Champaign County, Illinois Genealogy

United States Illinois Champaign County

Champaign County Organization
Beginning Dates for Champaign County Records

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

Historical Facts
Large numbers of Ohio residents settled in frontier Champaign County, Illinois. The name of the county (Champaign) is reminiscent of Champaign County, Ohio - the previous residence of many pioneer settlers.

Boundary Changes
20 February 1833: -- Champaign County was created from Vermilion County.

1790-1801 originally part of Knox, Northwest Territory 1801-1812 St. Clair (Illinois Territory) 1812-1813 Madison (Illinois Territory) 1815-1816 Edwards (Illinois Territory) 1816-1819 Crawford (Illinois Statehood 1818) 1819-1823 Clark County, Illinois 1823-1826 Edgar County, Illinois 1826-1833 Vermilion County, Illinois

Interactive map of Champaign County boundary changes.

Cemeteries
Find A Grave, list of cemeteries. Additional information can be found at local level (city, township, etc.)


 * Champaign 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.


 * Linkpendiumhas a list of cemeteries transcriptions many done by the Champaign County Genealogical Society.

Census
For information and tips on accessing census records online, see Illinois Census.

Church Records
1799-1999 Society of Friends. Stanton Monthly Meeting. Item 6, and

1899-1970 Shiloh Methodist Episcopal Church Records.

1909-1925 Oak Grove Church. items 7-9

Linkpendium has many church records transcripted by the Federation of East European Family History Societies. (currently the link seem broken-jeh 21 Jun 2011)

Court Records

 * Court Record 1833-1852, 1857-1872
 * Circuit Court Recognizance Record 1869-1877 (IRAD-ISU)

Directories
Available at Ancestry:

J.S.Lothrop's Champaign County Directory1870-1871.

Additional directories available at: Linkpendium.

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

Land and Property

 * IRAD - Illinois State University (Following records originally from Office: Recorder)


 * 1833-1927 Deed Index. - Also available through the Family History Library and its Centers


 * 1833-1902 Deed Record - Also available through the Family History Library and its Centers (first film)
 * 1862-1877 Chattel Mortgage Record
 * 1959-1965 Chattel Mortgages

Military History and Records
Linkpendium links data to information and records for the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I, and World War II.

Civil War

 * Civil War service men from Champaign 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 Champaign County.


 * - '38th Regiment, Illinois Infantry', Company C.
 * - '51st Regiment, Illinois Infantry', Companies B and E.
 * - '71st Regiment, Illinois Infantry', Companies C, F and H.
 * - '72nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry', Company G.
 * - '76th Regiment, Illinois Infantry', Companies B and G.


 * Behrens, Robert H. From Salt Fork to Chickamauga: Champaign County Soldiers in the Civil War, includes full-name index of 3,200 men. ,
 * 1916-1931 Cemetery Record, Civil War Veterans - IRAD

Naturalization and Citizenship
Champaign County, Circuit Court searchable online data base: Civil, Criminal, and Probate.

IRAD-ISU (Illinois State University) The following records originally from Office: Circut Court])


 * Circuit Court:


 * 1858-1906 Naturalization Records
 * 1866-1906 Naturalization Records of Minors
 * 1866-1892 Naturalization Records of Soldiers
 * 1872-1906 Naturlaization Records


 * County Court:


 * 1860-1902 Naturalization Records
 * 1866-1896 Naturalization Records of Minors
 * 1866-1889 Naturalization Records of Soldiers
 * 1896-1906 Naturalization Decarations of Intent


 * Family History Library and Centers


 * Naturalization records, 1858-1906 (Circuit Court)
 * Naturalization records, 1860-1906 (County Court)

Newspapers
Ancestry.com ($) has:

Champaign, Illinois 'Newspaper Index', 1892 search by name, date and event.

The Evening Courier: 1935-39 and1941-1944.

Probate Records
Online Resources


 * 1829-1902 An unspecified number of are available at the Family Search Records online database. The collection does not have an every name index, but the images are available to browse and may often have indexes within each volume.


