtain a certified copy of a vital record by on-line purchase with a credit card, please link to VitalChek.
Order In Person: You can apply in person for a copy of a marriage certificate at 1 West Wilson Street, Room 158, in Madison, Wisconsin (driving directions/parking). The office is open from 8:00 A.M. until 4:15 P.M. (C.S.T.), Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. Identification is required to pick up certified copies of vital records in person. The acceptable forms of identification are listed below.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
Wisconsin Births, 1820-1907: This database indexes over 985,000 births recorded in the State of Wisconsin, USA, prior to 1907. Information provided in the index includes: name, birth date, country, and source information.
Wisconsin Deaths, 1820-1907: This database indexes over 435,000 deaths recorded in the state of Wisconsin prior to 1907.
Wisconsin Marriages, 1973-1997: This database is an index to approximately 949,000 marriages that took place in the State of Wisconsin, USA, between 1973 and 1997. Information that may be found in this database includes groom's name, groom's age, groom's residence (county and/or state), bride's name, bride's age, bride's residence (county and/or state), marriage date, marriage county, and marriage certificate number.
Wisconsin Marriages, pre-1907: This index contains over 920,000 individuals married in the State of Wisconsin, USA, prior to 1907. Information that may be found in this database for each individual includes their name, marriage date, county of marriage, and source information.
Click Here to Search Wisconsin Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Census Records by clicking the link below:
Wisconsin Census, 1820-90: This database contains indexes to the Wisconsin (U.S.A.) portions of the 1820-1860 U.S. Federal Censuses as well as indexes to the 1836-1838, 1842, 1846, and 1855 State Censuses, the 1840 Pensioners Lists, the 1890 Veterans Schedules, and other early censuses. Information contained in these indexes can include name, state, county, township, year of record, and name of record set.
Wisconsin State Censuses, 1895 and 1905: This database contains an index to the 1895 and 1905 Wisconsin state censuses. Both censuses cover all counties that existed at the time. Information listed includes: name of individual, and place of enumeration. The 1905 census also includes relationship to head of household, race, gender, age, marital status, and birthplace.
Genealogy Atlases has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for other states.
You can view rotating animated maps for Wisconsin showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
You can view rotating animated maps for Wisconsin showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries . You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at County Maps. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches, cemeteries, roads, ect... free for viewing or download here
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Maps. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Maps by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Wisconsin Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.
The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. A list of Wars fought on American.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Military Records by clicking the link below:
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Wisconsin (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Area Research Center - University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh, Forrest R. Polk Library, 800 Algoma Boulevard, Oshkosh, WI 54901; Phone: 920/424-0828 or 920/424-7573 Counties covered are Dodge, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Marquette, and Winnebago.
Wisconsin Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
Click Here to Search Wisconsin Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
The Wisconsin Historical Records Survey Project of Madison published the Directory of Churches and Religious Organizations in Wisconsin in 1941 and Guide to Church Vital Statistics Records in Wisconsin in 1942. There are also numerous publications by the project for specific denominations. Extensive microfilm collections of church records in Wisconsin are available through the FHL. The State Historical Society of Wisconsin and Area Research Centers have a variety of church records including microfilm and original records.
Numerous cemeteries have been read and transcribed by local genealogical societies in Wisconsin. The transcriptions are frequently deposited with an Area Research Center, a local library, or the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. A considerable number have been printed in the Wisconsin State Genealogical Society Newsletter. Some have been privately published.
The Wisconsin State Old Cemetery Society, 6100 West Mequon Road,
Mequon, WI 53092, publishes a newsletter and maintains an archive of tombstone inscriptions from around the state. Contact the society for membership information
Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Wisconsin Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.
When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Fond du Lac County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Fond du Lac County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Wisconsin Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
Wisconsin Genealogy Index. Search more than 150,000 Wisconsin obituaries and biographical sketches published before 1999, as well as 1,000,000 births, 400,000 deaths and 1,000,000 marriages registered before September 1907.
