Colleen, etc., from John (in Chicago)-- I haven't studied this recently, but I feel fairly sure there were no railroads in Wisconsin nor northern Illinois until about 1849-1850. The 1855 completion of what became the NorthWestern line between Chicago, Waukegan, Kenosha, Racine, and Milwaukee did, however, open up a continuous railroad link between New York City (via Albany, NY) and Milwaukee, WI. I just took a quick look at Darci's migration website that Bob Fay kindly pointed out today in a GenWisconsin-L@rootsweb.com posting. Looks like there's some good stuff here at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~darci/index2.htm#three One migration example of the 1840s relates to my own ancestor Jonathan Magie (1823-1901), who arrived in Milwaukee from Elizabeth, NJ, in early 1848, via the seemingly very circuitous route summarized below. Had he not planned an intermediate stop in Cincinnati, my guess is that he might have traveled more directly between Buffalo and Milwaukee by Great Lakes ship. But possibly the cold weather at the north end of Lake Michigan in early 1848 may also have discouraged him from following this particular route. Instead, a 1901 letter of his (I have this) indicates that he traveled from NJ to Albany (NY) by Hudson River boat, from Albany to Buffalo via a series of different railroads, from Buffalo to Toledo via Lake Erie ship, and then from Toledo to Cincinnati via the Miami & Erie Canal (opened in 1845). After visiting relatives in Cincinnati, he then traveled by steamboat via the Ohio, Mississippi, and Illinois rivers to La Salle, IL. But note that prior to 1845 a traveler could also take an older Ohio canal that linked Lake Erie and the Ohio River-- the 1832 Ohio & Erie Canal that headed south from Cleveland. The Illinois & Michigan Canal, linking La Salle and Chicago, was opened in late April of 1848. This was a very primitive canal, portions of which still exist. But its 1848 completion also led directly to Chicago's emergence as a major world transportation hub. In any case, Jonathan appears to have been one of the very first people to arrive in Chicago via the new I & M Canal. A few days later, on May 1, 1848, he finally reached Milwaukee, probably arriving from Chicago by Lake Michigan ship. "When I left Cincinnati, peach trees were in bloom," Jonathan wrote from his Milwaukee home a few months before his death there on 30 Aug 1901. "When I struck this town I thought I had reached the Polar regions. When I got to the Hotel [probably Milwaukee's old US Hotel, destroyed by fire in 1855] there was a big box stove that had about a quarter of a cord of wood it, and the heat felt GOOD..... Uncle John [John Ogden, 1801-1891] came here in 1836 and he made the whole trip from New Jersey on horseback....." _______________________________________________________ << Subj: Re:1860 Migration Route Date: 12/8/01 10:46:07 AM Central Standard Time From: JQMagie To: GenWisconsin-L@rootsweb.com In 1860 New York City and Beloit and Janesville in Rock Co., WI, were completely linked by railroads. So my guess is that your ancestor just hopped on a train. .........John (in Chicago) >> ____________________ << << Subj: 1860 Migration Route Date: 12/8/01 10:21:45 AM Central Standard Time From: corrine@ez-net.com (Corrine Brown) To: GenWisconsin-L@rootsweb.com My ancestor was found in NY in the 1860 Census and by 1865 was found in Rock Co, WI. Does anyone know which route they would take and also could someone direct me to a map tht would show the trail the ancestor would take in 1865 from New York to Wisconsin? I have been searching on the net but have not had much luck. >> >> _______________________________________________________ << Subj: Re: 1860 Migration Route Date: 12/8/01 11:48:50 AM Central Standard Time From: cschr84651@aol.com To: jqmagie@aol.com Does this also hold true for 1844? My family came from Essex Co., NY to Milwaukee, Wis then. Thanks in advance. Colleen >> _________________________________________________________