The United States Census reports are a great source for determining where people lived and for censuses from 1850 onward all the names in a family, their ages, occupations and where they were born. The more recent censuses have additional information. Ancestry.com has census reports available from 1790 to 1940 and include a search engine. This service does require an annual membership fee but the Fitchburg Public Library has a subscription. Please inquire at the library on how to use it. However, the 1880 census report is available online for free through FamilySearch.org. The link below will take you to the town of Fitchburg 1880 census. There are 868 family units in Fitchburg. Following these individuals are families in other Dane County towns. If you want to search for a specific name you can refine your search. This report does not have addresses. To determine the owner of particular Fitchburg land try examining plat maps (see sidebar to the right). Please note that names may be misspelled/have alternate spellings so check name variations such as Caine and Kane.
Fitchburg Historical Society 