The Wisconsin Territory was organized in 1836 from land formerly belonging to Michigan Territory. Its neighboring states include Minnesota and Iowa to the west, Illinois to the south, and Michigan to the north and east. Its shores include Lake Superior on the north, and Lake Michigan on the east.

Once home to more than a dozen Indian tribes, Wisconsin received an influx of Scandinavians, Germans, and other northern Europeans in the late 1800s. The state’s glacial soils are used for growing fodder crops, and today, farmers lead the nation in production of milk, butter, and cheese. Some 14,000 lakes and 64 state parks and forests stimulate tourism. In 1854 the Republican Party was born here. In 1900 Robert M. LaFollette’s election as governor ushered in the nation’s Progressive era, and legislators introduced trailblazing measures such as direct primary elections and unemployment compensation.

Known as the “Badger State”, Wisconsin ranks 26th in size, encompassing 56,154 square miles. It has a population of 5,169,700. Elevations run from 581 feet (Lake Michigan) up to 1,952 feet (Timm’s Hill). Its capitol, Madison, has a population of 195,200. Wisconsin became the nation’s 30th state in 1848.

The WIGENWEB was established by a group of genealogists with an interest in providing free genealogical data to the public. The idea was to provide a single entry point for all counties in Wisconsin, where collected databases would be stored. In addition to collecting these databases, other resources were made available including information on genealogical societies, posted queries, maps, and other aids.

At the same time, volunteers were found who were willing to coordinate the collection of databases and generally oversee the contents of the web sites. Information on the state-level site is maintained by State Coordinator Tina Vickery and Assistant State Coordinator Marcia Ann Kuehl. Likewise, each county has a coordinator who is responsible for providing assistance and maintaining a website of information for that specific county. Some counties are available for adoption, and assistance is always needed in transcribing, locating, and preparing data for the WIGENWEB Archives. If you'd like to volunteer to assist in the WIGENWEB project, or you are a new volunteer, please email the state coordinator at tsvickery@gmail.com

If you’re just beginning your genealogical research on your Wisconsin ancestors, visit the Guide to Wisconsin Genealogy first. It contains a broad overview of some of the general resources available to the researcher. After getting familiar with those resources, check out the WIGENWEB Archives which contain tons of free data for the researcher or visit the County Website for the location where your ancestor resided. Don’t know the county? Use the tools in the Maps & Gazetteers section to find it. Queries for unknown counties can be placed on the Unknown County Query Board. Visit the Wisconsin Rootsweb Message Boards  for the complete listing of Wisconsin query and information boards.

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