St. Louis County
Chestnut St, Virginia MN, 1910 – Photo Courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society
Poles settled in St. Louis County in the following locations:
Towns: Duluth, Virginia, Rice Lake
Townships: Gnesen Township, Buyck (Portage Township)
Unincorporated Communities: Gheen, Greaney
County-Wide Resources
Catholic Churches and Cemeteries
The church was a central point in the lives of Polish immigrants. Learn more about the churches and cemeteries in St. Louis County where Polish families worshiped.
Vital Records and Land Records
The St. Louis County Recorder’s Office oversees birth, marriage, and death records, as well as land records.
U.S. Bureau of Land Management
The U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management has General Land Office Records where you can pick the state and county, then type a surname. If an ancestor purchased land, you will likely be able to see the document and details about the land and purchase.
Census Records
United States Census Records
You can find a lot of information about the U.S. Census records on the National Archives website. The U.S. Census was done every ten years from 1790 through 1950. (the site has direct links to census records for 1940 and 1950). FamilySearch and Ancestry also have census records (Ancestry requires a paid subscription).
Some Unique Questions on the Federal Census
| Census Year | Information |
|---|---|
| 1880 | Health conditions/disabilities (not many are entered in this column) |
| 1900 | Lists month and year of birth (not just year) |
| 1900 | For women: How many children were born to her and how many are living at the time of the census |
| 1910 | For women: How many children were born to her and how many are living at the time of the census |
| Multiple years | Naturalization Status: Ai=Alien, Pa=First Papers, Na = Fully Naturalized |
| Multiple years | Property Ownership: “O” = Owned, “R” = Rent |
| Before 1922 | When a male was naturalized, his whole family became naturalized |
| 1940 | X with a circle around it = The person in the household who reported the information |
Minnesota State Census Records
- The first Minnesota Territorial Census was taken in 1849, and was taken again in 1850, 1853, 1855, and 1857.
- After Minnesota became a State in 1858, the Minnesota State Census was taken every 10 years, in years that ended with a 5: 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895, and 1905.
- 1905 was the last year of the Minnesota State Census.
St. Louis County census records for 1870 were destroyed by fire.
Genealogy and Historical Societies
The Historical Societies and Research Centers preserve artifacts and historical information related to St. Louis County and its people.
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about St. Louis County:
Map
Plat maps are helpful in showing who owned the land that year. Click on the area you are interested in until you get to the detail level with names.
PGS-MN Newsletter Articles
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| Newsletter | page | title/author |
|---|---|---|
| Summer 1994 | 9 | Book Review of Rusins In Minnesota and Galician-Rusins on the Iron Range (Northeastern MN) Reviewed by Greg Kishel |
| Fall 2001 | 1 | The Polish Army in France in World War I (Haller’s Army) Recruitment Database – Northern Minnesota by Ray Marshall (includes names of recruits from the Duluth-Superior area |
| Fall 2005 | 12 | Polonia on a Northern Frontier – The Polish American Communities of Northeastern Minnesota by Greg Kishel |
Other Articles
| Source | Title/Author | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| MN Historical Society | Some Vanished Settlements of the Arrowhead Country by Julius F. Wolff | Link to article |
| Foundation for East European Family History Studies (FEEFHS) | Polish Immigrants to St Louis County 1895 by Ray Marshall, 1996 | Link to article 2400 Polish names from the 1895 census |
| Star Tribune Article (6/30/2024) | Miners Learned to Fill Communication Gap by Christa Lawler | Link to article Emigrants from Finland, Italy and Croatia were the primary workers in the mines but a few Poles worked there also. |
Books
| title | author/ publisher |
|---|---|
| A County Built on Iron – St. Louis County, Minnesota (1856-2006) | William O. Beck/MN Historical Society Donning Company Publishers, 2006 (A copy is in the Polish section at the Hoffman Resource Library in the Minnesota Genealogy Center) |
| The Rusins of Minnesota | William Duly Minneapolis: The Rusin Association, 1993 (A copy is in the Polish section at the Hoffman Resource Library in the Minnesota Genealogy Center) |
Galician-Rusins on the Iron Range | by John D. Goman Minneapolis: Published by the author, 1990 (A copy is in the Polish section at the Hoffman Resource Library in the Minnesota Genealogy Center) |
Buyck
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Buyck:
PGS-MN Newsletter Articles
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| newsletter | page | title/Author |
|---|---|---|
| Winter 1998 | 10 | Patterns of Polish Settlement in Minnesota , 1910: Buyck Township. St. Louis County by Greg Kishel |
| Winter 1998 | 14 | A Transcription of the Polish Side of the Forest Home Cemetery, Buyck, St. Louis County by Greg Kishel |
| Summer 1999 | 1 | A Visit to Buyck by Greg Kishel |
Book
Portage Township: Better Known as Buyck, The First 100 Years (1906-2006)
by Dorothea Alma Finstad Streiff, 2006
Virginia
Local Library and Historical Society
Public Libraries and local Historical Societies have valuable resources related to genealogy, local history and culture.
