Traverse County, Minnesota Genealogy
Guide to Traverse County, Minnesota ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Traverse County, Minnesota | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Minnesota, United States Genealogy | |
 Location of Minnesota in the U.S. | |
| Facts | |
| Founded | February 20, 1862 |
|---|---|
| County Seat | Wheaton |
| Courthouse | |
| Address | Traverse County Courthouse 702 2nd Ave N PO Box 487 Wheaton, MN 56296 Phone: 320.563.4266 Phone 320-563-4343 (phone) Phone: 320-563-4311 (fax) Traverse County Website |
Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 County Courthouse
- 3 History
- 4 Places/Localities
- 5 Resources
- 6 Societies and Libraries
- 7 Websites
- 8 References
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The County was named for Lake Traverse. The County is located in the west central area of the state. [1]
Traverse County, Minnesota Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1881 | 1881 | 1881 | 1881 | 1881 | 1881 | 1836 |
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Clerk District Court has birth, marriage, death, divorce,
probate, court and land records from 1881. [3]
History[edit | edit source]
Parent County[edit | edit source]
1862--Traverse County was created 20 February 1862 from Pierce (Eliminated 20 Feb 1862) County and unorganized territory.
County seat: Wheaton [4]
- For a brief history of how Traverse County was named, click here, then select Traverse County.
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Places/Localities[edit | edit source]
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[5]
| Cities | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Townships | ||
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
| MNGenWeb | Billion Graves | |
| MNGenWeb Archives | FamilySearch Places | |
| Tombstone Project | ||
| Billion Graves | ||
| See Minnesota Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Census[edit | edit source]
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1870 | 13 | — |
| 1880 | 1,507 | 11492.3% |
| 1890 | 4,516 | 199.7% |
| 1900 | 7,573 | 67.7% |
| 1910 | 8,049 | 6.3% |
| 1920 | 7,943 | −1.3% |
| 1930 | 7,938 | −0.1% |
| 1940 | 8,283 | 4.3% |
| 1950 | 8,053 | −2.8% |
| 1960 | 7,503 | −6.8% |
| 1970 | 6,254 | −16.6% |
| 1980 | 5,542 | −11.4% |
| 1990 | 4,463 | −19.5% |
| 2000 | 4,134 | −7.4% |
| 2010 | 3,558 | −13.9% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
State Census
- 1865 - Minnesota State Census, 1865 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1885 - Minnesota State Census, 1885 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1905 - Minnesota State Census, 1905 at FamilySearch — index and images
Church[edit | edit source]
Most church records are held by individual churches. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository. For more information, see Minnesota Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
- 1912 - 1956 - Minnesota Passenger and Crew Lists, 1912-1956 at FamilySearch — index and images
Land[edit | edit source]
The county register of deeds keeps land records once the land was transferred to private ownership. Abstracts and indexes for these records are generally available at the county courthouse.
Land records for Minnesota are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:
MINNESOTA, Traverse – LAND AND PROPERTY
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Traverse County, Minnesota Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Minnesota Local Histories.
- Wheaton, Minnesota: Centennial History, 1887-1987. Wheaton, MN: Gazette Oublishing Co., 1987. Print.
Maps[edit | edit source]
- FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
for more resources
Military[edit | edit source]
World War II[edit | edit source]
- 1940-1945 - Minnesota, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1947 at FamilySearch — index and images
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
- 1872-1962 - Minnesota Naturalization Records and Indexes, 1872-1962 at FamilySearch — index
Newspapers[6][edit | edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Traverse County, Minnesota Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat
- FamilySearch. Do a Traverse County, Minnesota Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see, FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).
- The Wheaton Gazette (May 1925-Current; Weekly)
- Wheaton Gazette-Reporter (1889 [?]-April 1925; Weekly)
- Wheaton Gazette (March 1885-1889 [?]; Weekly)
- Browns Valley Reporter (May 1880-1889 [?]; Weekly)
- The Valley News (April 1926-Current; Weekly)
- The Traverse County Star (1922 [?]-1924[?]; Weekly)
- Traverse County Traveler (April 1916-November 1918; Weekly)
- Weekly Footprints (June 1903-Mar 1916; Weekly)
- The Footprints (September 1894-June 1903; Weekly)
- Browns Valley Footprints (1890 [?]-September 1894; Weekly)
- Browns Valley Inter-Lake Tribune (February 1902-March 1936; Weekly)
- Inter-Lake Tribune (1894 [?]-February 1902; Weekly)
- Inter-Lake Tribune and Traverse County Times (1891 [?]-1894[?]; Weekly)
- The Dumont Journal (May 1902-[?]; Weekly)
- The Weekly Call (1902 [?]-[?]; Weekly)
- The Browns Valley Courier (1891 [?]; Weekly)
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
- 1865 - 2006 - Minnesota Obituaries 1865-2006 at FamilySearch— index and images
Probate[edit | edit source]
Probate records may include, wills, bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions. They may include the decedent’s date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, etc. See Minnesota Probate Records for additional information. Online Probate Records
- 1801 - 1999 Minnesota Wills and Probate Records 1801-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
Taxation[edit | edit source]
Since Minnesota tax records include only persons who owned taxable property, many residents were not included. Still they complement land records and can be used in place of missing censuses or the years between censuses. There may also be gaps. For more information, see the wiki page Minnesota Taxation.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents.
A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Minnesota State Registrar of Vital Records, or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. See also Minnesota Vital Records.
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1900-1934 Minnesota, Birth Index, 1900-1934 at MyHeritage($) — index
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1850-2019 WEB: Minnesota, Marriages from the Minnesota Official Marriage System, 1850-2019 at Ancestry($) — index
- 1860 - 1949 Minnesota, County Marriages, 1860-1949 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1976-2003 Minnesota, Marriages, 1976-2003 at MyHeritage($) — index
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1850-2001 - Minnesota, County Deaths, 1850-2001 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1887-2001 - Minnesota Deaths, 1887-2001 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1904-2001 Minnesota, Death Index, 1904-2001 at MyHeritage($) — index
Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]
Traverse County Historical Society
1201 Broadway
Wheaton, MN 56296
Traverse-des-sioux Genealogical Society
815 Nicollet Ave
North Mankato 56001
Traverse County Historical Society
601 1st Avenue South (mailing address)
Corner of Broadway Avenue and Trail Street (museum address)
Wheaton, MN 56296
Telephone: 320-563-8520
Browns Valley Historical Society
PO Box 13
Browns Valley, MN 56219
Telephone: 320-695-2312
Wheaton Community Library
901 1st Avenue North
Wheaton, MN 56296
Telephone: 320-563-8487
Fax: 320-563-8815
Browns Valley Public Library
PO Box 307
15 3rd Street South
Browns Valley, MN 56219
Telephone: 320-695-2318
Fax: 320-695-2125
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
Local Centers and Libraries
Websites[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Traverse County, Minnesota" in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traverse_County,_Minnesota accessed 15 Nov 2018
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Traverse County, Minnesota. Page 362-370 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 362-365.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Traverse County, Minnesota page 369, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Traverse County, Minnesota," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traverse_County,_Minnesota, accessed 04 March 2020.
- ↑ MNHS Library Catalogue; Traverse County Newspapers. http://mnhs.mnpals.net/F/LXCL1JSLR7NUDY96BCCLBC2RACU75TTBTNA8IPDCBJESMUNPP8-92835?func=find-accacc_sequence=081926536 (accessed November 9, 2011).
