State Historical Society of Wisconsin Library --------------------------------------------- THE COLLECTION The State Historical Society Library possesses one of the largest genealogical collections in the country. Nearly one-fifth of the entire library collection, now over 3.5 million items, deals with family or local history. The collection is not in any way limited to Wisconsin history and genealogy: the Library attempts to acquire all available historical and genealogical materials relating to any part of the U.S. and Canada. No attempt is made to collect foreign historical or genealogical publications. By agreement, the University of Wisconsin Memorial Library collects non-North American historical materials and, though it does not collect genealogical materials specifically, it may have useful materials for the genealogical researcher. VITAL RECORDS The Library also holds microfilm of the births, marriages, and deaths recorded in Wisconsin before October 1, 1907. The researcher should be aware that recording, particularly of births and deaths, was very incomplete. There are statewide indexes of births, marriages and deaths. These records must be used in person as the Library does not have sufficient staff to undertake searches in them. The researcher who desires service by mail or who needs post-1907 records should contact the Wisconsin Center for Health Statistics Dept. of Health and Social Services, P.O. Box 309, Madison, Wisconsin 53701, or the Register of Deeds at the appropriate county courthouse. FEDERAL CENSUSES The Library has acquired on microfilm a complete file of all the available schedules of the 1790-1920 U.S. censuses for all the states as well as the censuses of Canada, 1666-1881. These censuses are not available for interlibrary loan, but may be used by researchers visiting the Library. The Library has also attempted to acquire all-available published indexes to these materials and now has indexes to most states through 1860 and a few for later years. There are few indexes to the Canadian censuses except for the earliest years. The Library has only begun to acquire the available Soundex indexes to the U.S. censuses from 1880-1920. The current holdings include the 1880 Soundex indexes for Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, and California, the 1900 Soundex indexes for Wisconsin, Minnesota and Georgia, as well as the 1910 Soundex index for Georgia. The Library has 1920 Soundex indexes for all states. WISCONSIN FEDERAL CENSUSES AND INDEXES Among the most useful genealogical tools in the Library are the microfilmed indexes to the U.S. censuses of 1820-1870 for the area that is now Wisconsin. The indexes cover the entire state for each census year and, beginning with 1850, include all the individuals living in a household, not just the household head. The Library also holds a Soundex index to the 1880 U.S. Census for Wisconsin which indexes only households with a child ten years old or younger. Also held on microfilm are the 1900, 1910 and 1920 U.S. censuses for Wisconsin and the Soundex indexes for the 1900 and 1920 censuses. The Library has copies available for interlibrary loan of all the U.S. censuses for Wisconsin, and all the indexes. WISCONSIN STATE CENSUSES The State Archives, housed in the Historical Society building, holds manuscript copies of the Wisconsin state censues of 1836, 1838, 1842, 1846, 1847, 1855, 1875, 1885, 1895, and some fragments of the 1865 census. These censuses resemble the early federal censuses, listing only the head of a household by name and summarizing the number of others. All these state censuses, except for the 1865 statistics, have been microfilmed and are available for interlibrary loan. Published indexes exist for 1836, 1838, 1842, 1855 and the 6 surviving counties from 1865. The Library also holds the 1905 Wisconsin State Census, the only state census to list all the members of a household by name. A county by county index to this census is available for all counties. The 1905 census and indexes are on microfilm and available for loan. PASSENGER LISTS Passenger lists are among the most frequently requested genealogical materials, and the Library has a strong collection. Most of the existing lists from the colonial period through the early nineteenth century have been published in some form. The Library holds most of the items cited in the standard bibliography, the Passenger and Immigration Lists Bibliography by P. William Filby (2nd edition, Detroit, Gale Research, 1988). The bulk of the lists from 1820 through the end of the nineteenth century have not been published, but the Library has on microfilm the available lists for the major east and Gulf coast ports (New York, Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia and New Orleans [Ca. 1820-ca. 1890--the ending date varies from port to port] as well as the available indexes. Note, however that the lists for New York from 1847-1896 are not indexed. The Library also holds lists for Quebec, 1865-1900, and Halifax, 1890-1900. The Library holds post-1890 indexes to various ports. The passenger list microfilms are not available for interlibrary loan nor can the Library staff undertake searches in them. WISCONSIN BIOGRAPHICAL INDEXES Wisconsin materials are often more intensively cataloged than those relating to other states. Many biographical sketches in the histories of Wisconsin counties and communities as well as several thousand selected obituaries (the "Wisconsin Necrology") are indexed in the Library’s subject card catalog. NEWSPAPERS The State Historical Society Library also holds one of the nation’s largest newspaper collections . This collection is aJso national in scope with strengths in colonial newspapers, ethnic and labor newspapers, and papers from major cities. The extensive Wisconsin portion predominates, however. The collection is estimated to contain from two-thirds to three-fourths of all the newspaper issues ever published in Wisconsin. All the Wisconsin newspapers and many of the out- of-state papers are microfilmed and are available for interlibrary loan. FOR MORE INFORMATION The State Historical Society is open to the public and genealogical researchers are welcome to use its collections. MadCat, the computer catalog, has about 40% of the Library’s holdings. The remainder is found in the Reading Room card catalog. Because of the large number of mail requests for genealogical research assistance received by the Library, only the most limited searching can be performed in response to a particular request. Genealogical questions by mail may be directed to the Reference Librarian, State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 816 State Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53706-1488 (608-264-6535). Please visit the Library web page (address below) for more details and access to MadCat. http://www.wisc.edu/shs-library ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Obtained from writing to the Archdiocese of Milwaukee concerning Genealogy. Please note that this document is a couple years old, and new resources may have been added to the Historical Society. It was written by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.