Difference between revisions of "Champaign County, Illinois Genealogy"

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Revision as of 14:25, 27 December 2020

Guide to Champaign County, Illinois ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Champaign County, Illinois
Map
Map of Illinois highlighting Champaign County
Location in the state of Illinois, United States Genealogy
Map of the U.S. highlighting Illinois
Location of Illinois in the U.S.
Facts
Founded: February 20, 1833
County Seat Urbana
Courthouse
Champaign County Courthouse.gif
Photo courtesy Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD), Illinois State Archives
Address Champaign County Courthouse
101 E. Main Street
Urbana, Illinois 61801
(217) 384-3725
Champaign County Website


Champaign County Organization[edit | edit source]

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records[1]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1878 1833 1878 1836 1833 1833 1810
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started 1916. General compliance by 1922.

Copies of historic Champaign County records are available through the Urbana Free Library as part of the Champaign County Historical Archives.  Birth, marriage, death, obituary, newspaper, yearbook, cemetery, probate and other records have been indexed and can be searched at Local History Online.  For more information about Champaign County's records, see the Champaign County Courthouse page.

Historical Facts[edit | edit source]

Large numbers of Ohio residents settled in frontier Champaign County, Illinois. The name of the county (Champaign) is reminiscent of Champaign County, Ohio Genealogy - the previous residence of many pioneer settlers.[2]

Description[edit | edit source]

The county was named for Champaign County, Ohio. The County Seat is Urbana and was founded 1833. It is located in the East-Central area of the state.[3]

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

  • 20 February 1833: Champaign County was created from Vermilion County. [4]
  • 1790-1801 originally part of Knox, Northwest Territory
    1801-1812 St. Clair (Illinois Territory)
    1812-1813 Madison (Illinois Territory)
    1815-1816 Edwards (Illinois Territory)
    1816-1819 Crawford (Illinois Statehood 1818)
    1819-1823 Clark County, Illinois
    1823-1826 Edgar County, Illinois
    1826-1833 Vermilion County, Illinois

For animated maps illustrating Illinois county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Illinois County Boundary Maps" (1790-1869) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.


Record Loss[edit | edit source]

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Records and Resources[edit | edit source]

Biography[edit | edit source]

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

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries of Champaign, Illinois online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
TombstoneTranscriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Illinois Cemeteries for more information
  • Linkpendium has a list of cemeteries transcriptions many done by the Champaign County Genealogical Society.

Census[edit | edit source]

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1840 1,475 —
1850 2,649 79.6%
1860 14,629 452.2%
1870 32,737 123.8%
1880 40,863 24.8%
1890 42,159 3.2%
1900 47,622 13.0%
1910 51,829 8.8%
1920 56,959 9.9%
1930 64,273 12.8%
1940 70,578 9.8%
1950 106,100 50.3%
1960 132,436 24.8%
1970 163,281 23.3%
1980 168,392 3.1%
1990 173,025 2.8%
2000 179,669 3.8%
2010 201,081 11.9%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records[edit | edit source]

List of Churches and Church Parishes

A Commemorative History of Champaign County, Illinois, 1833-1983. by Willis C. Baker and Patricia L. Miller contains a section on church history in the county. WorldCat FHL Collection

The Champaign County Historical Archives (CCHA) at the Urbana Free Library has hundreds of church record books, membership directories, photos and published books about churches in Champaign County.  To search the collections, type the word "Church" in the Historical and Genealogical Search box.  Or limit your search to a specific denomination and/or location by including those terms in your search.  Some Lutheran church records housed at CCHA are in German.To see those, include the word "German" in your search.

Catholic[edit | edit source]

Catholic Churches in Champaign County are part of the Diocese of Peoria.

