Special Notice
As of January 3, 2023, our hours of operation for in-person customers will change. Our new office hours will be 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday - Friday.
Accessing Genealogical Indexes
All birth, marriage, and death indexes listing records filed prior to 1916 have been scanned and are available for viewing in the Document Center. These records are being provided for genealogical purposes only. Illinois state law only allows the indexes listing records filed prior to 1916 to be open to the public. The Genealogical Index Guide helps explain how to use these records.
These records use an index/register system. The index books list the names from the corresponding register book by alphabetical letter and provides the page number for the applicable register book. The register books then contain information from the record.
For birth records, keep in mind that many births prior to 1916 where not registered. A delayed birth record may have been created after 1915 and would only be listed in the index books. The register books after 1915 for delayed births are not available for public viewing. The actual record could be requested as detailed below.
Statewide Genealogical Searches
These websites allow for searching indexes throughout the State for participating Counties:
Statewide Marriage Index: 1763-1900
Statewide Death Index: Pre-1916
Statewide Death Index: 1916-1950
Requesting Copies of Records
See the Genealogy Requests webpage for instructions on how to request a genealogical copy of a birth, marriage or death record.