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Vilas County
 Genealogical Resources

Vilas County was named after William F. Vilas of Madison, who came to Wisconsin from Vermont when he was 11 and graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1858. He attained the rank of lieutenant colonel during the Civil War, was postmaster general of the United States from 1885-88, was secretary of the interior from 1888-91 and a U.S. senator from 1891-97.

Before 1 January 1875, Vilas County was part of Marathon County; from 1875 to 1885, part of Lincoln County; from 1885 to 1893, part of Oneida County; then was set off as Vilas County in 1893.

Archives, Libraries and Museums

Area Research Center
Family Research Center
Libraries
Museums

Bibliography

Biographies, Family Histories, and Names

  • Bailey, Sturgis W. Mrs. Index to Names in the Commemorative Biographical Record of the Upper Wisconsin Counties of Waupaca, Portage, Wood, Marathon, Lincoln, Oneida, Vilas, Langlade, & Shawano, Illustrated. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin State Genealogical Society, 1980.

  • Commemorative Biographical Record of the Upper Wisconsin Counties of Waupaca, Portage, Wood, Marathon, Lincoln, Oneida, Vilas, Langlade, and Shawano. Chicago, Illinois: J.H. Beers & Co., 1895.

Cemeteries

  • Vilas County Cemeteries

Arbor Vitae: Sunset Memorial Municipal Cemetery, S. Farming Rd.

Boulder Junction: Cemetery of the Pines, Hwy. K

Conover: Hildegard Cemetery, Hwy. K

Eagle River: Eagle River Cemetery, E. Wall St.; St. Peter's Cemetery, E. Wall St.

Lac du Flambeau: Memorial Cemetery, Hwy. 47

Land O' Lakes: Oak Hill Cemetery, Hwy. B

Manitowish Waters: Pine Lawn Cemetery, Hwy. 51

Phelps: Phelps Cemetery, Hwy. 17N

Plum Lake: Plum Lake Municipal Cemetery, Sayner site -- Lake Street; Plum Lake Municipal Cemetery, Star Lake site -- intersection of hwys. N and K

Presque Isle: Evergreen Cemetery, Hwy. W

St. Germain: St. Germain Cemetery, Hwy. 70W

Star Lake: Star Lake Cemetery

Winchester: Winchester Cemetery, Harris Lake Rd.

Census Records and Indexes

Church Records

  • Vilas County Churches

Boulder Junction: Community Church of Boulder Junction, 10445 Main St.; St. Anne Catholic Church, 10315 Main St.; Trinity Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod, 10289 Old K Rd.

Conover: Conover Evangelical Free Church, 3725 Hwy. 45; Pioneer Lake Lutheran Church, ELCA, 3675 Church Rd.

Eagle River: Abundant Life Outreach Center, 210 Capich Dr.; Birchwood Community Church, 115 E. Division; Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, Wisconsin Synod, 121 N. Third St.; Community Bible Church, 101 S. 2nd St.; Eagle River Baptist Church, 1016 Hwy. 45 S.; First Congregational United Church of Christ, 105 N. First St.; Kingdom Hall Jehovah's Witnesses, 1165 Overlook Dr., Northwood Assembly of God Church, 926 Hwy. 45S; Our Savior Lutheran Church, 223 Silver Lake Rd.; Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, ELCA, 5030 Hwy. 70; St. Mary of the Snows Anglican Church, 120 Silver Lake Rd.; St. Peter the Fisherman Catholic Church, 5001 Hwy. G.

Lac du Flambeau: Community Presbyterian Church, Hwy. 47; Lac du Flambeau Bible Baptist Church, Hwy. 47; St. Anthony Catholic Church, Hwy. 47

Land O' Lakes: Ely Memorial United Church of Christ, 4302 County Road B; Hope Lutheran Church, 1756 Hwy. 45N; Land O' Lakes Bible Church, Hwy. 45; St. Albert's Catholic Church, 4351 Hwy. B

Manitowish Waters: Manitowish Waters Community Presbyterian Church, Hwy. 51 North 49; Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church, 193 N. Hwy. 51, south of County W

Phelps: Phelps Congregational United Church of Christ, Hwy. 17, downtown; St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Wisconsin Synod, 2216 Hwy. 17; St. Mary's Catholic Church, 4494 Town Hall Rd.; Twin Lakes Bible Church, 3245 Hwy. 17

Presque Isle: Bethel Lutheran Chapel, 11625 Church St.; St. Rita Catholic Church, end of Lake St.

