Local History

Historic Waunakee Photographs

We have over 1600 photos of historic Waunakee in our digital collection.

Waunakee Newspaper Archive 1896-2006

Click here to search Waunakee newspapers through NewspaperArchive.com.

Waunakee Walking Tour

Take a historic walking tour of Waunakee created by Waunakee High School students. To begin, click here.

Waunakee immigration stories video

How We Got Here - Origins, Immigration, and Community

Through a grant from the Wisconsin Humanities Council, WPL interviewed community members about where their families originated, how they came to the United States, and how they became part of Waunakee.

Watch the fascinating video including immigration stories from local residents.

Historic Waunakee Books in UW Digital Collections

Click to view full text:

Waunakee Centennial Book 1971
People Pleasing Recipes 1996

More tools for historical research

SCLS Databases (sign in with your library card):

Heritage Quest Online
Newspaper Archive
Ancestry Library (in-library only)

Dane County Plat Maps:

Dane County maps index

(The village of Waunakee is located within Westport township)

Westport Township 1861 (note Waunakee was not a village until 1871, but find "LESTER P.O." to see the area north of present-day Waunakee)
Westport Township 1873 (click top left section to zoom in)
Westport Township 1890
Westport Township 1899
Westport Township 1911 (see index for photographs of Dane county schoolhouses and list of merchants in 1911)