Illinois Research Tips and Strategies

Illinois Research Strategies
Below are links to different research strategy pages to help you locate your ancestors in Illinois


 * Illinois Online Genealogy Records
 * How to find Illinois Birth Records
 * How to find Illinois Marriage Records
 * How to find Illinois Death Records

Illinois Research Tips
These tips will help you as you research your ancestors in Illinois.


 * Birth information: Birth records in Illinois start on the county level in 1916 with compliance by 1922. The best substitute record for locating birth information is death records (the majority of death records will list the date of birth of the decedent, and since death certificates are considered a primary resource, they can provide you with the same documentation as a birth certificate). Or, try these other substitute records.
 * Finding Parents: The State of Illinois began recording deaths in 1877. They often will list the parents of the deceased and their birth information. Search Illinois death records
 * Look in all censuses: Always look for your ancestor in every possible census. There are clues regarding immigration, naturalization, and occupation that can lead to other records. Sometimes parents can be found living with their children later in life. Search U.S. Censuses.
 * Marriage records. Coverage map showing all FamilySearch holdings by county.  FamilySearch Historical Records

Illinois Record Finder
This Record Finder is designed to help you determine the best record to search for the type of information you are looking for. It is most helpful for post-1850 research.

To look for more Illinois records, go here

Further Illinois Research
For more research on Illinois, including research at the county level, visit the Illinois page on the Research Wiki.

Search all of the Illinois record collections at FamilySearch.