St. Germain: Community United Church of Christ, 1315 Hwy. 155; St. Germain Evangelical Free Church, 6065 Hwy. 70E

Sayner: St. Mary Catholic Church, 2820 E. Hwy. N.; Sayner Community Church, in town; Shepherd of the Lakes Lutheran Church, ELCA, 227 Main St.

Court Records

Deaths and Obituaries

Directories

Ethnic Groups

Forums, Mailing Lists, and Message Boards

History

Land Records

Maps, Gazetteers, and Atlases

  • Boyd, Gregory A. Family Maps of Vilas County, Wisconsin : With Homesteads, Roads, Waterways, Towns, Cemeteries, Railroads, and More. Norman, Okla: Arphax Pub. Co, 2007.

Military Records

Miscellaneous Materials

Naturalization Records

Newspapers and Periodicals

Photographs, Postcards, Historical Images

Projects

Researchers

Societies

  • Boulder Junction Area Historical Society
    PO Box 447
    Boulder Junction, WI, 54512

  • Eagle River Historical Society
    519 Sheridan Street
    Eagle River, WI, 54521

  • Lac du Flambeau Historical and Cultural Society
    PO Box 729
    Lac du Flambeau WT 54538

  • Land O' Lakes Historical Society
    PO Box 541
    Land O' Lakes, WI 54540

Towns and Cities

Arbor Vitae

Arbor Vitae is one of the older towns in Vilas County, having been established in the 1890s shortly after Vilas became a county in 1893. It started as a logging center, and today has a flourishing tourist industry.

Boulder Junction

Boulder Junction, once a part of Arbor Vitae, was a center of an extensive logging operation from the late 1800s. The village of Boulder Junction, much older than the town, grew up at the site of a station on the railroad line, first called Boulder. It has been known as the "Musky Capital of the World" since 1950.

Cloverland

The town of Cloverland was founded in 1921 from parts of Conover, Lincoln and Farmington (now called St. Germain).

Conover

Conover was set aside from the town of Eagle River 3 January 1907. The old town of Conover was just south of Highway K, along the railroad tracks. Conover once had some of the best white pine stands in northern Wisconsin, and the town started as a lumbering town before becoming a winter and summer vacationland. The town was named for Seth Conover, owner of Lakota Resort.

Eagle River

Eagle River became an outpost for the booming fur trade and a center for logging activity starting in 1857. Stories written about that era showed that Dutch Pete had a log cabin built on Yellow Birch Lake at that time, near its outlet to the Eagle River. Also living here were "Hi Polar" (Hiram B. Polar) and another man called "Kentuck" (Charles L. Perry). Growth came more rapidly with the completion of the military road in 1872 and the building of the Milwaukee, Lake Shore and Western Railroad (later the Chicago and North Western) in 1883. Finn Lawler arrived here in 1875 and became the first town chairman in 1885. By the turn of the century, tourism became a second major industry that developed rapidly in the early 1900s.

Lac du Flambeau

The village of Lac du Flambeau is located in the extreme southwest part of Vilas County and within the Indian reservation of the same name. The reservation covers about 144 square miles with 34 square miles being located in Iron County and two square miles being located in Oneida County. About 1885, the area was a great logging center. The Lac du Flambeau Lumber Co., organized by Herrick & Stearns from Michigan, closed in 1914.

