2Titles
Explore publications and collections from the past.
Community History Archive Partner
Menomonie Public Library
Menomonie, Wisconsin
Explore this community history collection to discover the people, places, organizations, and events of Menomonie.
1862 to 1965Dates represented
See individual titles for available dates.
69,900Archive pages
Historical pages reported for this collection.
Explore local history
Discover the people, places, and stories of Menomonie, Wisconsin.
Explore the past of Menomonie, Wisconsin through newspapers in the Menomonie Public Library's digital archive. The archive includes Dunn County Lumberman and Dunn County News, with material from 1862 to 1965.
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Selected titles
Selected titles from Menomonie Public Library include “Dunn County Lumberman” and “Dunn County News”.
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Free and open access
No subscription or payment required.
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A closer look
An earlier generation comes into view through the stories its newspapers chose to report, placing familiar names and events within the concerns of their time.
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
Explore Dunn County Lumberman and Dunn County News through 69,900 digitized pages, with material from 1862 to 1965. This collection is shared through Menomonie Public Library's partnership with Advantage Archives. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.
Follow a family connection or a question about the community through the titles below and the history they preserve.
Dunn County Lumberman
1,392 pages from 1862 to 1866
Dunn County News
68,508 pages from 1866 to 1965
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About the Library
About The Menomonie Public Library
The Menomonie Public Library has been a cornerstone of the community, evolving from a project initiated by the local Women’s Club in the First National Bank building to the traveling libraries of James Huff Stout. Over the years, the library has partnered with the Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts and now resides in a modern facility on Wolske Bay. The library is committed to providing strong, responsive service and engaging the community through various programs and resources.
Library History
The History Of The Menomonie Public Library
The Menomonie Public Library's history is deeply intertwined with the community's development. Founded by the Women’s Club, the library started in the First National Bank building before expanding through James Huff Stout's traveling libraries initiative. It has shared a long-standing partnership with the Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, enriching the cultural fabric of Menomonie. The library's current building on Wolske Bay is an architectural gem that continues to serve as a hub for knowledge, creativity, and community engagement.
About the Community
About The Menomonie Area
Menomonie, located in Dunn County, Wisconsin , is known for its rich history and vibrant community life. The city was established in the mid-19th century and quickly grew due to its strategic location and the logging industry. Menomonie is home to the University of Wisconsin-Stout, which contributes to the city's educational and cultural landscape. The area offers a blend of historical landmarks, outdoor recreational activities, and a strong sense of community.
Local History
Did You Know?
Did you know that Menomonie is home to one of the earliest publicly funded kindergarten programs in the United States? Established by James Huff Stout in 1894, this program laid the foundation for early childhood education in the area. Additionally, the city's name, derived from the Native American word "Mennominee," reflects its deep-rooted indigenous heritage.
More ways to explore and share local history
Research Guidance
Read a report in its time and place
A family name, a familiar street or a story passed down through generations can lead to a closer look at the history of Menomonie. The digital archive shared by the Menomonie Public 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. Check nearby issues or another listed newspaper when available. Differences in timing and wording can add perspective to a story, while the issue date and surrounding articles help show what kind of account you are reading.
Follow a promising report into a nearby issue or another title where available. Compare dates and surrounding coverage; a single account is one perspective on a story. Use the surrounding account to shape your next question, while keeping each source's perspective distinct.
Keep the title, date, page, or item reference with each useful finding. Separate the words in a historical account from your interpretation, and note conflicting perspectives rather than choosing one too quickly. These notes help connect a local story to its evidence and show what remains uncertain.
Community Partnership
Keeping local history a community resource
This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Menomonie Public 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
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.
May 7, 2025
Why Microfilm is still important in 2023
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Don’t Search For An Obituary By Only Searching For An “Obituary”
In the quest to trace our roots and understand our heritage, obituaries often serve as a crucial starting point. Obituaries are undoubtedly…
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April 9, 2025
Unveiling the Hidden Mysteries: Exploring Cold Cases and Unconventional Clues
Even the most esteemed police forces in the county encounter perplexing cold case files. These unsolved mysteries often leave investigators and genealogists…
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April 1, 2025
This Week in History: March 31st through April 6th
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March 24, 2025
This Week in History: March 24th through March 30th
Discover History in The Community History Archives. It has officially been a year since I started writing This Week in History,…
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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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