Illinois Archives and Libraries: Difference between revisions

:This is the second-largest genealogy collection in the United States<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_County_Public_Library Allen County Public Library] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 28 April 2010).</ref> and the largest genealogy collection in a public library. Its holdings include more than 350,000 printed volumes and 513,000 items on microfilm and microfiche.<ref name="ACPLGC">[http://www.acpl.lib.in.us/genealogy/ Genealogy Center] in ''Allen County Public Library'' (accessed 28 April 2010).</ref> It has a premier genealogical periodical collection, local histories, genealogies, databases, military, censuses, directories, passenger lists, ethnic sources, and Canadians. They have a great Illinois collection.<ref>[http://www.genealogycenter.org/docs/default-source/resources/aboutusbrochure.pdf?sfvrsn=2 Genealogy Center Collections] in ''Genealogy Center'' (accessed 27 February 2015).</ref>  

:Includes federal censuses 1790–1930; selected military service indexes, pension indexes, passenger lists, and naturalizations. Free computers for Ancestry, Heritage Quest, or Fold3. Federal agency, civil, and criminal court records of Illinois and surrounding states.<ref>[http://www.archives.gov/chicago/archives/genealogy.html Genealogy] in ''National Archives at Chicago'' (accessed 27 February 2014).</ref> <br><br>

:Nearly 20,000 volumes about the Swedish-American immigrant experience in North America, Swedish genealogy, and Swedish local history.<ref>[http://www.augustana.edu/general-information/swenson-center-/library Swenson Center Library] in ''Augustana College'' (accessed 20 March 2015).</ref>

:Since the Illinois State Archives responds only by mail to inquiries, all fax, telephone, and e-mail inquiries must also contain a mailing address.<br>

:The Illinois State Archives preserves county and state records, including pre-Chicago fire documents. They have indexed vital records, early land grants, military records such as muster rolls and Civil War registers. All federal and state censuses are available. Their surname card index covers much of the collection.<ref>William Dollarhide, and Ronald A. Bremer, ''America's Best Genealogy Resource Centers'' (Bountiful, UT: Heritage Quest, 1988), 41. {{WorldCat|39493985|item|disp=At various repositories (WorldCat)}}; {{FSC|728550|item|disp=FS Library Book 973 J54d}}.</ref> A helpful guide to the holdings of the Illinois State Archives is:

:*''Descriptive Inventory of the Archives of the State of Illinois'' <ref>Bailey, Robert E., and Elaine Shemoney Evans, eds. ''Descriptive Inventory of the Archives of the State of Illinois''. 2nd ed. Springfield, Illinois: Illinois State Archives, 1997. {{Worldcat|678163486}}  {{FSC|641970|item|disp=FS Catalog book 977.3 J53ir}}</ref> This source is also available on compact disc from the state archives. [https://www.archive.org/details/guidetoculturalr1988illi Internet Archives ]has a free copy available online.<br>

:*[http://www.idaillinois.org/ Illinois Digital archives], Image collections arranged by subject.<br><br>

:The Illinois State Library collects official publications of the state and federal governments. This includes federal censuses to 1920, plat books, Illinois county histories, Sanborn fire insurance maps, and Revolutionary War pensions and bounty land warrants.<br>

:'''[http://www.idaillinois.org Illinois Digital Archives]''' The collection includes histories, manuscripts, letters, photographs, newspapers, maps  and etc.<br><br>

:The ISGS can provide research guidance about Illinois resources and repositories, teach through webinars and the [http://ilgensoc.blogspot.com/ ISGS blog] for free, and look-up death certificates 1916-1947 for a fee. They do not handle research requests.<ref>[http://ilgensoc.org/cpage.php?pt=123 Genealogy Committee] in ''Illinois State Genealogical Society'' (accessed 21 March 2015).</ref><br><br>

:The State Historical Society was formed to support the Historical Library (now the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum). The Society is independent of the Library and State, but continue to promote research, writing, and study of Illinois history.  

:See [[Collections of the Illinois State Historical Society|Collections of the Illinois State Histoircal Society]].<br><br>

:[http://collections.carli.illinois.edu/index.php CARLI's Digital Collection] links to 96 independent collections that are freely viewable by the general public–from an 1829 Alumni Catalog for Illinois College to 1837 snapshots of Chicago streets and everything in between.<br>

:EIU Region: Clark, Clay, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Edwards, Effingham, Jasper, Lawrence, Moultrie, Richland, Shelby, Wabash, Wayne<br><br>

:ISU Region: Champaign, DeWitt, Ford, Grundy, Iroquois, Kankakee, Livingston, Logan, Marshall, McLean, Piatt, Tazewell, Vermillion, Woodford<br><br>

:NEIU Region: Cook and City of Chicago<br><br>

:SIU Region: Alexander, Clinton, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Madison, Marion, Massac, Monroe, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, St. Clair, Saline, Union, Washington, White, Williamson <br><br>

:NIU Region: Boone, Bureau, Carroll, DeKalb, DuPage, JoDaviess, Kane, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, McHenry, Ogle, Putnam, Stephenson, Whiteside, Will, Winnebago<br><br>

:UIS Region: Bond, Cass, Christian, Fayette, Greene, Jersey, Macon, Macoupin, Mason, Menard, Montgomery, Morgan, Sangamon, Scott<br><br>