Description from John W. Hunt's 1853 Wisconsin Gazetteer:
"FOND DU LAC, County, is bounded on the north by Winnebago and Calumet, on the east by Calumet and Sheboygan, on the south by Washington and Dodge, and on the west by Marquette and portions of Dodge and Winnebago. Its name is derived from its locality, being at the "end of the lake." The seat of justice is at the city of Fond du Lac, at the head of Lake Winnebago. This county is generally well watered with springs, brooks, and small streams of pure water. The largest streams in the western part of the county are the two branches of the Rock river; one flowing eastwardly through the towns of Alto and Waupun, and the other rising in Metomon, and flowing southwardly through Springvale and the eastern part of Waupun. There are also the two branchles of Fond du Lac river (the east and west); the one rising in the town of Rosendale, and passing through a portion of Eldorado and Lamartine, and the other (the east) rising from small streams and springs in the towns of Lamartine, Oakfield, and Byron, and passing through the town of Fond du Lac, unites with its west branch within the city, about a mile from lake Winnebago. There is also another beautiful stream, known as the Crystal Creek, (or the Green lake inlet), passing westwardly through the town of Ceresco into Marquette county, affording, at the villages of Ripon and Ceresco, some of the best water power in the county; and also Grand river, which rises and runs southwesterly through Metomon, affording excellent water power at the village of Fairwater. In the eastern and southern portions of the county are several small lakes and numerous streams, also affording good water power. The most northerly branch of the Milwaukee river rises in a small lake in the town of Eden, within about eight miles of Winnebago lake, and flows southerly through the town of Auburn, where there are numerous water powers. Another fine stream rises in Dodge county, and flows eastwardly through the town of Ashford, and unites with the last mentioned stream near the south line of Auburn. The east branch of the Milwauklee river rises by separate branches in the towns of Empire and Forest, and flows through the town of Osceola, passing through Long Lake, and affording excellent water power at its outlet. It is worthy of remark that the lake in Eden, which gives origin to the Milwaukee river, is also the source of a small stream running northwardly into lake Winnebago, and is within a mile or so of the source of the Sheboygan river, which runs north and eastwardly through the towns of Forest and Kossuth; affording, also, more or less water power to those towns. In the northeast part of the county, in the town of Taycheedah, and within 3 miles of lake Winnebago, arises the southerly branch of Manitowoc river, which runs northeasterly through the town of Calumet into the county of that name. In addition to these, there are numerous small streams and branches of the above mentioned rivers, watering almost every portion of the county. Water powers are already improved in the city and town of Fond du Lac, in Ceresco, the village of Ripon, Metomon, Eldorado, Oakfield, Alto, Waupun, Ashford, Auburn, Osceola, Empire, and Forest. The soil of the county is somewhat diversified. The eastern and southeastern portions being mostly heavy timbered land, having a dark, rich soil in the bottoms, and fine gravelly ridges upon the swells. In the western portion, which is composed of small prairies and openings, and indeed in the whole open portion of the country, which comprises more than two-thirds of the whole area, the soil is an argillaceous loam, moderately mixed with sand and lime, resting on a thin layer of limestone much broken, and occasionally interspersed with knobs of drift gravel. Underlaying a considerable portion of the whole is a red sandstone, which occasionally outcrops in ravines. On many of the highest points of the prairies and openings, in the towns of Ceresco, Metomon, Waupun, Lamartine, Oakfield, Byron, Empire, Taycheedah, and Calumet, the limestone comes to the surface, affording thle best of material for building and fencing; and in many places furnishing the most beautiful flagging stones of any thickness, from one inch to ten, of a texture nearly as fine and compact as marble. The face of the country is gently rolling, and from the quality of the soil, the county is well adapted to all the more northern productions of agriculture. The peculiar geographlical position of this country, erabracng nearly the southern half of Winnebago lake, which is connected with the great lakes by Fox river and Green Bay, and being, within some thirty-five miles of lake Michigan, at Sheboygan, as well as the character of its soil, renders it one of the most important inland counties. The population in 1840 was 139; 1842, 295; 1846, 3,514; 1847, 7,459. Dwellings, 2,722; farms, 1,073; manufactories, 16."
From: Handbook of Wisconsin by S. Silas, 1855,
pg. 69-71
Population 24,085; in 1850,15,511; increase 10,574.
This County lies in the eastern part of the State, and is one of the oldest, if the term old can be applied where all is new. It was incorporated in 1836, but remained under the tutelage of Brown till 1839. Less than fourteen years ago the writer had occasion to address circulars to different portions of the State, the one marked "Fond du Lac," was refused at the Post Office on the ground that there was no Post Office in that County! It is a beautiful and excellent agricultural County, embracing within itself almost all the products of Wisconsin. It is rolling, diversified with prairies, openings, timber and marsh; and is healthy, prosperous, and fast becoming rich. "As a whole, the soil of Fond du Lac County is not surpassed in fertility by any in the west. There probably is no tract of land of equal extent where less waste surface will be encountered by the agriculturist. The low lands are good meadows, or are the repositories of muck and shell marl, by which the adjoining high lands will be enriched for ages. In point of good building material, this County is liberally supplied with stone, the best of clay for brick, limestone for cement and walls, are every where abundant."
Fond du Lac, the County Seat, is located at the head of Lake Winnebago, and has steamboat communication with all the places on that Lake, and up the Rivers which flow into it. The northern terminus of the Fox River Valley Rail Road is at this point. It is already run to Waupun, about 18 miles, where it will shortly be met by the Milwaukee and Horicon Road. The City possesses a good trade, and its growth has been and still continues to be very rapid. The population of the City and Town is 5,083.
At Waupun, a thriving agricultural village, is located the State Prison. A temporary wooden building was erected in 1851. In 1854, a new stone edifice, intended as the south wing of the whole prison when completed, was built. The size of this wing is 204 by 54 feet, four stories high, capable of receiving 288 prisoners.
Ripon, another of those magic places which spring into manhood before the geographer can locate them, has, within three years, been built in the town of Ceresco, in the western part of the County. It is a thriving place--has its college edifice, its newspaper, and its innumerable signs of population and enterprise. Brockway College has not yet gone into operation as a college, though its building is erected, and an excellent collegiate school in operation.
There are no public lands in the County.
We are indebted for most of the above facts to an excellent pamphlet entitled a "History of the County of Fond du Lac," by Martin Mitchell, Esq., who, with commendable enterprise, has put on record the early history of the County, before the facts are forgotten.
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