Tips and Tools: Using Wikipedia to learn about places

Wikipedia can be a useful tool for learning about where your ancestors lived. Wikipedia frequently has information about the location, county, history and demographics of towns and cities. A quick Wikipedia search for Baldwin, WI reveals that it is located in St. Croix County about 30 miles from Minneapolis, MN, that it had a population of 2667 in 2000, and that it was founded in 1871 and was originally known as "Clarkesville". Looking at the entry for a county can provide useful information about the history of the county and its formation. For St. Croix County, we learn that the the county was originally established in 1840 as a part of the Wisconsin Territory before being divided and taking its current shape with Wisconsin statehood in 1848.