It is wise to acquaint yourself with any repository which you might visit by writing to the appropriate archive or library in advance. Every repository has published materials that introduce its collections and research policy. State archives and historical agencies also have Internet sites that provide the same information. Some even have downloadable databases for some or parts of their collections.
Wisconsin Public Libraries - In Wisconsin, within the entire library system, there is an interlibrary program that can be called upon for many printed materials. The reference librarian at the local library, for a small fee, can request assistance in locating a particular book through this system.
Wisconsin Area Research Center Network
Thirteen area research centers in Wisconsin hold public records transferred by counties, towns, cities, and other local governments and collections of papers and records from private individuals and organizations. The goal of each center is to build comprehensive collections documenting the history of its region. The collections include photographs, newspapers, maps, and family histories. Many of the centers are enhanced by the contributions and volunteer hours of local genealogy groups. Newspaper indexes to vital records, cemetery readings, and original local church records can be located in some of the centers. Centers vary considerably in their collections and, therefore, in their value to genealogists. Archival collections usually located at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin or at one of the centers may be transferred temporarily within the network to accommodate local researchers. All archive and manuscript materials at the centers are cataloged centrally at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Write or call the appropriate center before visiting since hours vary by center, the calendar, staffing, and university schedules. The State Historical Society of Wisconsin serves Columbia, Dane, and Sauk counties. The other Area Research Centers and the counties they serve are:
"Genealogists are generally positive and energetic, and most are ready to share their findings or research experience with anyone they can help. There are hundreds of genealogical societies at the grass-roots level. Knowledge of the genealogical community will place you in the midst of much activity, increase your productivity, and alert you to the importance of research standards and etiquette." Sandra Hargreaves Luebking,
Editor of FGS Forum, Co-editor of The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy
Because family history research relies greatly upon records found at the county level, many local societies represent counties. Organizations also form around shared interests. Ethnic or religious origins account for many groups, such as the Polish Genealogical Society of America and P.O.I.N.T. (Pursuing Our Italian Names Together). Societies also form around common locales of origin for members’ ancestors; hence, the Palatines to America and Germans from Russia societies. To locate these and other societies, consult Juliana Szucs Smith’s The Ancestry Family Historian’s Address Book. It lists addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and Internet addresses of thousands of organizations throughout the United States.
For almost every state there is a state genealogical society, a state genealogical council, or both. In addition to their own work, state-level groups sometimes help coordinate the efforts of local societies within the state. Their publications, newsletters and quarterlies, supplement those produced by the local societies.
State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 816 State Street, Madison, WI 53706-1488
Nearly one-fifth of the entire State Historical Society of Wisconsin Library collection, now more than one million items, deals with family or local history, making it one of the largest genealogical collections in the country. It is not, however, limited to Wisconsin history. The library attempts to acquire all U.S. and Canadian historical and genealogical materials. Vital records prior to 1907 are on microfilm for the entire state (see Vital Records). Census holdings include all federal censuses for all states. The society has all federal census indexes for Wisconsin and is acquiring some indexes for other states. There is an extensive collection of passenger lists and one of the nation's largest newspaper collections, national in scope, but predominantly concerning Wisconsin. Books, except for rare editions and pamphlet-size, are on open shelves.
Wisconsin State Genealogical Society, 2109 Twentieth Avenue, Monroe, WI 53566
This society serves as the parent body for eleven local chapters. It holds two all-day meetings each year, featuring state or national speakers. Their quarterly newsletter includes material extracted from original sources. The society also publishes numerous indexes to Wisconsin county histories (see Background Sources). The Wisconsin State Genealogical Society purchased the microfilm copies of the pre-1907 vital indexes and records (see Vital Records), which are held by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Genealogical Council, 2308 W Applegate Dr, Appleton, WI 54914-1952
Established in 1986 to promote open communication, education, and exchange of information among Wisconsin counties, libraries, organizations, businesses, and individuals, the group publishes a quarterly newsletter, sponsors an annual Gene-A-Rama, and maintains a file of family names being researched by members.
National Genealogical Society,
4527 17th Street North, Arlington, Virginia 22207-2399; (703) 525-0050 or (800) 473-0060
The Wisconsin Magazine of History, published in Madison by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, is a quarterly publication with historical articles, book reviews, and listings of acquisitions of historical and genealogical material. There are published indexes to this periodical.
The Wisconsin State Genealogical Society Newsletter, originally titled Wisconsin Families from 1940–41, is available quarterly through membership or at subscribing libraries (see Archives, Libraries, and Societies for address). The periodical contains pertinent state activities, queries, and recent publications acquired by the group. The majority of material is the publication of records from Wisconsin counties, including cemetery readings, church records, vital records, newspaper extractions, and other genealogically important items.
Various local and county genealogical and historical societies publish excellent newsletters helpful in research.
While records of birth, marriage, and death are the most commonly sought and the most consistently helpful records, only the genealogist’s imagination and resourcefulness limit newspapers’ usefulness in supplying clues about historical events, local history, probate court and legal notices, real estate transactions, political biographies, announcements, notices of new and terminated partnerships, business advertisements, and notices for settling debts.
Newspapers can provide at least a partial substitute for nonexistent civil records. For example, a person’s obituary may have appeared in a newspaper even when civil death records for that person do not exist. And newspapers are an important source of marriage records, particularly in those states where civil recording of marriages was essentially nonexistent until the twentieth century.
Unlike official records, newspapers are not limited to a particular geographical area. They often include reports of the weddings of local citizens (even those that occurred in a neighboring county or another state), and they sometimes report visits of geographically distant relatives or the visits of former local residents. They often published death notices of individuals who had left the area long before but who still had local family or friends as well. In each case the newspaper account can identify the date and place of an event, thus opening the possibility of turning up additional documentation in other sources.
The first step in searching a newspaper is to identify those which served the area of interest and which have survived. The three most necessary tools are bibliographies (What was published?), inventories of library and depository holdings (Where is it?), and indexes (How do I find what I want in it?).
Newspaper publishing began in Wisconsin in 1833 with the printing of the Green Bay Intelligencer. First issued on 11 December of that year, it contained four twelve-by-eighteen-inch pages, and was printed semi-monthly for $2 a year. A good finding guide to the early papers of that area is Barry C. Noonan, Index to Green Bay Newspapers 1833–1840 (Monroe, Wis.: Wisconsin State Genealogical Society, n.d.). The index includes the name of the newspaper, date, page, column, and brief description of the subject matter.
Included in the outstanding newspaper collection of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (second only to the Library of Congress in the United States) are over 1,600 titles of Wisconsin's newspapers, almost three-fourths of all the newspaper issues ever published in the state. James L. Hansen, Wisconsin Newspapers, 1833–1850: An Analytical Bibliography (Madison, Wis.: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1979), contains information on the very earliest Wisconsin newspapers. An excellent index to this collection, although no longer inclusive, is Donald E. Oehlerts, Guide to Wisconsin Newspapers, 1833–1957 (Madison, Wis.: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1958). This volume lists the papers (organized by county and town), dates of publication, availability for research, and the respective repository. James P. Danky, ed., Periodicals and Newspapers Acquired by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin July 1974–December 1983 (Madison, Wis.: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1984), is a more recent update.
All Wisconsin newspapers held by the state historical society on microfilm are available on interlibrary loan. The newspaper collection also is important in the areas of blacks, ethnic groups, and Native Americans. Specialized bibliographies on some of these collections have been published by the society.
The Milwaukee Sentinel, which covered statewide local news, has a two part index (1837–79; 1880–90). Originals are at the Milwaukee Public Library, 814 W. Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233, with microfilm copies at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
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