Illinois Genealogical publications (magazines, newsletters, periodicals, books, etc.) include all types of worthwhile information about specific ancestors, entire lineages and families, places in time, and about all types of genealogical records and repositories. They enable you to discover a variety of information and facts about your ancestors from many historical newspapers, magazines, and other periodicals. These different kinds of sources can frequently supplement public records and provide information that is not recorded someplace else. Here, you can discover a lot more regarding your ancestor’s potential every day activities by setting them in the framework of their time.
In 1814 Kaskaskia was the site of the first publication of the Illinois Herald, the first newspaper in the region. There are many indexes of genealogical data compiled from newspapers available in various locations. Historical and genealogical societies can provide locations of many of those indexes. The Internet is also a valuable source of information on those indexes.
The Illinois State Archives in Springfield is home to the J. Nick Perrin manuscript collection, which contains some of the earliest Illinois documents. In all, it consists of more than 5,000 documents. They cover St. Clair County at Belleville from 1737 to 1850, as well as the old American, French, and British settlements at Cahokia. One of the oldest documents is a marriage contract from 1737. Deaths and births from 1840 to 1858 can also be found in the collection, along with the following documents: Land Claims, Tax Records, Road Petitions, Registers of Slaves and Free Negroes, Probate Records.
The Kaskaskia Manuscripts can be found at the Illinois State Archives. They begin with 1708 and contain many notarial transaction listings including: Acknowledgments of Debt, Marriage Contracts, Land Sales, Clerk of the Court Registers, Documents Filed by Priests or Notaries.
Newspapers – Illinois newspapers can offer all types of clues about historical occasions, local history, court and legal notices, obituaries, and much more.