Illinois State Genealogical Society Blog

The ISGS Fall Conference is almost here, and we are excited for a weekend full of learning, networking, and fun! Don't forget to purchase extra tickets for our exciting selection of Raffle and Door Prizes! Some Door Prize highlights include: o    DNA Kits from Ancestry, MyHeritage, and Family Tree  DNA o    Tons of books, including Illinois histories, indexes, and lots of research guides o    Unique items including a cemetery preservation guide and tombstone cleaning kit, a do-it-yourself vintage shadowbox kit, and an assortment of unique research tools and gadgets donated by Thomas MacEntee, founder of High-Definition Genealogy and one of our featured speakers! o    Membership certificates for societies, museums, and websites including Ancestry, Newspapers.com, and more! Our BIG Raffle Prizes include donations from Ancestry, MyHeritage, ThomasMacEntee, and the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP)! We'll...

Don't miss Lake County's Annual Conference next week, October 19th! This year's theme is "The Web & DNA: Modern Techniques to Complement Traditional Research." Featured presenters will be Tony Burroughs, FUGA, and David Stumpf, MD, Ph.D. An award winning internationally known genealogist, speaker author, and teacher, Tony Burroughs has appeared as a guest genealogy expert on over twenty-five national and international television broadcasts, including CBS Sunday morning, CBS News, ABC World News Tonight, BET Nightly News, National Public Radio (NPR) and many local broadcasts. Professor Emeritus at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Dr. Stumpf combines his medical and genealogical knowledge to specialize in Genetic Genealogy, Adoptee Research, and Medical Genealogy.  He is a genealogy software developer, and writes a genealogy blog. The Lake County Conference will be held at the University Center of Lake County, 1200 University Cente...

The Afro-American Genealogical and Historical Society will present their 37th Annual Family History Conference, "Following Ancestral Footsteps: From the Grave to DNA," Friday and Saturday, October 11-12th!  The Conference will be held in Chicago at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 5200 S. University Ave.  This year's keynote speaker is Bernice Alexander Bennett, Family Historian, Author and DNA Expert! Bernice is the producer-host of the popular "Research at the National Archives and Beyond" BlogTalk Radio program. She is the first recipient of the Ida B. Wells Service Award given by the Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passages for her dedication to broadcast stories about enslaved and indentured ancestors of African descent. Bennett is also a member of the Board of Directors for the National Genealogical Society and also a founding Coordinator and faculty member of the Midwest African American Genealogy Institute. In a...

Don't miss Genealogy Day 2019 at the Peoria Public Library Main Branch- THIS Saturday, September 28th!  The Peoria County Genealogical Society and the Peoria Public Library will be hosting a fantastic day of learning! They will have workshops on using some of the latest genealogical tools and websites, tours of the Local History section of the Main Library, information from local and national heritage societies, and much more!  Learn what Peoria County birth, marriage, death and land records are available online! The Illinois State Genealogical Society will provide information and details about Illinois resources for tracing your family tree! Tour the Peoria Public Library's local history archives and genealogical resources! The Main Library is located at 107 NE Monroe in Peoria. Call (309) 407-2000, or learn more on the Peoria Public Library's website! © 2019, copyright Illinois State Genealogical Society

2019 Fall Conference – Volunteers Needed! The ISGS 2019 Fall Conference is quickly approaching – October 25 & 26 at the Chicago Marriott Naperville. Get Involved! Benefits of volunteering at the conference include  meeting fellow genealogists, networking, and giving back to the genealogical community.   A variety of volunteer opportunities are available: Room Monitors  (must be a  registered attendee  to volunteer for this position) Audio-Visual Support  (registration  not required  to volunteer for this position) Bag Stuffing / Pre-Registration  (registration  not required  to volunteer for this position) What a great way to get your spouse/partner involved! You may choose to volunteer for one or multiple days and times. Click  HERE   to volunteer. If you have any questions about volunteering, please contact Suzanne Hoffman, Volunteer Coordinator at:   isgsvolunteers@ilgensoc.org ...

The Fox Valley Genealogical Society's 26th Conference, "Tracing Treasures Past," featuring well-known genealogist Peggy Clemens Lauritzen, AG, FOGS, will be held on Saturday September 21st at the Grace United Methodist Church in Naperville, Illinois.  Registration is still available through Wednesday September 18th! Visit  https://ilfvgs.org/education/conference/  to register online via PayPal. The one-hour interactive lecture topics include white servitude in America, migration trails, tips for working with pre-1850 census records, and WPA Records! The conference will also feature vendors and door prizes- plus lunch is included! This year's Fox Valley conference is sure to be a great learning experience for everyone! © 2019, copyright Illinois State Genealogical Society

ISGS is excited to announce that the Fulton County pre-1916 Death Index has been added to the Members-only section of the ISGS website!  The death index was compiled by the Illinois State Genealogical Society Advocacy Committee during 2018-2019.  During a period of 10 months, the committee studied the early death ledger books and the original paper certificates located in the Fulton County Courthouse. The committee met with the County Clerk and received permission to index all the early death records with the understanding that the Clerk’s office would receive a copy of the index in spreadsheet form, which was given to them in May 2019. The Advocacy Committee was given permission to index all information with the exception of “Cause of Death,” which may be obtained when requesting a copy of the official certificate from the Fulton County Clerk. Items that were indexed in section 1 include:  Name of deceased  Date of death Place of death...