Our Illinois genealogists research on location throughout Illinois. They will find and analyze the best records available to further your family history research. They can search the various archives and libraries in Illinois, including:
- Cook County Clerk of Court Archives
Most popular archive in Chicago with records from 1871, including births, marriages, deaths - Cook County Circuit Court/Clerk Archives
Probates/wills, estate course files, divorces - National Archives at Chicago
Includes 1 million naturalization records (1840-1950), bankruptcies, ethnic records - Illinois State Archives
Statewide death certificates (1916-1947) and indexes up to 1950, marriage index (1763-1900), land records, military records - Polish Genealogical Society of America
Actual obituaries are only available in person at this archive - Chicago Catholic Archdiocese Archives
Catholic church records on closed parishes - Chicago Historical Society
Not your typical historical society, but more a museum and archive. Includes numerous historical records and photographs - Universities, including Unviversity of Illinois at Chicago
Birth certificates, court records, death certificates, coroner’s inquests, probates, wills, almshouse registers, homicides, naturalizations - Libraries
- Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library (ALPL)
Largest newspaper collection in Illinois. Over 172,000 books and pamphlets, 3,000 maps, and 1,200 periodicals. Indexes of birth, death, probate, land, and marriage records. County histories, surname indexes, cemetery inscriptions. - Newberry Library
Largest family history library in the Midwest after the Allen County Public Library. Consists of 5 floors, one of which is twice the size of the Connecticut State Library and archives. Its vast collections include numerous records for Native American research. - Illinois State Library
Over 5 million items, including 200,000 maps - Chicago Public Library
Newspapers, city directories, phone books - Spertus Institute Library
Jewish college library has copies of the Sentinel; NARA naturalization papers, including Detroit area - Pritzker Military Library
Over 40,000 volumes spanning all periods of history, countries, cultures/peoples, and branches of the United States military services.
- Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library (ALPL)
We also have Chicago genealogists.
Our professional researchers can do research projects of many sizes and for many budgets. We customize the amount of research provided according to your needs.
If you want to know more about how our genealogists can further your research, you can request a research quote.
Some of the major records sources that can be used for genealogy research in Illinois include:
- Birth, marriage, and death records as early as 1817
- Birth and death records by the state government since 1916; marriages since 1962
- Federal census records every 10 years starting in 1790
- State, territorial, and colonial censuses from 1726 to 1865
- Land records by towns and counties from time settled
- Military records, pension applications, muster rolls, and draft registrations
- Probate records since 1787
- Church christenings, marriages, deaths
- Newspapers since 1813 of births, marriages, and deaths
- City directories, obituaries and death notices since 1800s
- Town and county histories and genealogies of settlers
- Naturalization and citizenship records since 1840
- Ship passenger lists, tax lists, and town records
- Cemetery photographs