Special Collections

(Miscellaneous paper or book materials grouped by subject matter)

Biographical Collections: Filed by a person’s or family name (e.g. Hart, Swan) and may include clippings of obituaries, death notices, or newspaper articles.

Cookbook Collection from 1891 and On-Going: A detailed list is available with titles and publishers. Most are non-local and span the decades to the 1960’s.

Cemeteries Collection: General information on Wauwatosa and Milwaukee County cemeteries.

Church Collection: Wauwatosa churches by name (not sacramental records): may include anniversary booklets.

Landmark and Building Collection: Filed by street address (e.g. homes by numbered and named streets); district/neighborhood/subdivision (e.g. Chestnut Street and Wellauer Park); building reference (e.g. architecture and preservation).

Map Collection: Maps are a helpful resource that be used to track the growth of a community and to locate streets and changes in their names. Our collection includes the 1876 Historical Atlas (plat map book) of Milwaukee County, and in addition, there is a detailed listing for maps that include pre-1900 and post-1900 Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, and Wisconsin.

Milwaukee County Institutions: WHS holds a copy of the Register of Burials (1882-1974) from the Milwaukee County Poor Farm with over 8,000 names, dates, and causes of death. The collection also includes published Annual Reports of the Milwaukee County Institutions (1896-1926 (not inclusive), many with photos. Memoirs (including photos and maps) of the Milwaukee County Children’s Home by Joseph F. Cieminski, who resided there from 1933-41, are also available.

Newspaper Collection: WHS holds bound copies of the Wauwatosa News (beginning with 1900) and the Wauwatosa News Times through 1994; loose copies thereafter. WHS has the ONLY index to this paper, from 1900 through 1917. This index is computerized and can be searched by personal or corporate name for a printout of the entry.

Periodical Collection: Magazines on the history of Wauwatosa, Milwaukee, the County, and the State in addition to house restoration, preservation, architecture, and Victorian interiors. (See Historic Wauwatosa May 2005 for a detailed list.)

School Collection: These files are organized by school name and contain varied materials. These are not official school records. We also have school newspapers, including the Cardinal News and the Hawthorne Echo.

School Reunions Collection: Beginning with the class of 1927, these files reflect activities of Wauwatosa class reunions.

Wauwatosa Government Collection: Among a list of these files are: the City Seal, city telephone directories, ordinances, city planning materials, the Village, Police Department, 100th Anniversary, the Library, and annual bulletins and city newsletters.

Wauwatosa High School Collection: A variety of items are found in this grouping, including student publications and commencement items.

Yearbook Collection: These are primarily from Wauwatosa High School, Wauwatosa East High School, and Wauwatosa West High School, along with Wauwatosa Junior High School and Whitman Junior High/Middle School. There is a list of all years available. We hold three yearbooks from the Milwaukee County School of Nursing from 1970-1972.

Other Special Collections: Some smaller files have material by these subjects: The Great Depression, Political, Receipts, Senior Citizens, Tourism, Scrapbooks, Videocassettes, Compact Discs, Audiocassettes, and Film.

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