Wisconsin Genealogy Search

Wisconsin family history runs through the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison, one of the largest state historical societies in the country, which holds the pre-1907 county vital records with a free online index, the state censuses of 1836 through 1905, nearly every Wisconsin newspaper, the county records of 72 counties on microfilm and the fur trade and territorial records from the 1700s. Statewide vital registration began in 1907, but counties kept registers from 1852 and the Society indexes them.

Wisconsin took state censuses in 1836, 1838, 1842, 1846, 1847, 1855, 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895 and 1905, with the 1905 census listing every person by name.

Official sources on this page were checked on September 25, 2026.

Wisconsin statewide genealogy links

• Wisconsin Department of Health Services Genealogy ServicesVital Records
• Wisconsin Naturalization Records
• Beginning Your Family HistoryResearching Family History
• Wisconsin Historical Society
• Wisconsin Board of Commissioners of Public LandsPublic Land Surveys
• Researching Wisconsin Census Records
• Wisconsin Cemetery Records
• WIGenWeb ArchivesSearch the GenWeb Site
• Wisconsin Heritage OnlineOnline Search Website

Wisconsin began statewide birth, death and marriage registration in 1907, with counties keeping registers from 1852 and some earlier, and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services Vital Records office in Madison holds the certificates from 1907, with county registers of deeds holding copies. The Wisconsin Historical Society holds the pre-1907 county vital records on microfilm with a free online Wisconsin Genealogy Index, and the state's genealogy rules open birth, death and marriage records to research within set date ranges, with uncertified copies of death and marriage records available to anyone, certified copies restricted to family, and the Society providing copies of the older records. Divorce records sit with the clerk of circuit court.

• Wisconsin Historical Society family historyFree index to pre-1907 Wisconsin births, marriages and deaths from the Wisconsin Historical Society, checked September 25, 2026
• Wisconsin Vital RecordsBirth, death, marriage and divorce certificates from 1907, checked September 25, 2026
• Wisconsin Vital Records guideHow to order certificates and what is public

The Wisconsin Historical Society holds the territorial and state censuses from 1836 to 1905, Wisconsin's Civil War, Spanish-American War and World War I service records including the Civil War regimental rosters, the Wisconsin State Prison registers from Waupun, county naturalization records with a statewide index, the fur trade and territorial records, county records on microfilm and the largest newspaper collection in the state, with its digital collections free online. Federal land patents for Wisconsin are at the General Land Office site, and the National Archives at Chicago holds Wisconsin's federal court and naturalization records. The Society's Area Research Centers at the University of Wisconsin campuses hold the county records for their regions.

• Wisconsin Historical SocietyState censuses, military, naturalization, county records and newspapers, checked September 25, 2026
• Bureau of Land Management General Land Office recordsFederal land patents for Wisconsin from 1835 onward, checked September 25, 2026
• National Archives at ChicagoFederal court and naturalization records for Wisconsin, checked September 25, 2026
• FamilySearch Wisconsin research guideFree indexed Wisconsin records and state censuses, checked September 25, 2026

Wisconsin registers of deeds hold deeds, mortgages and the county birth, death and marriage registers from each county's founding, and clerks of circuit court hold probate, divorce, civil and naturalization files, with most registers posting online indexes. The Wisconsin Historical Society's Area Research Centers hold the older books of the 72 counties, and the Milwaukee County records, covering Milwaukee, and the Dane County records, covering Madison, are the largest sets. Wisconsin's county historical societies have indexed cemeteries and obituaries statewide.

• Wisconsin County Public RecordsRegisters of deeds and clerks of circuit court for all 72 counties
• Wisconsin Court RecordsWisconsin Circuit Court Access and probate records

These federal and national sources complement Wisconsin's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Wisconsin state records are incomplete or out-of-state activity matters.

NARA, National Archives The federal government's primary archive. Holds the U.S. census (1790, 1950), ship passenger lists, naturalization records, military service files, and land entry files.

FamilySearch Free online genealogy platform operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Digitized microfilm copies of many county and state records worldwide.

Library of Congress, Local History & Genealogy The LoC's research guides, city directories, newspapers, and Civil War records, most accessible free online through loc.gov.