Henry County, Illinois Genealogy

United States Illinois  Henry County

County Organization
Henry County's civil records start the following years:

County records are most often kept at the County Courthouse or another local repository. For further information about where the records for Henry County are kept, see the Henry County Courthouse page.

Historical Facts


Henry County is named for Patrick Henry who was an orator and statesman of the Revolutionary War period.

Parent County

 * 1825--Henry County was created 13 January 1825 from Fulton County. County seat:Cambridge

Boundary Changes
See an interactive map of Henry County boundary changes.

Neighboring Counties

 * Bureau
 * Knox
 * Mercer
 * Rock Island
 * Stark
 * Whiteside

Cemeteries
Illinois cemetery records often identify birth, death, relationship, and military information, as well as religious affiliation.


 * Find A Grave can be searched by the name of a person or family to find where a person is buried. Usually gives birth and death dates often with a picture of the tombstone.  May give obituaries, names of family members and links to their information in Find A Grave.


 * Find A Grave also gives a list of cemeteries in Henry County and links to the information for the individuals buried there.


 * Henry Co. IL USGenWeb Tombstone Project usually gives the names of the deceased in alphabetical order by last name with birth and death dates plus any remarks.


 * Illinois Cemeteries by county.


 * The Family History Library Catalog lists . Some of the books or others may be on Google Books or available at public libraries.


 * ePodunk list of Henry County cemeteries gives the names of the cemeteries in the county with a link to more information such as address, phone number, and web site.

African American
The following have information concerning African American research.


 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records


 * Illinois State Archives pamphlet on African American Research describes what records are at the State Archives with an online method for ordering records.
 * African-American Resources for Illinois

Local Histories

 * The History of Henry County, Illinois: Its Tax-payers and Voters: Containing also a Biographical Directory, a Condensed History of the State, Map of the County, a Business Directory, an Abstract of Every-day Laws, War Record of Henry County, Officers of Societies, Lodges, etc., etc.. Chicago: H.F. Kett &amp; Co., 1877. Digital versions at Ancestry ($); Internet Archive; Internet Archive.
 * Kiner, Henry L. History of Henry County, Illinois. Chicago: Pioneer Pub. Co., 1910. Digital versions at Ancestry ($); Google Books; Internet Archive.
 * Portrait and Biographical Album of Henry County, Illinois: Containing Full-page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens of the County, Together with Portraits and Biographies of All the Governors of Illinois, and of the Presidents of the United States: Also Containing a History of the County, from Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time. Chicago: Biographical Pub. Co., 1885. Digital version at Ancestry ($).

Civil War
Civil War service men from Henry 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 Henry County.


 * - 17th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.
 * - 19th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company H.
 * - 27th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company I.
 * - 37th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company B.
 * - 42nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies A and B.
 * - 57th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.
 * - 57th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies D and H.
 * - 65th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (Scotch Regiment), Company D.
 * - 83rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.

Probate
An unspecified number of Henry County probate records are available in.

County Courthouse
County records are most often kept at the County Courthouse or another local repository. For further information about where the records for Henry County are kept, see the Henry County Courthouse page.

Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD)
IRAD is a system of Illinois Regional Archives Depositories managed by the Illinois State Archives, housing 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. Western Illinois University houses the records for Henry County.

Vital Records
The website of the Henry County Clerk/Recorder explains how to order birth, marriage, civil union, and death records. Downloadable Vital Records Forms.

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Henry County, Illinois Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Henry County, Illinois Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)