 * IRAD - ISU (Illinois State University)


 * 1835-1976 Probate Record Index
 * 1833-1953 Probate Will Records
 * 1833-1891 Probate Case Files
 * 1838-1851 Probate Records
 * 1859-1952 Probate Inventory Record
 * 1864-1943 Probate Appraisement Record
 * 1868-1907 Probate Sale Record, Real Estate
 * 1950-1955 Probate Appraisement Review Record


 * Family History Library and Centers


 * 1833-1851 Probate Records. - Items 4-5
 * 1851-1921 Probate Records. -
 * 1877-1900 Probate Packets. -

Public Records

 * IRAD - ISU Holdings


 * 1833-1942 Board of Supervisors' Minutes
 * 1956-1964 County Officials' Bonds and Oaths of Office
 * 1872-1966 Notary Public Registers
 * 1916-1922 Optometrist Registers
 * 1869-1872 Patent Record, Invention
 * 1877-1965 Professional Registers
 * 1950-1962 Drainage District Accounts
 * 1937-1963 Drainage District Assessment Record, Delinquent
 * 1942-1947 Drainage District Bank Books
 * 1928-1951 Drainage District Collector's Books
 * 1908-1957 Drainage District Collector's Books, Kankakee District
 * 1911-1955 Drainage District Collector's Books, Special District
 * 1914-1931 Drainage District Ledgers

Repositories

 * County Courthouse

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


 * Family History Center


 * Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) Illinois State Universtiy (ISU) 2016 Warehouse Road Campus Box 1520 Normal, Illinois 61802 Phone: 309-452-6027 Illinois Regional Archives Depository System Illinois State University Region


 * Public Libraries

Urbana Free Library 210 West Green Street Urbana, IL 61801 Phone: (217) 367-4025 Fax: (217) 531-7088

Expanding on an index-card based index created in the 1960's and 1970's, the Urbana Free Library has created an on-line index of Champaign County historical records of genealogical interest called the Champaign County Historical Archive. Included are newspaper mentions of birth, marriage and death notices, along with official county records of birth, marriage, death, wills, probate, cemetery and other records. The index includes details (names and dates) that make it easy to identify records of interst.

Copies (non-certified) can be requested using the library's printable PDF Request Form.

Taxation
IRAD - ISU (Illinois State University)


 * 1857-1872 Tax Sale Record
 * 1935-1945 Tax Assessment Abstracts
 * 1947-1965 Tax Ledgers
 * 1906-1964 Collector's Accounts
 * 1950-1966 Collector's and Treasurer's Accounts
 * 1931-1964 County Annual Audit Reports
 * 1948-1965 Treasurer's Ledgers
 * 1946-1958 Motor Fuel Tax Allotment Record

Vital Records
YEARS Birth, Marriage, and Death records may be ordered from the Champaign County Clerk:

IRAD - Illinois State University ( Following records originally from Office: County Clerk)

Births

 * Birth Record Index- IRAD years unlisted.
 * 1878-1901 Birth Record - IRAD-ISU Also available through 
 * 1940-1946 Birth Certificates - IRAD-ISU Adoptees. - may be restricted

Marriages

 * 1864-1932 Marriage Record Index. IRAD - ISU
 * 1833-1915 Marriage Licenses. IRAD -ISU
 * 1833-1932 Marriage Record IRAD- ISU Also available with index through first film
 * 1878-1973 Marriage License Applications IRAD- ISU

Available through Ancestry.com Marriage Records,1790-1860 ($) (gives film no. as FHL film 338047)

Some of the Family History Library's Collection of Champaign County marriages have been digitized:.

Deaths

 * 1878-1949 Death Record Index - IRAD-ISU Also available through Family History Library and its centers first film
 * 1878-1901 Death Record - IRAD- ISU Also available through Family History Library and its centers first film
 * 1902-1915Death Certificates - IRAD - ISU;

Websites

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

Databases Pertinent to Champaign County

 * Local Governmental Records Database
 * Name Index to Illinois Local Governments
 * Illinois Statewide Marriage Index
 * Illinois Statewide Death Index, 1916–1950
 * Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales Database
 * Federal Township Plats of Illinois