:WIU Region: Adams, Brown, Calhoun, Fulton, Hancock, Henderson, Henry, Knox, McDonough, Mercer, Peoria, Pike, Rock Island, Schuyler, Stark, Warren<br><br>

:Holdings include: family genealogies; oral histories; county histories; cemetery inscriptions; atlases and plat books; indexes and transcriptions of census, vital records, and naturalization records for many counties. Records of the [[Union Veterans' and Lineage Society Records|Grand Army of the Republic ]], the Civil War Union veteran's society, are also included. The online collection has a statewide [http://www.illinoishistory.gov/lib/obit_finder.htm obituary search] for newspapers held at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library.<ref>[http://www.illinois.gov/alplm/library/collections/printedmaterials/Pages/default.aspx Printed Materials] in ''Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum'' (accessed 7 April 2015).</ref><br><br>

:The local history and genealogy collection here is huge. They have printed genealogies, manuscripts, periodicals, newspapers, special aids, surname folders and a great overall genealogy collection.<ref name="DB39" /><br><br>

:Formerly known as the '''Chicago Historical Society''', their archives hold more than 20 million manuscripts such as letters, account books, certificates, diaries, genealogical charts, journals, licenses, log books, membership lists, memoirs, minutes, muster rolls, research notes, scrapbooks, sermons, speeches, subscription lists, and telegrams. They are strong in U.S. history through the American Civil War, especially in early Chicago history and social conditions.<ref name="DB39" /><br><br>

:For a fee they will search property records '''prior''' to the Chicago fire.<ref name="DB39" /><br><br>

:This library is a focal point of Southern Illinois genealogy. Their collection is huge.</ref><br><br>

:They have indexed obituaries from the ''Illinois State Journal'' from 1861-1934 and 1959 to now. All Springfield city directories are here. The '''Sangamon Valley Collection''' has resources (photos, directories, yearbooks, histories, maps) for studying Sangamon and nearby counties.</ref><br><br>

:A large Chicago repository with genealogies, local histories, censuses, military, land, indexes, vital records, court, and tax records '''many from Illinois''', the Mississippi Valley, eastern seaboard, Canada, and the British Isles.<ref>[http://www./genealogy-and-local-history Genealogy and Local History] in ''The Newberry'' (accessed 27 February 2015).</ref> They have over 17,000 printed genealogies. The collection is noteworthy for its colonial America, especially New England holdings. They have church, town, and county histories from all parts of the United States, Canada, and the British Isles. This includes a comprehensive set of New England town histories, and strong collection of county histories from the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. Their Civil War unit histories collection is one of the best.<ref name="DB39">Dollarhide and Bremer, 39.</ref> This library has research guides on various subjects related to genealogy and library holdings cataloged from 1978.  See

:*[http://www./genealogy-collection-guides-and-research-tools Genealogy Collection Guides and Research Tools] for more information about the collections. ''<br>''  

:*A surname index to genealogical periodicals and local history books in the Newberry Library was completed in 1915 and published as ''The Genealogical Index of the Newberry Library''<ref>''The Genealogical Index of the Newberry Library''. Boston, Massachusetts: G.K. Hall, 1960. {{WorldCat|83367401}}  {{FSC|130151|item|disp=FS Library films 928135–928137}} and {{FSC|130151|item|disp=FS Catalog book 973 D22n vols. 1–4}}</ref> Since this index is old, be sure to use the [http://www./sites/default/files/textpage-attachments/Genealogical%20Index.pdf online guide sheet] to this collection before using the source.<br><br>

:They enjoy a large genealogy and local history department, including many indexes, DAR files, and basic genealogy resources for the plains states.</ref><br><br>

:The research library has 45,000 books on military history including numerous unit histories, photos, uniforms, equipment, insignia, and ships for many of the world's militaries. They help genealogists.<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pritzker_Military_Museum_%26_Library Pritzker Military Museum {{amp}} Library] in ''Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia'' (accessed 30 March 2015).</ref><br><br>

:This is a very good genealogical collection with local histories, genealogies, naturalization records, Pullman Car Works personnel records, obituary files, and church histories.<ref name="DB39" /><br><br>

:This is the best library in southern Illinois. They have a large genealogical collection including newspapers, biographies, county histories, family folders, and maps.</ref><br><br>

:This library has plentiful historical records. Noteworthy is the '''''Durrett Collection ''''' of historical Kentucky and Ohio River Valley manuscripts. The size and content of this collection is comparable to the ''[[Draper Manuscript Collection]]''. It includes the earliest people in the Ohio Valley.<ref name="DB39" /><br><br>

:One of the best book collections in America, including county histories, and farmers registers. Think of it as another archives for Illinois.</ref><br><br>

:Their strength is Champaign County history, but they have good basic genealogy for the entire United States including printed genealogies, manuscripts, family folders, and microfilms.

:*Click on [https://www.familysearch.org/centers/locations/ Find a FamilySearch Center]. Type your city and state in the search box, then tap [Enter]. A map showing nearby centers will appear. Click a FamilySearch Center icon on the map to view its address, phone, and hours.

:*Lowell M. Volkel, ed. ''Illinois Libraries with Genealogical Collections'' (Springfield, IL: Illinois State Genealogical Society, 1992). {{Worldcat|27373857|item|disp=At various respositories (WorldCat)}}; {{FSC|587349|item|disp=FS Library Book 977.3 J53i}}.