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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Whitefish Bay Public Library

Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

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

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20Titles

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1917 to 2013Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

15,310Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin.

Discover another side of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin through family history and genealogy as well as meeting agendas and minutes preserved in the Whitefish Bay Public Library's digital archive. Its twenty titles include material from 1917 to 2013.

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

    The titles shared by Whitefish Bay Public Library include “W F B W C 100 Year Anniversary Binder” as well as “W F B W C Traffic And Highway Safety”.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • A closer look

    A meeting agenda or set of minutes offers a view of the questions an organization considered and the business it recorded.

A community's history is made up of many lives and perspectives. Historical materials offer a way to explore those connections without reducing the past to a single story. A family story, a classroom project or curiosity about a familiar place can lead to a closer look at the community and the lives of earlier generations. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Browse twenty titles and 15,310 digitized pages, with material from 1917 to 2013. Through a partnership with Advantage Archives, Whitefish Bay Public Library shares these sources from the past. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

Every search for the past starts with a question. Explore the titles below, follow the sources that speak to it, and see what new detail appears.

W F B W C 100 Year Anniversary Binder

270 pages in 1917

W F B W C Achievement Contest

82 pages in 1955

W F B W C Activities

82 pages in 2013

W F B W C Albums

6,408 pages from 1956 to 2009

W F B W C Art Exhibits

212 pages in 1944

W F B W C Clubhouse

1,298 pages from 1917 to 2002

W F B W C Community Improvement Program

444 pages from 1955 to 1964

W F B W C Community Service

240 pages in 1978

W F B W C Executive Board

296 pages in 2003

W F B W C Fundraising Events

2,282 pages from 1965 to 1991

W F B W C Historian Book

472 pages from 1996 to 1997

W F B W C Historical Artifacts

1,008 pages in 1917

W F B W C History Overview

218 pages in 1917

W F B W C House Chairman

130 pages in 1950

W F B W C Lifestyle Scrap Book

134 pages in 1950

W F B W C Newspaper Clippings

516 pages from 1936 to 1974

W F B W C Programs For General Meetings

352 pages in 1970

W F B W C Publicity

456 pages from 1955 to 2004

W F B W C Tea Table

190 pages in 1984

W F B W C Traffic And Highway Safety

220 pages in 1967

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About the Archive

About The Whitefish Bay Public Library’s History Archives

The Whitefish Bay Public Library provides free and open access to local history through its Community History Archive, allowing residents, researchers, and genealogists to explore primary sources that document the people, places, and events of Whitefish Bay and the surrounding Milwaukee County area. Through a partnership with Advantage Archives , the archive serves as a searchable digital platform that delivers practical online access to historical newspapers at no cost. The archive includes thousands of digitized newspaper pages spanning approximately 1930 through 1977, preserving firsthand accounts and a snapshot of time that reflects “history as it happened” in this growing suburban community. These materials serve as an educational resource and engagement tool, supporting genealogy, research, and greater accessibility to local primary source documents.

Whitefish Bay Public Library photo 1

About the Library

About The Whitefish Bay Public Library

The Whitefish Bay Public Library, located at 5420 North Marlborough Drive in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, serves as a central educational resource and community hub focused on lifelong learning, access, and engagement. The library provides books, digital collections, research databases, and public technology, along with programs designed to connect the community with information and ideas. Its historical resources include the Mimi Bird Historical Collection, a unique compilation of photographs, clippings, and local documentation that has been digitized and made accessible online, further strengthening the library’s commitment to making local history discoverable and accessible.

Whitefish Bay Public Library photo 2

Library History

The History Of The Whitefish Bay Public Library

The Whitefish Bay Public Library was established in 1937 and reflects the strong community commitment to education and shared resources. Initially housed in the Village Hall, the library expanded with a dedicated building constructed in 1955 and later underwent a major renovation and expansion in 2002 to meet the needs of a growing population. Over time, community support organizations such as the Friends of the Library and the Library Foundation have played a key role in sustaining and enhancing services, reinforcing the library’s role as a cornerstone of community access and engagement.

About the Community

About Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

Whitefish Bay is a village located along the western shore of Lake Michigan just north of Milwaukee. Originally inhabited by Native American groups including the Menominee and Potawatomi, the area transitioned to American settlement in the early 19th century. Incorporated in 1892, the village grew rapidly as a streetcar suburb, with development driven by transportation access and residential expansion. By the early 20th century, it had become a well-established community shaped by its proximity to Milwaukee and its lakeshore location.

Local History

Did You Know?

Did you know that the Mimi Bird Historical Collection at the Whitefish Bay Public Library includes nearly forty volumes of photographs and historical materials documenting homes, businesses, and landmarks in the community? This collection was compiled by a lifelong resident and later digitized, providing a unique and highly detailed visual record of Whitefish Bay’s development.

More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Separate plans from recorded decisions

A family memory, familiar place, or community question in Whitefish Bay can offer a starting point in meeting agendas and minutes shared by the Whitefish Bay Public Library. Note the title and date attached to an item, and keep a page or item reference with the detail you want to check. Leave anything the source does not establish open for further research. Note the meeting date and body named in the document. Keep agenda items, motions, and recorded minutes distinct: a planned topic is not proof of an action, and minutes are not necessarily a full transcript.

Follow a named organization or topic into another meeting record where available. Check the date and document type before treating a proposal as an adopted decision or a recorded action as a complete account.

A research trail is most useful when it leaves room for what is not yet known. Record the title, date, and page or item reference where available, along with what remains uncertain and which question you want to follow next. Those details help keep a possible connection from becoming an unsupported conclusion.

Review collection titles

Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Whitefish Bay 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
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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