Wisconsin Cultural Groups

United States Wisconsin  Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups

African Americans
Many African Americans settled in Wisconsin. They were trappers and boatmen in the 1700s. Settlers from the Southern states brought slaves with them. There were many free African-Americans in Wisconsin also. For more information, you may wish to contact:

Wisconsin Black Historical Society 2620 West Center Street Milwaukee, WI 53206 Telephone: 414-372-7677 Internet: http://www.wbhsm.org/

A helpful source for learning about African-Americans in Wisconsin is: Zachary Cooper, Black Settlers in Rural Wisconsin (Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1997; Family History Library book ).

Native Americans
See Indians of Wisconsin.

Wisconsin has been the home to the Chippewa, Fox, Kickapoo, Menominee, Potawatomi, Sauk, Sioux, Winnebago, and other Indian tribes. After the early 1800s, white settlers occupied most of these lands, but several reservations were created and still exist.

The Family History Library has some copies of Bureau of Indian Affairs records from Wisconsin. Most of these records are at the National Archives Great Lakes Region (Chicago). You will find several special censuses listed in the Family History Library Catalog under WISCONSIN - CENSUS. The catalog lists Indian censuses taken as early as 1836, and annuity rolls as early as 1849.

Also listed are Bureau of Indian Affairs Indian census rolls, which were taken during the years 1885–1940. The Family History Library Catalog lists some records of the various tribes under WISCONSIN - NATIVE RACES and others in the Subject Search under the name of the tribe.

For the very early period, be sure to check the Roman Catholic mission records. One collection of these is:


 * Draper, Lyman Copeland, ed. Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1855–. (Family History Library book ; on films beginning with film ; digital copy online.) This series has the registers of baptisms 1695–1821 (vol. 19), marriages 1725–1821 (vol. 18), and burials 1743–1806 (vol. 19) of the Mission of St. Ignace de Michilimakinak.

Several helpful books are:


 * Lurie, Nancy Oestreich. Wisconsin Indians. Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1980. (Family History Library book ) Contains a helpful bibliography.
 * Mason, Carol I. Introduction to Wisconsin Indians: Prehistory to Statehood. Salem, Wisconsin: Sheffield Publishing, 1988. (Family History Library book .)

Germans in Wisconsin
In the 1830s, many German settlers began arriving in Wisconsin. There are helpful indexes to the German immigrants mentioned in United States passenger lists.

One set of volumes is:


 * Glazier, Ira A. ed. Germans to America: Lists of Passengers Arriving at U. S. Ports. Wilmington, Delaware: Scholarly Resources Inc., 1988–. ; . This set is a partial list of those who arrived from 1850 to 1897.

Hmong in Wisconsin
Original homeland - Southeast Asia - Laos

In an article by Vincent Her we learn: [''Hmong American Three Decades in Wisconsin. ''by Vincent Her. Voyageur Northeast Wisconsin's Historical Review Summer/Fall 2009. Volume 26 Number1. pages87-89.]

Hmong individuals and families became displace by war torn Southeast Asia during the 1960's - 1980's. In the 1980's more than 60,000 Hmong refugees lived in Thailand later they emigrated to areas around the world.

"More than 35,000 Hmong-Americans call Wisconsin home." The first Hmong immigrants arrived in Wisconsin in the late 1970s. The article reviews: Refugee Years 1976-1986, Transition Years 1987-1997, and Integration and Assimilation 1998-present.

Groups that gave aid and assisted with relocation included: the U.S. Catholic Conference, Luthan Immigration and Refugee Services and other groups.

Norwegians in Wisconsin
A large number of Norwegians settled in Wisconsin as early as 1839. An important repository is:

Vesterheim Genealogical Center Naeseth Library 415 West Main Street Madison, WI 53703 Telephone: 608-255-2224 Internet: http://memorial.library.wisc.edu/vesterhe.htm

The center has family histories for Norway and the U.S., and Norwegian and U.S. censuses, church records, passenger lists, local histories, and maps.