An old proverb states that "the eyes are the windows into the soul." A genealogy corollary is that "a photo is a window into the lives of your ancestors."
I love old photos, whether they are portraits of my ancestors or historical photos for the period when they lived. And it is important to a complete research that one attempts to understand the environment that surrounds our ancestors' lives if one wants to truly appreciate what they went through.
So where can they be found? Obviously the best resource is our own photo albums and those that our relatives possess. But what about other resources? Many archives, historical societies, libraries and genealogical societies have collections of old photos. And in the past few years there has been a massive movement towards making these historical photo collections available online. Some have search capabilities where you can actually put in a surname or a location, name of a building or historical event and find what is available.
For the state of Wisconsin, what collections are available for you to browse and/or search online? Here is a list of sites to start with. Please feel free to add in the comments other online resources that you might be aware of in the state.
Please be aware that there may be very strict rules regarding downloading or other use of the images that you may find. Copyright and other legal protections may be in force. Make sure that you read the limitations of use for any image that you find in these collections and wish to download and/or copy. It is your responsibility to adhere to the rules for all of these collections.
Please note that links to these sites may change in the future. The author (me) will not be constantly checking and updating these links, so if you find a broken link, please use your favorite search engine to locate the new link.
(Updated June, 2020; recently added links are in BOLD)
- Adams County Photo Album
- Adams County Photograph Collection
- Brodhead Historical Society Online Image Archive
- Brown County Historic Photos
- Buffalo County Historical Society - Alma
- Burlington Historical Society Galleries
- Circus World Museum - Baraboo
- Clark County Photo Albums
- Clark County Photos
- Douglas County Photographs
- Eagle Historical Society Historic Photos
- Eau Claire County Photos
- Eau Claire Historical Photographs
- Iowa County Historical Society Photos
- Kaukauna Area Photos
- Kenosha County Images
- Kenosha History Center Photographs
- La Crosse County Historical Society - La Crosse
- La Crosse Photograph Collection
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
- Madison Area Photos
- Manitowoc County Historical Society - Manitowoc
- Manitowoc Local History Collection
- Marathon County Historical Society Online Photo Collections
- Marquette University e-Collections Photos
- McMillan Memorial Library (Historical Collections)
- McMillan Memorial Library Portrait Gallery
- Menasha Historic Collection
- Middleton Photo Galleries
- Milwaukee Historic Photos
- Monroe County Historic Image and Photo Archive
- Monroe Public Library Special Collections
- National Archives - Digital Photograph Collections
- Neenah Historic Photos
- Old Main Historical & Community Arts Center - Galesville
- Old Milwaukee Photos
- Oshkosh Public Library Photo Collections
- Oshkosh Public Museum - Oshkosh
- Portage County Historical Society Photo Exhibit
- Racine County Photos and Postcards
- Recollection Wisconsin
- Reedsburg Public Library Photo Collection
- Rock County Historic Photographs
- Sauk City Library Collection
- Sauk County Historic Images
- Sawyer County Photo Album
- Shawano County Photos
- Shorewood Historical Society Photos
- Smithsonian Images
- Somerset Public Library Photo Collection
- St. Croix County Historical Society Photo Collection
- Trempealeau County Photo Album
- Two Rivers Photos
- University of Wisconsin Digital Collections
- University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Historic Photographs
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Archives
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Art Collection - Milwaukee
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Parkside Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Platteville Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-River Falls University Archives and Area Research Center - River Falls
- University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Stout Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Superior Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Waukesha Photo Collection
- University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Photo Collection
- UW Colleges Historic Photos Collection
- Vernon County Historic Photos
- Verona History Images
- Vintage Wisconsin Photos
- Ward Irish Music Archives - Milwaukee
- Washburn County Photos
- Washington County Historical Society - West Bend
- Watertown Photo Albums
- Waunakee Historic Photographs
- Waupun Historical Society - Waupun
- Winding Rivers Library System Photographs and Postcards
- Wisconsin Ancient Faces
- Wisconsin Dead Fred
- Wisconsin Electronic Reader Image Galleries
- Wisconsin Historical Markers and Photographs
- Wisconsin Historical Society Photographs
- Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Graduate Photo Archive
- Wisconsin Maritime Museum - Manitowoc
- Wisconsin Old Family Photos
- Wisconsin Penny Postcards
- Wisconsin Veterans Museum - Madison
- Wisconsin, DP.LA Photos
- Wisconsin, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives
For historical photos from other states as well as articles about photo research, please visit the Photos page.
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!
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