Land O' Lakes

Land O' Lakes, originally known as State Line, was set off from Eagle River 3 January 1907. Located on the Wisconsin-Michigan border, Land O' Lakes is home to the Gateway Lodge, built in 1939 and known then as the Gateway Hotel. The schools were first built in the town of Donaldson, about two miles west of Land O' Lakes, where the dump is now located. With the post office address still State Line, by 1930 most residents said they lived in "Land O' Lakes," and the title stuck. State Line was officially changed to Land O' Lakes in 1948.

Lincoln

The town of Lincoln, at one time, was part of the city of Eagle River. It was separated 12 May 1914, and in September 1917, slight changes were made in the town of Lincoln when some government lots in sections 23, 24 and 26 were transferred to the town of Washington.

Manitowish Waters

Manitowish Waters is located on the western edge of Vilas County, and is surrounded by lakes. Built along a chain of lakes, Manitowish Waters is ideal for fishermen and sports enthusiasts. Originally belonging to the town of Flambeau, area residents succeeded in having the state legislature pass a bill creating the new town of Spider Lake. The name of the town was changed from Spider Lake to Manitowish Waters 1937.

Phelps

The village of Phelps grew on Big Twin Lake, which was on the route of the Military Road, a road created by the U.S. Congress between Wilkins in Keweenaw County, Michigan, to Fort Howard in Green Bay. The town had its biggest growth from about 1908-12, when people of the Finnish race moved to the area to farm. While Eagle River and other Vilas County towns were past their peaks in logging, Phelps was just opening up. Sawyers and lumberjacks from closed mills throughout the county headed for the lumber camp on the east shore of Big Twin Lake. In those days, it was called Hackley. It was renamed Phelps in 1912, and the town grew up around the logging camp.

Plum Lake

The town of Plum Lake, encompassing the two towns of Sayner and Star Lake, had its modest beginnings on 11 April 1911, when it was created out of territory detached from the town of Arbor Vitae. The first town meeting was held in Sayner 14 April 1911. Sayner got its name from Orrin W. Sayner, who settled the area in 1891, two years before any other settlers took up homes in the town. A place called Camp 1 got the name of Star Lake in memory of Harry Starr, who was killed while working on the construction of a railroad bridge across the mill hot pond. The lake was also named Star.

Presque Isle

Presque Isle started out as a logging village named Fosterville, named for Fred Foster, who was superintendent of the lumber company. The company sold out to W.S. Winegar, owner of Vilas County Lumber Co., and the name was changed to Winegar. The village continued to be a lumber town until people started buying property and building summer homes. The area became more populated and Winegar became a resort town. In 1955, the village name was changed to Presque Isle.

St. Germain

The town of Farmington was established by the Vilas County Board 31 January 1907. It was an area taken from Arbor Vitae and Eagle River. When farming failed and tourists were attracted by the scenery, good fishing and better roads, the name was changed to St. Germain 20 June 1930.

Washington

Prior to 1893, the land area that now comprises the town of Washington was part of Oneida County and, in May 1899, it was known as part of the newly created town of Eagle River. On 12 May, 1914, the town of Washington was established. Five years later, more changes were made when section 25 and some government lots in sections 23, 24 and 26 were transferred from the town of Lincoln to Washington.

Winchester

Winchester dates back to 1902, when several individuals organized the Turtle Lake Lumber Co. Even before the lumber company started their settlement, a vacation and fishing resort was being built on a site that became known as Divide, at the narrows between the North and South Turtle lakes in the mid 1890s. After the organization of the Turtle Lake Lumber Co., Winchester became a great logging district. In 1905, the company built a sawmill and began lumbering operations. When the company built a larger mill in 1907, the post office was transferred from Divide to Winchester, name after Walter Winchester.

 

Transportation, Business and Industry

Vital Records

  • Vezzetti, Judy. Combined Index to Rusk, Sawyer, Taylor, Vilas, Washburn Counties, Wisconsin, Pre-1907 Marriages. Madison: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 2002.

  • Vezzetti, Judy. Index to Vilas County, Wisconsin, Marriages, 1890-1907. Madison: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 2001.

Web Sources