South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society

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Contact Information
E-mail: [mailto:info@ssghs.org info@ssghs.org].

Website:  https://ssghs.org/ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ssghs.org/

Address: 3000 W. 170th Place, Hazel Crest, IL. 60429-1174 USA Telephone: 708-335-3340.

Hours of Operation: SSGHS Research Library hours. You may wish to telephone first to ensure that a volunteer librarian is available to assist you.

Map, directions, and public transportation


 * Map:  Google map: South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society (at the Police Department).


 * Directions:  SSGHS Directions


 * Public transportation:  CTA Pace bus route 359 stops two blocks west the the Library at Kedzie Ave and 171st St.

Internet sites and databases:


 * South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society basic information, library, education, research, databases.
 * Library Catalog Search online by title, author, date published, subject, call number, ISBN, publisher.
 * What's Inside census records, city directories and phone books, CD's, microfiche and microfilm, family history books and files, hidden treasures, historic maps, "how to do genealogy" books, newspapers, obituaries, pamphlets, periodicals like Where the Trails Cross, the SSGHS journal.

Collection Description
This is a very good genealogical collection with local histories, genealogies, naturalization records, Pullman Car Works personnel records, obituary files, and church histories.

Includes federal censuses 1820-1930, state censuses 1825-1865, Chicago directories 1871-1985, surname files, naturalizations, funeral homes, historic maps, Chicago and Cook County how-to-research books, local newspapers and obituary files, and periodicals from 72 genealogical societies.

The society's areas of interest are:

South Cook County, IL: Bloom, Bremen, Calumet, Lemont, Orland, Palos, Rich, Thornton, and Worth townships; and the Roseland and Pullman neighborhoods of Chicago.

East Will County, IL: Crete, Frankfort, Green Garden, Homer, Manhattan, Monee, New Lenox, Peotone, Washington, Will, and Wilton townships.

Services

 * Research Services: This Society covers southern Cook County (including the Roseland and Pullman neighborhoods of Chicago) and eastern Will County. Although we have material from the United States and many foreign countries, our library’s collection is strongest in Cook and Will Counties, Illinois, and Lake County, Indiana. Volunteers perform research services for a fee. For further information, please visit https://ssghs.org/services/research-assistance/


 * Pullman Employee Records: The Society maintains a collection of employee records from the Pullman Car Works located at 111th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue in Pullman (Chicago), Illinois, one of the largest employers in the area. There are approximately 200,000 individuals represented in this collection. The collection does not include the records for all Pullman employees at all locations, and does not include records of Pullman porters. Information varies for each individual’s packet. It may contain only a name or an entire employee file, including birth certificate, military records, pictures, family relationships, work history, education and cause of death. A free lookup is available; copies of records are available for a fee. More information is at https://ssghs.org/tools-resources/pullman-employee-records/


 * A Master Cemetery Index, searchable by township, includes cemeteries that have been read by volunteers and published by the South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society. There are many other cemeteries in the townships located outside of Chicago. However, only the cemeteries that have been read by volunteers and published by the South Suburban Genealogical & Historical Society are included in this index. More information is at https://ssghs.org/tools-resources/cemeteries-by-township/


 * Cemetery Photo Service: For a fee, the society will take photographs that you request of tombstones located in our area of interest. We can also provide photographs of buildings or other landmarks of interest to you in these areas. More information is at https://ssghs.org/services/cemetery-photo-service/ The Society's area of interest includes these townships:  South Cook County, IL: Bloom, Bremen, Calumet, Lemont, Orland, Palos, Rich, Thornton, and Worth townships.  East Will County, IL: Crete, Frankfort, Green Garden, Homer, Manhattan, Monee, New Lenox, Peotone, Washington, Will, and Wilton townships.

Alternate Repositories
If you cannot visit or find a source at the , a similar source may be available at one of the following.

