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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Augusta Memorial Library

Augusta, Wisconsin

Explore this community history collection to discover the people, places, organizations, and events of Augusta.

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13Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1874 to 2006Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

146,870Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Augusta, Wisconsin.

Explore the past of Augusta, Wisconsin through newspapers in the Augusta Memorial Library's digital archive. Its thirteen titles include material from 1874 to 2006.

You can open the archive using the link below.
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  • Selected titles

    Explore titles such as “Augusta Eagle” and “The Union”, shared by Augusta Memorial Library.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • A closer look

    A familiar name or event takes on another dimension in the newspaper coverage of its time, alongside the stories that mattered to the readers of that issue.

Reporting from the time can reveal how people described the events, work and concerns of their day, placing a local story within the history unfolding around it. Whether you are tracing a family connection, exploring a local event or sharing history with a class, there is more to discover than names and dates alone. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Browse thirteen titles and 146,870 digitized pages, with material from 1874 to 2006. This collection is shared through Augusta Memorial Library's partnership with Advantage Archives. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

Bring a person, place or date you recognize, and browse the titles below for a first clue in the story you want to follow.

Augusta Eagle

1,510 pages from 1876 to 1880

Augusta High School Yearbooks

5,066 pages from 1915 to 1969

Augusta Times

50,652 pages from 1964 to 2004

Eau Claire Leader-Telegram

426 pages in 1976

Local History Books

534 pages from 1900 to 2006

The Augusta Eagle

33,370 pages from 1874 to 1918

The Augusta Eagle-Times

160 pages in 1927

The Cooperative News-Budget

1,402 pages from 1918 to 1919

The Eau Claire County Union

7,768 pages from 1919 to 1927

The Fairchild Observer

82 pages in 1927

The Fall Creek Journal

86 pages in 1927

The Tri-County News

14,220 pages from 1985 to 2003

The Union

31,594 pages from 1927 to 1963

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About the Archive

About The Augusta Memorial Library’s History Archives

  • The Augusta Eagle (1874-1918)
  • Augusta Eagle (1876-1880)
  • The Cooperative News-Budget (1918-1919)
  • The Eau Claire County Union (1919-1927)
  • The Augusta Eagle-Times (1927)
  • The Fall Creek Journal (1927)
  • The Fairchild Observer (1927)
  • The Union (1927-1963)
  • The Augusta Times (1964-2004)
  • The Tri-County News (1985-2003)
  • Eau Claire Leader-Telegram (1976)

This digitization project was made possible in part by the Paddock Farm Ldt Partnership in memory of Marian "Pad" Marquardt. Marian was a regular volunteer at the library and served for many years as a Library Board Trustee before she passed away in 2001. If you would like to help the library continue its local history archive project, consider donating. Contact the library today!

Augusta Memorial Library photo 1

About the Library

About The Augusta Memorial Library

The Augusta Memorial Library serves as a vital educational resource and community engagement tool. Located in Augusta, Wisconsin, the library has been a cornerstone for learning and connection within the community. The library provides a variety of services, including access to historical archives, community programs, and educational resources. The library's mission is to offer free and open access to information, promoting lifelong learning and cultural enrichment.

Augusta Memorial Library photo 2

Library History

The History Of The Augusta Memorial Library

The Augusta Memorial Library was first established in 1911, following the advocacy of Miss Maud LeRoy and the Tuesday Club, who recognized the need for a public library in Augusta. The original library was rebuilt as the Memorial Library in 1932, dedicated to the veterans of World War I. Initially, the library operated with a collection that included city-owned books and contributions from the Wisconsin Traveling Library. Over the years, the library has undergone several renovations, the most significant ones being in 1982 and 1996, ensuring it meets the evolving needs of the community.

About the Community

About The City of Augusta, Wisconsin

Augusta, Wisconsin, was first settled in 1856 and was initially known as Bridge Creek. The village was officially platted in 1857, and the name was changed to Augusta by Charles Buckman, one of the first settlers, as a tribute to his home state of Maine. Early industries in Augusta included a sawmill and a dam built along Bridge Creek by pioneers like John F. Stone and L.F. Clarke. By 1885, Augusta had grown into a city with four wards and a diverse economy, shifting from grain farming to dairy and stock farming by the turn of the century.

Augusta Memorial Library photo 3

Local History

Did You Know?

Did you know that Augusta was originally called Bridge Creek? One of the first settlers, Charles Buckman, changed the name to Augusta as a tribute to his home state of Maine. Additionally, the first industry in Augusta was a sawmill built along Bridge Creek in the winter of 1856.

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Follow a report into its setting

A family name, a familiar street or a story passed down through generations can lead to a closer look at the history of Augusta. The digital archive shared by the Augusta Memorial Library offers a place to begin. When using historical newspapers, try alternate spellings and nearby dates, then read the surrounding page to place a local story in its time. Compare later reporting or another available title to explore different perspectives rather than treating one account as the whole story. Read the headline and neighboring articles as well as the matching lines. The surrounding page can show whether a report is local news, an editorial, or another kind of account; compare its details with later coverage where available.

Take a place or institution mentioned in a report as a new search lead. Check the issue date and read nearby articles to see how the setting is described. Preserve historical names and boundaries as written, and compare another dated reference before connecting the place to a present-day location.

Record which title, date, page, or item supports a useful lead. Mark unanswered questions before connecting it to a family or community story. A similar name can point you toward another source, but it is not proof of identity.

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Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Augusta Memorial Library, its community, and Advantage Archives. Together, these partnerships preserve local sources and give people a way to explore, learn from, and share the history around them.

Advantage Archives covers ongoing archive hosting, storage, development, and maintenance. The institution and its community do not pay a subscription, seat license, annual support contract, or other recurring archive-service charge. Local history remains a community resource, not a subscription to maintain.

Would you like to see more of your community's history preserved and accessible? Start a conversation with your library, newspaper publisher, historical or genealogical society, museum, or school about the materials they would like to share and a possible partnership with Advantage Archives.

Learn about partnerships
Read All About It

Stories, research tips, and archive news

Read All About It connects archive research with the people and institutions preserving local history. Explore partner and community stories, project updates, research ideas, and perspectives on digitization, education, and working with primary sources. Use the articles as a starting point for your next question or a new way to share a discovery.

Newest published articles

March 18, 2025

It’s Your Community’s History, So Why Rent Something You Own?

We believe that history belongs to the communities where it was made - not locked behind paywalls or inaccessible due to budget restrictions. Subscription-based services and large content aggregators are generally more concerned with "content" and less concerned with the history that content contains. Their models typically involve a reoccurring charge for a plan that renews annually or licensing agreements with the library based on population served or circulation numbers. You are essentially Renting Access To YOUR History.
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