Bureau County, Illinois Genealogy

Guide to Bureau County, Illinois ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
The county was named for either Michel or Pierre Bureau, French Canadian brothers who ran a trading post from 1776 until the 1780s near where Big Bureau Creek joins the Illinois River. The county seat is Princeton. The county was founded 1837 and is located in the North-Central area of the state.

County Courthouse
County Courthouse 700 S Main St Princeton, IL 61356 Phone: 815-875-2014 Bureau County Courthouse County records are most often kept at the County Courthouse or another local repository. For further information about where the records for Bureau County are kept, see the Bureau County Courthouse page

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

Biographies

 * Past and present of Bureau County, Illinois, together with biographical sketches Harrington, George B. (Main Author)
 * Index to Past and present of Bureau County, Illinois by George B. Harrington
 * The Biographical record of Bureau, Marshall, Putnam and Stark counties, Illinois

Census Records
 Federal

 1840 Pensioners
 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. Washington, D.C., 1841. ; ; digital version at Google Books. [See Illinois, Bureau County on page 186.]

Church Records
 Lutheran aka Evangelical
 * 1872-1883 Dansk Evangelisk Church, Sheffield, Baptism Index 1872-1883 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.
 * 1872-1883 Dansk Evangelisk Church, Sheffield, Marriage Index 1872-1883 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.

 List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Original court records are held in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk. See Illinois Court Records for more information about using court records. The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at Northern Illinois University - search for Bureau County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the NIU IRAD Wiki Page

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1870-1915 Circuit Court Record, Criminal IRAD-NIU
 * 1872-1950 Court Records IRAD-NIU
 * 1894-1915 County Court Dockets IRAD-NIU
 * 1904-1952 County Court Record, Criminal IRAD-NIU
 * 1930-1956 County Court Information Record IRAD-NIU
 * 1938-1946 County Court Miscellaneous Record IRAD-NIU

Directories

 * 1858-1859 Bureau County directory : the name, occupation and address of every resident within the towns of Princeton, Sheffield, Malden, Tiskilwa, Buda, Wyanet, Neponset, Dover and other residents in the several townships of the county at FamilySearch Catalog
 * 1877 The complete name index to The Voters and tax-payers of Bureau County, Illinois, 1877 at FamilySearch Catalog
 * 1858-1859 Names and locations from the Bureau County, Illinois directory at FamilySearch Catalog

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
 African Americans
 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records
 * Illinois African-American Resource Guide by the Illinois State Archives describes what records are at the State Archives with an online method for ordering records.
 * African-American Resources for Illinois

Land and Property Records
Original land records are held in the office of the County Clerk. See Illinois Land and Property for more information about using land records. The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed online, through the FamilySearch Library or the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Northern Illinois University- search for Bureau County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the NIU Wiki page.

Online Land Indexes and Records
 * 1800s-Present Use the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Land Patent Index to obtain original federal land transfer records including homestead, military warrants, and cash entry patents. These records help a research establish location and lead to National Archives' records which may include genealogical information. Earlier land transfer records are housed at the National Archives.
 * 1800s-Present Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales from Illinois State Archives also provides an index to federal land sales.
 * 1796-1907 U.S. General Land Office Records found at Ancestry ($)
 * Illinois Public Land Purchase Records This record extract includes over 538,000 land sales from the 19th Century. Each entry includes the purchaser's name, purchase date, number of acres, price per acre, and in some cases the purchaser's sex and residence. Available at www.ancestry.com ($)
 * Bureau County Federal Township Plats

 Copies of Original Records
 * 1816-1900 Deed Index IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)
 * 1856-1878 Swamp Land Record IRAD-NIU
 * 1923-1935 Chattel Mortgage Index IRAD-NIU
 * 1931-1956 Chattel Mortgage Record IRAD-NIU
 * 1949-1959 Chattel Mortgage Entry Books IRAD-NIU

 Abstracts
 * 1984 Rockford Map Publishers Land Atlas and Plat Book, Bureau County, Illinois, 1984 (Rockford, Illinois:Rockford Map Publishers, c1984) ;

