The Galena Block Books are City of Galena tax records which have been microfilmed by the Karmann Library, University of Wisconsin-Platteville as part of an effort to collect and copy records from the mining district of southwestern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. The data recorded comes in four forms: assessment rolls, tax rolls, tax sales records, and miscellaneous records. The original records exist in 69 bound volumes which are in the custody of the Galena Public Library.
Numerous problems will confront any user of this film. Filming quality varies greatly due to the deteriorated physical condition of many of the original records and to inappropriate light settings during the filming process. The order of the volumes is roughly chronological with frequent exceptions due primarily to the original record keepers entering later records into books, used years earlier for other purposes. The labelling of the volumes is also confusing as the terms “Block Book,” “Record Book,” “Tax Book,” “Real Estate Record Book,” and others are applied without clearly distinguishing what the titles mean.
This register is aimed at helping the user overcome some of the above problems. It consists of three parts: a scope and content note which provides a narrative explanation of the descriptive categories, a reel list summarizing each volume in the order filmed, and a chart indicating types of records available for each year.
Of the 69 volumes in this collection, 32 are classified as Tax Rolls. These records generally note the location of lots, ownership, valuation, tax assessments for such items as school support, street lighting, and general municipal services. Some of the tax rolls, particularly for the years 1867-1876, deal with the assessment and collection of taxes imposed because of a U.S. Circuit Court ruling against the City of Galena in 1867. Most of the volumes include the tax records on both real and personal property.
Assessment Rolls consist of 29 volumes that detail the tax assessment on property in Galena. Generally, these volumes provide information such as ownership of described lots, assessment for taxes, and valuation of property. Some volumes contain only the valuation of the property with the formula used for tax assessment found in the front cover of the volume. Only sporadically are assessments for personal property included. Assessment rolls differ from tax rolls in that they do not record tax payments.
Four volumes are Tax Sales Records which include information on property sold due to nonpayment of taxes. Information found in these volumes includes a description of the property, name of the original owner, amount of unpaid taxes, costs, sale price, and name of the new owner. Sometimes warrants for the sale are included.
The remaining four volumes in this collection are grouped as Miscellaneous Records. These volumes include the city treasurer's fiscal report for 1923-1924, a record of city disbursements and receipts from 1891 to 1897, and cemetery lot sale and interment records. This last volume might be of particular interest to the genealogist as well as those interested in the history of medicine and disease since the records include name, age, date of death, cause, and remarks.
The title in the contents list below is the wording which appears on the microfilm targets, followed in parentheses by the category Tax Roll, Assessment Roll, Tax Sales Record, or Miscellaneous. Additional information on the contents at that location is indicated in the scope note when appropriate.
