Illinois State Genealogical Society Blog

Major Update of Classic 1976 Publication for Illinois Genealogy August 12, 2013 – Springfield, IL . The Illinois State Genealogical Society (ISGS) announces the publication of an expanded and revised version of Soldiers of the American Revolution in Illinois . In its first venture in the world of self-publishing and “print on demand,” ISGS has published Soldiers of the American Revolution in Illinois in hardcover or e-book version through its store at Lulu.com. Visit http://bit.ly/ilamrevsoldiers to order! The alphabetical listing of “ The Soldiers of the American Revolution Buried in Illinois ” published in 1976 by Illinois State Genealogical Society has been expanded to include new entries, children of the entry, (other family members), history found in and referencing to pension records relating people, places and events, location of graves and references to searching for the Revolutionary War Soldier connected to Illinois. The expanded version includes the very early S...

ISGS has a Military Certificates database online that lists the certificates issued as part of the Military Certificate project that honors Illinois soldiers.  The database lists the soldier’s name along with their unit, county, and the ISGS Military Certificate number.  This searchable database is available to anyone under the Free Databases section of the ISGS Website War of 1812 Soldiers Added Since December 2011 Jacob Crowley Blackhawk War Soldiers Added Since December 2011 Brice B. Jackson Civil War Soldiers Added Since December 2011 Stephen Wheeler Irven Holbrook Thomas Henry Edwards Thomas James Jolly Abner A. Batson William Day William Swartz Moses Turner Thomas Randall Storm Christian Schrader World War I Soldiers Added Since December 2011 Clarence L. Ervin Louis Franklin Hagler

Did you know that there are more Selective Service records than the military draft cards we're familiar with? To learn more, join us on January 8, when Linda Woodward Geiger will present Beyond the Draft Cards: Additional Selective Service Records . Date : Tuesday, January 8, 2013, 8:00 pm Central Description : Explanation of the Selective Service process including discussion of the three distinct registrations; classification lists; inductees lists; appeals to the President; and records relating to delinquents and deserters. Presenter : Linda Woodward Geiger, CG, CGL Linda Woodward Geiger is an associate of the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG), holding credentials as a Certified Genealogist(SM) and as a Certified Genealogical Lecturer(SM). Linda is a professional historical and genealogical researcher, author, and lecturer. Although she specializes in Georgia's state and county records and a variety of federal records, particularly of the southeast...

Preserve the Pensions Project to Digitize Important Pension Records and Provide Free Access to the Public December 11, 2012 – Springfield, IL . The Illinois State Genealogical Society (ISGS) is proud to announce that it has completed its recently launched $10,000 War of 1812 Pension Match Challenge with strong support from ISGS members as well as the genealogical community. On June 18, 2012, the 200th anniversary of the declaration of the War of 1812, ISGS announced its $10,000 War of 1812 Pension Match Challenge. ISGS made a commitment to match any contribution (up to the first $10,000) made to the Preserve the Pensions project before December 31, 2012. In addition, Ancestry.com announced that it would also match all monies donated during the campaign, resulting in all contributions being quadrupled. A total of $40,000 to be donated to the Preserve the Pensions project will result in 88,888 additional pages of the War of 1812 Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File...

The Illinois State Genealogical Society is pleased to announce a major donation to its War of 1812 Pension Match Challenge from the Indiana Genealogical Society in the amount of $1,812. In addition, recent contributions received during the Federation of Genealogical Societies ' 2012 Conference in Birmingham, Alabama last month along with the generous IGS gift have pushed the total received so far to $6,912. The ISGS campaign is 70% to completing its goal of $10,000 which will then be quadrupled through an ISGS match and an Ancestry.com match to equal $40,000. These monies will be used in the War of 1812 "Preserve The Pensions" campaign, with the goal of raising $3.7 million to digitize the War of 1812 Pension Application Files held at the National Archives and make them freely accessible online. The digitized pension files will be available for free on Fold3.com - see http://go.fold3.com/1812pensions/ to view the files that are available so far. Please visit the...

Guest Author, Julie Tarr One of the best places to conduct genealogy research in Illinois is at the State Archives in Springfield. This massive repository is home to many government records, some of which are of interest to genealogists. The Archives is located at the Margaret Cross Norton Building, Capitol Complex, near 2 nd & Edwards.  You can contact the Archives at 217-782-4682 or visit their website . Death Certificates 1916-1947 I would imagine this is the most-used resources among genealogists doing research at the Archives. All of the death certificates in the state from 1916 to 1947 can be found on microfilm. To obtain the records, you will first need to visit the index for Illinois death certificates, 1916-1950 . Once you locate the decedent, record all of the information contained in the line item, as you will need this to determine which film the record is on. At the Archives, refer to the binders in the reading room to locate the film number based on the info...