Overlapping Collections


 * Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana, premier periodical collection, including Midwestern genealogies, local histories, databases, military, censuses, directories, and passenger lists.
 * National Archives I, Washington DC, census, pre-WWI military service &amp; pensions, passenger lists, naturalizations, passports, federal bounty land, homesteads, bankruptcy, ethnic sources, prisons, and federal employees.
 * National Archives at Chicago old federal court and agency records for Illinois and Midwest U.S. federal censuses 1790–1940; military service and pension indexes, passenger lists, naturalizations, Ancestry.com, HeritageQuest, Fold3.
 * Newberry Library, Chicago, a large repository with genealogies, local histories, censuses, military, land, indexes, vital records, court, and tax records mostly from the Mississippi Valley, eastern seaboard, Canada, and the British Isles.

Similar Collections


 * John A. Logan College Library, Carterville, this library is a focal point of Southern Illinois genealogy. Their collection is huge.

Neighboring Collections


 * Cook County Clerk births, marriages, and deaths online
 * Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court recent probates, civil, criminal records.
 * Cook County Recorder of Deeds land records, military discharge DD-214s.
 * Cook County Medical Examiner suspicious or unusual deaths.
 * U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois recent civil and criminal court records.
 * Arlington Heights Memorial Library a huge collection, with printed genealogies, manuscripts, periodicals, newspapers, special aids, surname folders—a great overall genealogy collection.
 * Asher Library, Chicago, Spertus Institute for Jewish Studies 500,000 books, and films.
 * Chicago Public Library reference books, how-to-guides, histories, biographies.
 * Chicago Title and Trust  for a fee they will search property records prior to the Chicago fire.
 * Pritzker Military Museum and Library, Chicago, 45,000 military history books, unit histories, photos, uniforms, equipment, insignia, and ships of many world militaries. They help genealogists.
 * Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago Archives parish records, priest biographies, sacramental, school, or orphanage records.
 * University of Chicago Library plentiful historical records, including Durrett Collection  of historical Kentucky and Ohio River Valley manuscripts of early people in the Ohio Valley.
 * University of Illinois at Chicago, biography, periodicals, newspapers, oral history, ethnic studies.
 * Repositories in surrounding counties:  in Illinois: DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will; and in Indiana: Lake.
 * Illinois Dept. of Health Vital Records, Springfield, birth, marriage, death, adoption, and divorces.
 * Illinois State Archives, Springfield, county/state records, pre-Chicago fire sources, indexed vital records, early land grants, military records, all fed/state censuses, surname card index.
 * Illinois State Library, Springfield, state/federal records, federal censuses to 1920, plat books, IL county histories, Sanborn fire insurance maps, Rev. War pensions and bounty land warrants.
 * Illinois State Genealogical Society, Springfield, research guidance, teaching via webinars and the ISGS blog for free, death certificates 1916-1947 for a fee. No research requests.
 * Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD), Springfield, HQ of 7 regional archives of local Illinois county/town records: birth, marriage, death, land, tax, voting reg., probate, naturalization, civil criminal court, coroner, poorhouse. For Cook County see IRAD-Northeastern Illinois University.
 * Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Springfield, genealogy, plat maps, atlases, oral and county history, cemeteries, census, vital records, naturalizations in many counties.
 * Lincoln Library, Springfield, indexed obituaries, city directories, the Sangamon Valley Collection  has photos, yearbooks, histories, and maps for studying Sangamon and surrounding counties.
 * Peoria Public Library enjoys a large genealogy and local history department, including many indexes, DAR files, and basic genealogy resources for the plains states.
 * Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville Lovejoy Library best library in southern IL with a large genealogical collection of newspapers, biographies, county histories, family folders, and maps.
 * Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center, Rock Island, IL, Swedish church records, census, passenger lists, lodges, newspapers, directories.
 * University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Main Library one of the best book collections in America, including county histories, and farmers registers. Think of it as another archives for Illinois.
 * Urbana Free Library their strength is Champaign County history, but they have good basic genealogy for the entire United States including printed genealogies, manuscripts, family folders.
 * Brethren Historical Library and Archives, Elgin, IL, cultural, socio-economic, theological, genealogical, and institutional history of the Brethren.
 * Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Archives, Elk Grove Village, IL, serves historians, congregations, synods, genealogists and others interested in Lutheran history.
 * Repositories in surrounding states:  Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, and Wisconsin
 * National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), St. Louis, MO, military and civil services personnel records. For servicemen and servicewomen discharged from 1912 to 1953.
 * Polish Genealogical Society of America, Milwaukee, WI, 60,000 books on Polish history, art, culture, reference.