Lee County, Illinois Genealogy

Guide to Lee 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 Lighthorse Harry Lee, officer in the Revolutionary War, or Richard Henry Lee, member of the Continental Congress. The county seat is Dixon and the county was organized on February 27, 1839. The County is located in the North central part of the state.

County Courthouse
Lee County Courthouse 309 S Galena Ave Dixon, IL 61021 Phone: 815-288-3309 Lee County Courthouse

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

Biographies

 * The Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois has a Lee County edition. This includes a state history section along with a county history and biographies of Lee County residents. See the wiki article for links to available copies and indexes.

Census Records

 * 1850-1885 U.S. Federal Census Mortality Schedules, 1850-1885 at Ancestry ($)

Church Records
 List of Churches and Church Parishes  Lutheran  Methodist
 * FamilySearch Places
 * 1781-1969 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781-1969 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
 * Saylor, E. C., et al. Church Records Greenville, Friedens, Wellersburg, Miscellaneous Years, Somerset, Pennsylvania. Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1957. Microfilm of a transcript in a day book of a variety of Lutheran records, including some localities in Will County, Illinois.
 * Wagner, Carl Louis. Records Kept by Carl Louis Wagner, Lutheran Minister, 1920-1965. Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1978. Contains baptisms, confirmations, funerals and weddings in several locations, including Dixon and Amboy in Lee County.
 * Harmon Methodist Church at genealogytrails.com - Includes photos, history, and a list of ministers.

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.

Online Court Indexes and Records
 * 1840-1940 Circuit Court Case Files IRAD-NIU; search for Lee County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)
 * 1840-1934 Index to Circuit Court Case Files (Common Law) IRAD-NIU; search for Lee County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

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 Northern Illinois University - search for Lee County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the IRAD - Northern Illinois University NIU IRAD 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 Ancestry ($)
 * Illinois Public Land Purchase Records This record extract includes over 538,000 land sales from the 19th Century. Each entry includes the purchaser's name, purchase date, number of acres, price per acre, and in some cases the purchaser's sex and residence. Ancestry ($)
 * Lee County Federal Township Plats
 * 1856-1881 Chattel Mortgage Record IRAD-NIU

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Illinois (1788-1940)
 * 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 Lee 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 Lee County.
 * - 7th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company C (Also known as Morgan's Escort, Palmer's Escort, Smith's Escort)
 * - 10th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company G
 * - 13th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies A and C
 * - 34th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies C and D
 * - 89th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company I
 * - 140th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company E

 World War I
 * War history of Lee County, Illinois, 1917, 18, and 19 : a history of the part taken by the people of Lee County, Illinois, in the world war; 1917, 1918, 1919. Illinois : Dixon Post Number 12, the American Legion, 1919

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1998 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1856-1991 Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 at Ancestry - index and images ($)

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)

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
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Vital Records
Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Original birth and death certificates recorded until the year 1916 are kept by the Lee 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.

Marriage

 * 1587-1959 Illinois, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1763-1900 Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, 1763-1900 at Illinois State Archives - index; Also at: MyHeritage($)
 * 1790-1860 Illinois Marriage index at Ancestry ($)
 * 1805-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1810-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1839-1858 Lee County, Illinois Marriages Courtesy Genealogytrails.com
 * 1839-1865 Lee County, Illinois Marriages Courtesy I Dream of Genealogy

Death

 * 1749-1999 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1840-1939 Coroners records
 * 1850-1880 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * Pre-1916 Illinois Statewide Death Index, Pre-1916 at Illinois State Archives - index; Also at: MyHeritage($)
 * 1916-1950 Database of Illinois Death Certificates, 1916-1950
 * 1916-1950 Illinois Deaths, 1916-1950 at MyHeritage - index ($)
 * 1951-1971 Illinois Death Certificates, 1951–1971 at Illinois State Archives - index

Archives
 Illinois Regional Archives Depository (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. The Northern Illinois University (IRAD-NIU) holds the records for Lee County. Learn more about finding and using their records.
 * Illinois Regional Archives Depository c/o Regional History Center Founders Memorial Library, Room 400 Northern Illinois University DeKalb, IL 60115 Telephone: (815) 753-1807

FamilySearch Centers

 * Dekalb Illinois FamilySearch Center
 * Sterling Illinois FamilySearch Center
 * Batavia Public Library - an affiliate library
 * St. Charles Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Lee County Historical and Genealogical Society - an affiliate library
 * Oswego Public Library District - Oswego Branch - an affiliate library
 * Polo Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Town & Country Library - an affiliate library
 * Yorkville Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Sandwich Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

 * Dixon Public Library 221 S. Hennepin Avenue Dixon, IL 61021 Telephone: (815) 284-7261 Website
 * Mills and Petrie Memorial Library and Gymnasium 704 North First Street Ashton, IL 61006 Telephone: (815) 453-2213
 * Pankhurst Memorial Library 3 South Jefferson Avenue Amboy, IL 61310 Telephone: (815) 857-3925 Website
 * Paw Paw Public Library District 362 Chicago Road P.O. Box 60 Paw Paw, IL 61353 Telephone: (815) 627-9396
 * Winifred Knox Memorial Library 112 South Elm St. Franklin Grove, IL 61031 Telephone: (815) 456-2823 Website

Societies
Lee County Historical and Genealogical Society 113 S Hennepin Ave Dixon, IL 61021 Phone 815-284-1134 Email:[mailto:leecountyhgs@gmail.com leecountyhgs@gmail.com] Facebook Website The Society's Rita Welsh Memorial Library and Stella Grobe Research Center hold: burial records for all cemeteries in Lee County, census records, microfilms of numerous newspapers, land records, local histories, church records, and more.

Websites

 * Lee County IL Genealogy
 * Lee ILGenWeb
 * Lee County, IL Linkpendium
 * – 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.