Archives and Genealogy Research

The Archives staff of the Diocese of Green Bay is happy to assist genealogists.
Please use our Genealogy request form to begin.

Contact Us

Access and Services

Are you:

• Working on your family tree?
• In need of a copy of your sacramental records?
• Writing the history of your parish?
• Doing research on the Diocese of Green Bay?

Help is as close as the Archives of the Diocese of Green Bay.

What do the Archives Do?

The Archives collect, preserve, survey, appraise, arrange, describe, store, and provide access (when feasible) to records and papers about the Diocese and the Catholic community of northeast Wisconsin. These records date from the roughly 1850 to the present.

While the Archives mainly serve the Dioceseʼs administration, staff, and parishes, Archives also assist scholars and family genealogists in accord with church, state, and federal laws and accepted archival practices.

What records are in the Archives?

What records are not open to the public

• Marriage tribunal and adoption records; adoptions researchers are advised to consult the Adoption Records Search Program, Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, (608) 422-6928
• Sacramental records since 1930
• Access to some other records may be restricted for a certain number of years under civil or Church law or because of the wishes of donor

General policies

• Requests are made through an online request form; if a patron does not have access to the Internet, he or she may phone the Archives (920-272-8195).
• Individuals may do their own research, also for a fee, by appointment during certain hours on Tuesdays
• Genealogical inquiries usually take one to two weeks to complete

Hours and fees

• Researchers may schedule an appointment on any Tuesday, 9 am-noon and 1 pm-4 pm. It is also possible that a non Tuesday appointment may be requested. Independent research in the Archives is $10 (half day or less) and $15 (all day).
• Genealogy research conducted by the Archives staff — $25 (up to six sacramental records on two ancestors).
• .25 per sacramental record retrieved or photocopied.

Genealogy Research

Our Archives can help you research your family tree or the Catholic history of Northeastern Wisconsin using parish, diocesan, and other related records. We have microfiche copies of all existing sacramental records (baptisms, marriages, burials, plus some first Communions and confirmations) for the Catholic churches of the Green Bay Diocese (most of Northeastern Wisconsin). However, many of the early records are not complete.

General Guidelines

• We can search all pre-1930 sacramental records.
• Records since 1930 are not open for research.
• We do not have any general indexes — automated or otherwise — for the sacramental records.
• We cannot respond to requests for general searches, such as a certain surname, or all records on a certain family within a l large timespan or geographic area. For example we cannot respond to a request such as, “Please send me all the information you have on the Smith family who came to Northeastern Wisconsin about 1853…ˮ
• We can respond to more specific requests, such as: “Please search for the baptismal records of the children of John and Mary Smith. Catherine was born about 1863 and Robert was born about 1871. The family was Bohemian and lived near Cooperstown, Manitowoc County.ˮ Or: “Please check for the burial records for my great-grandparents, William and Anna Jones. William died between 1881 and 1900, and Anna died after 1910. Anna was born in 1825.ˮ

What We Need From You

• Approximate dates (within 10 years or so) — if you do not know the dates, you can use census records to narrow them down.
  There are indexes to the 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880 (for households with children 10 or younger), 1900, and 1920 Wisconsin federal censuses. Wisconsin also conducted state censuses in 1855, 1875, 1885, 1895 and 1905. These census records are available to Wisconsin residents at your local library or through inter-library loan. Non-Wisconsin residents can order the indexes and census records through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Family History Centers.
• Where they lived. Census records can help pinpoint a location. Just having the county is not enough; a township or area in the county is needed. We have tables to help you find this information.
• Your information on a family group sheet, if possible. Be as complete and concise as possible. Include any additional information that might help locate the information.

Finding Aids

We have compiled tables that show the locality (including townships), name of the parish — including the various names a parish had over the years — earliest year records are available for baptisms, marriages, and funerals, and which ethnic groups (where applicable) the parish served.

Eventually, there will be tables for each ethnic group. The date a church is founded and the starting date for sacramental records may not be the same. Sacramental records for baptisms, marriages, and funerals may not begin on the same date.
When starting a search for families pre-World War I, first check the records of the area parish (or parishes) of the familiesʼ ethnic background. If there is no ethnic parish, check other Catholic churches in the area.

If your ancestor's residency pre-dated the earliest parish records, use the table to determine what parishes existed then (and thus where to look for the records).

Table of Parish Sacramental Records Download Document

Can You Do Your Own Research in the Archives?

Researchers may visit the Archives to perform personal research on Tuesdays (9 am-noon, 1 pm-4 pm) or by appointment. Private researchers contribute $10 for a half day or $15 for a whole day of research, in addition to a .25 printing fee for any records printed. Reservations may be confirmed by calling 920-272-8195.

Directions

Permissions

Scans of records sent to Archives patrons are for the requester's personal use only. They cannot be reproduced, published or shared electronically without permission from the Archives.

As of July 1, 2022:
There is a set fee of $25.00 per research request plus .25 per copy/image. Staff will perform one hour of research for up to two ancestors' sacramental records (e.g. baptism record search for ancestor #1, wedding and death record search for ancestor #2).
Additional time for additional research subjects requires an additional payment ($25 per hour). Prepayment is not required.
Checks should be payable to Diocese of Green Bay, Inc. and mailed to:

Chancery Building
1825 Riverside Drive
Green Bay, WI 54305-3825
Phone: (920) 272-8187 or (920) 272-8195
Fax: (920) 435-1330
Olivia Wendt or Br. Steve Herro

Locating Sacramental Records

Archives provides free copies of personal sacramental records, including baptism, First Communion, confirmation, and marriage. If you know where the sacraments were conferred, contact the parish for copies.

Preparing for marriage? Contact the parish that conferred the sacraments to arrange for certificates to be prepared from sacramental registers.

If you are note sure which parish in the Green Bay Diocese conferred your sacrament, contact Diocesan Archives department to locate the record.

Consult this table (2.63 MB) to determine which parish has which sacramental records for particular years.ʼʼ

Helpful external Websites for genealogists:

Archives of nearby dioceses (some of which have congregations that used to be in the Green Bay Diocese)
Archives of the Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin
Archives of the Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin
Archives of Diocese of Marquette, Michigan—not open for reference service
Archives of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Non-church genealogy reference sources: Appleton Public Library Obituary Index

Manitowoc County Wisconsin Genealogy: Especially strong in deaths, cemeteries, newspaper marriage articles from Manitowoc County.

Winnefox Vital Records: Links to birth, marriage, and death records for those form Fond du Lac, Winnebago, Waushara, Marquette, and Green Lake counties. Wisconsin Historical Society.

Research your Family History: contains an index for many (but not all) pre-1907 Wisconsin birth, marriage, and death civil records. If the civil record is indexed, there is a link to buy it from the Wisconsin Historical Society.