Local Histories

 * The Biographical Record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1896. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Harrington, George B. Past and Present of Bureau County, Illinois. Chicago: Pioneer Pub. Co., 1906. Digital version at Ancestry ($); Another Ancestry ($) version; Internet Archive.
 * A Brief History of Bureau County also contains a list of Museums in Bureau County.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * 1788-1940 Maps of Illinois (1788-1940)
 * 1804-1891 Federal Township Plats of Illinois (1804-1891)
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
 Civil War Regiments. Civil War service men from Bureau County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies or regiments that were formed from men of Bureau County.
 * Bureau County, Illinois muster rolls of Civil War volunteers; bounty committee records, etc., ca. 1861-1865
 * Bureau County, Illinois Civil War applications for relief, ca. 1861-1865
 * Bureau County, Illinois Civil War relief committee vouchers, ca. 1861-1865
 * Bureau County, Illinois town Civil War committee records, ca. 1861-1865
 * - 9th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company K.
 * - 12th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies H and I.
 * - 12th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (3 months, 1861), Companies H and I.
 * - 15th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company L.
 * - 27th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company I
 * - 33rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company E.
 * - 52nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company B.
 * - 57th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies B, F, H and K.
 * - 64th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (Yates’ Sharpshooters), Company B.
 * - 66th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company C.
 * - 88th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.
 * - 93rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies B, C, E, H, I and K.
 * - 139th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (100 days, 1864), Companies A, G, and H.
 * - 146th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies F and H.
 * - 148th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies A, E, and K.
 * - 151st Regiment, Illinois Infantry (1 year, 1865), Companies F, G and H.
 * - 153rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry (1 year, 1865), Company E.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1837-1923 Naturalization Papers IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)
 * 1856-1991 Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 at Ancestry - index & images ($)

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * Bureau County, Illinois Obituary and Death Notices Collection at GenealogyBuff.com

Obituaries

 * Obituaries and Death Notices Courtesy Genealogytrails.com

Voter Records
Illinois Voting Registratiion

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1772-1999 Illinois Wills and Probate Records 1772-1999 at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * 1819-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Images only
 * 1837-1900, 1906-1955 Probate Records IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

School Records

 * The Northern Illinois University (IRAD-NIU) holds the records for Bureau County. Learn more about finding and using their records.

Vital Records
See Illinois Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Illinois. Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Original birth and death certificates recorded until the year 1916 are kept by the Bureau County Clerk while those recorded after 1916 are kept by the Illinois Department of Public Health with a copy to the County Clerk. Original marriage records are usually kept by the County Clerk from the establishment of the county to the present. Original divorce records are generally in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk. The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through online databases, the FamilySearch Library and the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Northern Illinois University (NIU) - search for Bureau County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the IRAD Wiki page.

Birth

 * Birth Notices and Birth Records Courtesy Genealogytrails.com

Marriage

 * 1587-1959 Illinois, United States Marriages at Findmypast ($) — index $
 * 1805-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1810-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1833-1889 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1856-1895 Cass, Mrs. Allan W. Marriages of North Prairie area, beginning with the first recorded minister, 1856-1895 Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1977.
 * 1837-1854 Illinois Statewide Marriage Index at Illinois State Archives Index
 * Wedding Announcement and Marriage Records Courtesy Genealogytrails.com

Death

 * 1749-1999 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1850-1880 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1916-1950 Database of Illinois Death Certificates at Illinois State Archives Index
 * 1916-1950 Illinois Deaths, 1916-1950 at MyHeritage - index ($)
 * 1951-1971 Illinois Death Certificates, 1951–1971 at Illinois State Archives - index

Archives
 Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD) The Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD), managed by the Illinois State Archives, houses the archival records of local Illinois counties, townships, municipalities and school districts. The seven Regional Depositories are housed on state university campuses scattered throughout Illinois.

FamilySearch Centers

 * Morris Illinois FamilySearch Center
 * Ottawa Illinois FamilySearch Center
 * Sterling Illinois FamilySearch Center
 * Bureau County Genealogy Society - an affiliate library
 * Geneseo Public Library - an affiliate library
 * LaSalle County Genealogy Guild - an affiliate library

Societies

 * Bureau County Historical Society Library and Museum


 * Bureau County Genealogical Society PO Box 402 629 S. Main St. Princeton 61356-0402 Phone 815-879-3133 or 815-303-7386 Email:[mailto:bureaucounty@gmail.com bureaucounty@gmail.com] Website
 * Bureau County Historical Society 109 Park Ave. West Princeton, Il 61356 Phone 816-875-2184 E-mail:[mailto:museum@bureaucountyhistoricalsociety.com museum@bureaucountyhistoricalsociety.com] Website
 * Manlius Historical Society 122 E. Maple Ave Manlius, Illinois 61338 Phone 815-646-4369, 815-445-4102 or 815-454-2532
 * Mineral Pride Society c/o Dave Nanninga 111 Third Street Mineral, IL 61344 Phone 773-315-0556 Email:[mailto:dpnanninga@comcast.net dpnanninga@comcast.net] Website
 * Neponset Historical Society PO Box 262 113 Commercial Street Neponset, Ill 61345 Phone 309-594-2197 Website
 * Sheffield Historical Society 125 Washington St. Sheffield, IL 61361 Phone 815-454-2850 Email:[mailto:shs1967@hotmail.com shs1967@hotmail.com]
 * Tiskilwa Historical Society PO Box 87 110 E. Main St. Tiskilwa, IL 61368 Website
 * Wyanet Historical Society 320 E. Second St. Wyanet, IL 61379 Phone 815-699-2559 or 815-699-2419

Websites

 * Bureau County IL Genealogy
 * Bureau County, Illinois Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * IL GenWeb Bureau


 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.