ENAbout
This collection comprises citizen petitions written to the legislatures of the Wisconsin Territory and later the State of Wisconsin, from 1836 to 1891. At the time, petitions were the only direct means for citizens to communicate with the government.
From requesting dams, roads, and money to build schoolhouses, to recording views on slavery, suffrage, and statehood, these petitions reveal what settlers wished to achieve for their communities, and the ways in which they hoped to connect Wisconsin to the expanding commerce and intellectual life of the United States. These petitions are mostly handwritten in blue and iron gall ink; most petitions comprise a title page, the petition itself, and signature pages.
For more information about this collection, visit its Online Finding Aid and View the Online Collection.
The work of flattening, scanning, and describing these petitions was funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) of the National Archives.
Works
All works are fully transcribed.
Remonstrance against stopping construction on the Milwaukee and Rock River Canal
Remonstrance against taxing lots in the 5th ward in Milwaukee that need adjoining streets graded
Remonstrance against taxing property not yet assessed to build a schoolhouse in Janesville
Remonstrance against taxing the 1st and 5th wards of Milwaukee to build a harbor without approval of a majority of voters
Remonstrance against taxing the lumber being transported on the Wisconsin River
Remonstrance against the act entitled, "An Act to authorize certain towns to aid in the construction of the Racine, Janesville and Mississippi Railroad"
Remonstrance against the apportionment of Senate and Assembly districts in Fond du Lac County
Remonstrance against the city of Janesville using certain lots as a cemetery
Remonstrance against the discontinuance of the Hebron road in the town of Jefferson
Remonstrance against the division of the towns of Lake Mills and Tyrahnena