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Virginia:
PGS-MN Newsletter Articles
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| newsletter | page | title/author | comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 2001 | 8 | Z LEŚNICTWA RAIGRODZKIEGO: A Chain Migration from Poland’s North Country to Minnesota’s Mesabi Range by Greg Kishel | Focus is on Virginia, MN and naturalization records. The appendix includes names and dates of Polish immigant naturalization records. |
| Summer 2003 | 8 | Z Beskidu Wyspowego: Another Chain Migration to the Mesabi Range by Greg Kishel | Focus is on Virginia and the Poles who came from the lumber industry in Mszana Dolna area of Poland, to the forests of Northern Minnesota. Once lumber was depleted, the Poles starting working in the mines of northern Minnesota. |
| Summer 2003 | 14 | From the Virginian, 1906: A Bit of Polish Lagniappe by Greg Kishel | |
| Spring 2004 | 1 | From the Virginia Pioneers Scrapbook: Early Polish Settlers on the Mesabi Iron Range by Greg Kishel | |
| Spring 2004 | 18 | Drobne Echa article: Virginia, Minnesota and Bessemer-Ironwood, Michigan: From Wiarus,1893, 1905, and 1908 by Greg Kishel |
Rice Lake and Gnesen Townships
The Poles who settled in the Rice Lake and Gnesen Township area came from villages in both the Poznan and Kashubia area.
Some of them first settled in Chicago and Buffalo before migrating to Minnesota in the early 1870s. Desire for a more rural setting that they were used to in Poland, and the marketing through the railroad companies, led them to move to Rice Lake and Gnesen Township.
For decades, the settlers of Gnesen identified themselves as farmers. Their farming was different from the row-crop grain farmers of Southern and Western MN due to a shorter growing season. Fields needed to be cleared of trees and marshes. Glacial rocks had to be hand-picked in the spring after winter frost heaved them up. Crops were hay, rye, oats, potatoes and vegetables for market. When transportation to Duluth improved, they moved into milk, butter and eggs.
Polish-Related Links
- Polish History of Gnesen
- Gnesen Township Records
- Photos of Old Polish Farmhouse
- Polish Construction of a Gnesen House
- Old Settler’s Log Home – click on photos and drawings of the construction of the home (on Rice Lake Road)
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Gnesen and Rice Lake Townships:
Book
Southern Gnesen Township with a Particular Emphasis on the Anton Tarnowski Family
by Barbara June Tarnowski
Available in the Hoffman Research Library at the Minnesota Genealogy Center.
PGS-MN Newsletter Articles
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| newsletter | page | title/author |
|---|---|---|
| Winter 1999 | 9 | A Transcription of St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Gnesen, St. Louis County: Part 1 by Greg Kishel |
| Spring 2000 | 1 | The Patterns of Polish Settlement in Minnesota: Rice Lake and Gnesen Townships in St. Louis County, 1870-1920 by Greg Kishel |
| Fall 2000 | 20 | Gnesen and Rice Lake: A Postscript by Greg Kishel |
| Winter 2008 | 1 | Drobne Echa Article: Installment # 15 – Gnesen: From Wiarus, 1886-1888 by Greg Kishel |
Duluth
Local Library Resources
Libraries can be a valuable resource for finding local historical books, articles and other documents related to genealogy.
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Duluth:
Historic Newspapers
The Duluth Public Library has newspaper indexes and microfilms from the Duluth Herald and the Duluth News-Tribune between 1893 and 1929.
PGS-MN Newsletter Articles
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| Newsletter | page | TItle/Author |
|---|---|---|
| Winter 1999 | 8 | The Beginning of Polish Settlement in Duluth by Stanislaw Walczak and translated by Greg Kishel |
| Summer 2005 | 14 | Drobne Echa article – Installment #5 – Duluth: From Katolik, 1894, Sbrtce, 1898, Wiarus, 1901,and Rolnik, 1908 by Greg Kishel |
| Fall 2005 | 1 | The Origins and Relationships of Selected Duluth Area Families of Polish Ancestry (A Chain Migration) by Richard G. Bates |
| Summer 2007 | 19 | Drobne Echa article – Installment #11 – Duluth: From Straż, 1904 and 1907, Wiarus, 1906-08,Rolnik, 1908, and Kuryer Polski, 1908-1909 by Greg Kishel (with a primary focus on St. Josephat Church) |
Books
| Title | author/publisher |
|---|---|
| Duluth: An Urban Biography | Tony Dierckins Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2020 |
| Images of America: Duluth Minnesota | by Maryanne C. Norton and Sheldon T. Aubut |
| Taconite: New Life for Minnesota’s Iron Range – A History of Erie Mining Company | by St. Louis County Historical Society, 2020 |
Greaney
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Greaney:
PGS-MN Newsletter Article
(You will need to scroll down to the page indicated to find the article within the newsletter link)
| newsletter | page | title/author |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2008 | 8 | Not All Polish Immigrants Stayed in Silver Lake by William Graczyk |
Gheen
General Genealogy Links
The following are websites with general resources and genealogy information about Gheen: