Winnebago County, Illinois Genealogy

United States  Illinois  Winnebago County

Winnebago County Organization
Winnebago 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 Winnebago County are kept, see the Winnebago County Courthouse page.

Historical Facts
Winnebago County is named for the Winnebago Indians who once inhabited that part of Illinois

Parent County

 * 1836--Winnebago County was created 16 January 1836 from Jo Daviess County. County seat:  Rockford

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

Neighboring Counties

 * Boone
 * DeKalb
 * Green County, Wisconsin
 * Ogle
 * Rock County, Wisconsin
 * Stephenson

Biographies

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

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

Illinois Cemeteries page provides explanations of the following online Winnebago County resources:


 * Illinois Cemeteries by county

Church Records
Church records may give birth, death and marriage information. It is usually best to locate church records with a search at a local level such as the city, town, or village.

Court Records
Copies of original records


 * 1837-1922 Circuit Court Records IRAD-NIU
 * 1854-1958 County Court Records and Case Files IRAD-NIU
 * 1857–1900 Chancery divorce records

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

 * Carr, Edson Irving, The History of Rockton, Winnebago County, Illinois, 1820 to 1898, (Rockton, IL: Herald Office Print, 1898). Digital Version at Internet Archives; ;

Land and Property

 * 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.


 * Family Maps of Winnebago County, Illinois (2007) plats the land of many nineteenth-century Winnebago County residents. The publisher's bookstore includes a free online surname index.


 * 1796–1907 U.S. General Land Office Records found at Ancestry.com ($)


 * 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. Available at www.ancestry.com ($)


 * Winnebago County Federal Township Plats

Copies of original records


 * 1836–1883 Deed records
 * 1836-1891 Deed Records IRAD-NIU

Additional Resources

Additional resources for Winnebago County land and property may be found in the and. Copies of records on FHL microfilm and microfiche can be ordered for viewing at Family History Centers. Copies of books found in the FHLC may be found in WorldCat catalog and ordered from your local library through interlibrary loan. Explore how to search the Family History Library Catalog and the Worldcat Online Catalog.

Civil War
Civil War service men from Winnebago 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 Winnebago County.


 * - 8th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Companies L and M.
 * - 17th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company K.
 * - 44th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company G.
 * - 45th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies F and G.
 * - 52nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company E.
 * - 55th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company C.
 * - 65th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (Scotch Regiment), Company K.
 * - 90th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company A.
 * - 146th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies B and C.
 * - 147th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company A.
 * - 153rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry (1 year, 1865), Company G.

Newspapers and Obituaries
Newspaperarchive.com ($) has historical newspapers available on-line. Their database has Freeport City newspapers from the late 1800's and early 1900's that covered local news on residents from Winnebago County. The Rock Island Public Library provides free access to this database at its library.

Probate Records
Original estates and wills are held in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk. See Illinois Probate Records for more information about using probate records.

The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through, the Family History Library or the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Northern Illinois University (NIU) - search for Winnebago County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the NIU IRAD Wiki page.

Copies of original records


 * 1854-1922 Probate Records IRAD-NIU
 * 1863–1880 Probate records
 * 1866–1919 Probate will records
 * 1870–1920 Widow's relinquishment and selection records [there is 1 record for 1921]

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

Family History Center
Family History Centers (FHCs) are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah (United States) and are located all over the world. Their goal is to provide resources to assist you in the research and study of your genealogy.

You may search your address for a center near you on the FamilySearch site. The following center serves Winnebago County:


 * Rockford Illinois Family History Center 324 University Dr. Rockford, Illinois 61107 Telephone: (815) 332-7782

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 Winnebago 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

Public Libraries
The following Carroll County libraries have collections of specific interest to genealogists.


 * Rockford Public Library 215 N. Wyman St. Rockford, IL 61101 Telephone: (815) 965-6731 Their Local History Room includes materials for Winnebago county as well as neighboring counties.

Vital Records
See Illinois Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Illinois.

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Original birth and death certificates recorded until the year 1916 are kept by the Winnebago 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. Information about how to obtain birth, marriage, and death records through the Winnegabo County Clerk is explained at RootsWeb.

The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through online databases, the Family History Library and the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Northern Illinois University (NIU) - search for Winnebago County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the IRAD Wiki page.

Birth Records
Copies of Original Birth Records


 * 1882–1896 Birth Certificates
 * 1882-1905 Birth Certificates IRAD-NIU

Marriage Records
Copies of original Marriage Records


 * 1836–1867 Marriage licenses
 * 1837-1900 Illinois Statewide Marriage Index at Illinois State Archives Index
 * 1836-1902 Marriage Licenses IRAD-NIU

Death Records
Copies of original Death Records


 * 1876–1943 Death certificates
 * 1877-1919 Death Certificates IRAD-NIU
 * 1916-1950 Database of Illinois Death Certificates at Illinois State Archives Index

Divorce

 * 1857–1900 Divorce records

Additional Resources
Additional resources for Winnebago County births, marriages and deaths may be found in the, the , the and the  topic pages of the Family History Library catalog (FHLC). Copies of records on FHL microfilm and microfiche can be ordered for viewing at Family History Centers. Copies of books found in the FHLC may be found in WorldCat catalog and ordered from your local library through interlibrary loan. Explore how to search the Family History Library Catalog and the Worldcat Online Catalog.

Web Sites

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