Wisconsin History

The following important events in the history of Wisconsin affected political boundaries, record keeping, and family movements.

1690–1820 Roman Catholic missionaries established the mission of St. Ignace de Michilimackinac, at Mackinac (now Michigan). The mission was the center for traders going to and from what is now Wisconsin. For records of baptisms, marriages, and burials, see the "Church Records" section above.

1763The British took possession of the area from the French but discouraged new settlers.

1787 Wisconsin officially became part of the U.S. Northwest Territory, but British fur traders effectively controlled the region until 1816.

1800The present Wisconsin area was included in the Indiana Territory.

1809The Wisconsin area was part of the Illinois Territory.

1818The Wisconsin area was included in the Michigan Territory. The territorial governor of Michigan created the first two Wisconsin counties, Brown and Crawford.

1820s High prices for lead attracted settlers to the mines of southern Wisconsin. The Michigan 1820 census lists residents of what is now Wisconsin.

1830sHeavy settlement began along the Lake Michigan shoreline at the sites of present-day Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha. The Michigan 1830 census lists of residents of what is now Wisconsin.

1832The Black Hawk War ended the last serious Indian threat to white settlements.

1836 Congress created the Wisconsin Territory, which included lands west of the Mississippi River to the Missouri River. Much of the western portion was later transferred to the Iowa Territory, created in 1838.

1840s Many families arrived from Germany and New York.

1848 Wisconsin, with its present boundaries, became a state.

1861– 1865 Over 90,000 men from Wisconsin served in the Union armed forces during the Civil War.

You can learn about the pre-statehood era of Wisconsin in the many published volumes of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Two good sources are the Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin and the Northwest, Illinois, and Michigan, and Wisconsin Territorial Papers. Indexes to the territorial papers are in The Territorial Papers of the United States. 28 vols. (FHL book 973 N2udt; films beginning with film 1421059). Volume 26 is at the Family History Library. Volumes 27 and 28 cover Wisconsin Territorial papers 1836–1848. The Family History Library does not have volumes 27 and 28.

The Wisconsin territorial papers collection (on microfilms listed below) has a few court records for 1836–1848; Bureau of Indian Affairs records 1836–1848; appointments of postmasters 1836–1848; maps 1836–1848; records of lighthouses and customs, and many other governmental records.

The Territorial Papers of the United States: the Territory of Wisconsin, 1836–1848: a Microfilm Supplement. Washington, D.C.: National Archives, 1959. (On 122 FHL films beginning with 1601731.)

Much historical information is included in the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Magazine of History. (See the "Periodicals" section of this outline.)

A source for early Wisconsin historical information for the 1690s to the 1860s is:

Draper, Lyman Copeland, ed. Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. 24 vols. Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1855–. (FHL 977.5 B2wc; films 924580– .) For example, volume 19 has extensive information about persons engaged in the fur trade, 1778–1817.

A source with excellent bibliographies concerning the early French traders and Indian records is:

Hansen, James L. "Voyageurs and Habitants: Tracing the Early French in the Great Lakes Region." National Genealogical Society Conference in the States (1995: San Diego, California). San Diego, A Place to Explore: Syllabus. 2 vols. [Arlington, Virginia] National Genealogical Society, 1996, 2:688–91. (FHL book 973 D25ngsc 1995.)

Especially useful sources for studying the history of Wisconsin are:

Quaife, Milo Milton. Wisconsin: Its History and Its People, 1634-1924. 4 vols. Chicago, Illinois: S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1924. (FHL book 977.5 H2q; film 1036176; fiche 6046726.)

History of Wisconsin. Vols. 1–3, 5–6. Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society, 1973–1988. (FHL book 977.5 H2sa.) Volume 4 is in preparation.

Local Histories
Wisconsin has a large number of county and regional histories, which contain much family history information. The Wisconsin State Genealogical Society has prepared every-name indexes to about fifty of the histories. The Family History Library has most of these indexes.

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