LTC Library: Family History Month: Genealogy Resources

Helpful Genealogy Websites

BadgerLink Genealogy Resources
Access newspaper databases and HeritageQuest Online (an Ancestry product, features: censuses, plat maps, city directories, wills, Revolutionary War pensions, etc). Free access is provided to all Wisconsin residents, just sign in with your zip code!
FamilySearch
Explore this FREE genealogy database. (Just make a free account.) This site allows you to create a family tree. You can also access records from around the world, including: censuses, vital records (birth, marriage, death), military records, passenger manifests, naturalization records, etc.
FindaGrave
Find the location of graves. Many memorials also include pictures of headstones and obituaries.
Google Books
Find county histories and biographic sketches. Search tip: search an ancestor's name + their county of residence.
Lakeshore College Digital Archive
This archive collection from Lakeshore College compiles yearbooks, photographs, documents, and videos showing the college’s history. Tip: you can search by a person's name in the search box.
UW-Digitized Collections
Digitized books, photos, maps, recordings, and archival documents from the University of Wisconsin's collection. Of particular note for genealogy research: local history collections and plat maps.

Plat book of Manitowoc and Calumet Counties, Wisconsin
1893 plat map from the UW-Digitized Collection, showing land ownership in Manitowoc and Calumet Counties. Plat maps for other counties can also be found in the UW-Digitized Collection (https://search.library.wisc.edu/search/digital).
Plat book of Sheboygan County, Wisconsin
1889 plat map from the UW-Digitized Collection, showing land ownership in Sheboygan County. Plat maps for other counties can also be found in the UW-Digitized Collection (https://search.library.wisc.edu/search/digital).
U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Provides online image access to over 5 million Federal land title records issued between 1788 and the present. Check out the Land Patents, which records the initial transfer of land titles from the Federal government to individuals. You can search by name and location!

Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Database
From their website: The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System (CWSS) is a database containing information about the men who served in the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War. Other information on the site includes histories of Union and Confederate regiments, links to descriptions of significant battles, and selected lists of prisoner-of-war records and cemetery records, which will be amended over time.
Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865. Volume I.
Published in two volumes in 1886, this lists every soldier who served in every Wisconsin unit. In this online version you can browse by regiment and company, or you can search for soldiers individually by name.
Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865. Volume II.
Published in two volumes in 1886, this lists every soldier who served in every Wisconsin unit. In this online version you can browse by regiment and company, or you can search for soldiers individually by name.
United States Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War, 1890
From FamilySearch, access available with a free account. Index and images of schedules enumerating Union veterans and widows of veterans of the Civil War for the states of Kentucky through Wyoming. Census schedules list regiment, rank, dates of service, and disability incurred.

BadgerLink Newspaper Databases
A collection of historic and current newspaper databases, including: Archive of Wisconsin Newspapers, Newspaper Source Plus, Newspapers.com Library Edition - World Collection, Newswires, Regional Business News, and U.S. Newsstream. Free access is provided to all Wisconsin residents, just sign in with your zip code!
Chronicling America
From the Library of Congress, this is a digitized collection of historic American newspapers published between 1756 - 1963.
Der Nord Westen
Translations of the German newspaper from Manitowoc, WI. Dates range from 1874-1909.
Google Newspaper Archive
A collection of scanned historic newspapers.

Manitowoc Public Library Genealogy & Local History Resources
Explore a collection of resources from Manitowoc Public Library, including: city directories, church records, local history database, newspaper indexes, plat maps. Some resources are available online.
Mead Public Library Genealogy Resources
Explore a collection of digital resources from Sheboygan's Mead Public Library. Use your Mead Public Library card to access great resources like Ancestry Library Edition and newspaper databases like Newspaper Archive and ProQuest Historical Newspapers Wisconsin Collection.

Find Your Ancestors Series
Recordings of virtual genealogy programs hosted by the Appleton Public Library. Topics include: German ancestry, Italian ancestry, Irish ancestry, FamilySearch, Ancestry.com, preserving photographs, maps, Wisconsin resources, military service research, newspapers, organizing your research, etc.
Genealogy Gems
A newsletter from the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center that features tools and research tips.
How to Do Oral History
Tips from the Smithsonian Institution Archives on how to conduct an oral history intreview.
RootsTech Video Library
RootsTech is FamilySearch's annual family history conference. Browse a collection of recorded presentations.

Family History Forms
A collection of printable family history forms from the Midwest Genealogy Center.
Gramps
Free genealogical research software that can help you research, organize, and share your family tree.
How to Preserve Family Archives
Tips from the National Archive for storing, displaying, and digitizing family papers and pictures.
Organizing Your Files
FamilySearch's tips for organizing genealogy research files.
Pedigree Charts
A collection of free downloadable pedigree charts from Cyndi's List.
Personal Archiving: Preserving Your Digital Memories
Guide from the Library of Congress with tips for organizing your personal digital materials (photos, audio, video, email, records, websites).

Gramps Genealogy Software, Showing Fan Chart