Church of Christ[edit | edit source]

Lutheran[edit | edit source]

Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church


St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church


St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church
Sadorus, IL

  • Parish Records of St. Paul's Evangelical Church, 1887-1959. By Wayne M. Fabert WorldCat

St. Paul German Evangelical Church
Arcola, IL

  • Parish records of St. Paul German Evangelical Church, Arcola, Illinois, 1867-1935. By Wayne M. Fabert WorldCat


Evangelical St. Peter's Church

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church
101 E Van Buren St.
Philo, IL 61864

  • Parish Records of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church at Philo, Illinois, 1875-1931. by Wayne M. Fabert  WordCat

Methodist[edit | edit source]

First United Methodist Church
210 West Church Street
Champaign, IL  61820

  • Records of the First United Methodist Church , pastors, 1856-2002, marriages 1868-1948, baptisms 1868-1948 and summary church history. by Wilson M. Zaring.  WorldCat  

First Methodist Church, Urbana

[8] [9]

Mt. Vernon United Methodist Church
2201 CR 900 E,
Champaign, IL 61822

  • History of Mt. Vernon United Methodist Church, by Phillip R. Francis. WorldCat


Shiloh Methodist Church
352 County Road 2700 North
Mahomet, IL 61853

Presbyterian[edit | edit source]

First Presbyterian Church, Champaign

[10]

Other Christian Denominations[edit | edit source]

Oak Grove Church
Condit Township, IL

  • List of members, minutes of meetings and Sunday School records, 1909-1925. FHL film 1295960 items 7-9

Court Records[edit | edit source]

Original court records are held in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk. See Illinois Court Records for more information about using court 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 Illinois State University (ISU) - search for Champaign County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the ISU IRAD Wiki page.


Directories[edit | edit source]

Available at Ancestry:

J.S.Lothrop's Champaign County Directory 1870-1871.

Additional directories available at: Linkpendium.

Ethnic Research[edit | edit source]

African American[edit | edit source]

The following have information concerning African American research.

Genealogy[edit | edit source]

History[edit | edit source]

Land and Property[edit | edit source]

Original land records are held in the office of the County Clerk . See Illinois Land and Property for more information about using land records.

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

Copies of Original Records

1833-1927 Deed Index. - Also available through the Family History Library and its Centers FHL film: 1026929 - 1026953
1833-1902 Deed Record - Also available through the Family History Library and its Centers FHL Film: 1026954 (first film)
1862-1877 Chattel Mortgage Record IRAD (ISU)
1959-1965 Chattel Mortgages IRAD (ISU)

Online Resources

Maps[edit | edit source]

McLean CountyFord CountyVermilion CountyEdgar CountyDouglas CountyPiatt CountyIL CHAMPAIGN.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources



Military History and Records[edit | edit source]

Linkpendium links data to information and records for the Revolutionary War, Civil War, World War I, and World War II.

Revolutionary War[edit | edit source]

Veteran Burials (Genealogy Trails History Group)

War of 1812[edit | edit source]

Some Military Land Grants Champaign County Illinois For Soldiers of the War of 1812  (USGenWeb)

Black Hawk War[edit | edit source]

Civil War[edit | edit source]

Civil War service men from Champaign 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 Champaign County.

- 3rd Regiment, Enrolled Missouri Militia Cavalry (Union), Company D

Cavalry

- 2nd Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company I
- 10th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company I
- 16th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company L

Infantry

- 20th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company A
- 25th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company C, Company G, Company I, and Company K
- 26th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company F, and Company I
- 38th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company C.
- 51st_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company B, and  Company E.
- 67th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company K
- 71st_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company C, Company F, and Company ;H.
- 72nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, G.
- 76th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company B, and Company G.
- 125th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company E, Company F, and Company H
- 133rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company K
- 135th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company A, and Company B
- 154th_Regiment,_Illinois_Infantry, Company A, and Company B

World War I[edit | edit source]

World War I Draft Registration Cards 1917-1918.(Ancestry)

World War II[edit | edit source]

Army Enlistees Alphabetical list - USGenWeb

Army Casualties Part 1U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

Army Casualties Part 2 U.S. National Archives and Records Administration


Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]

Original naturalization records are generally held in the office of the County Clerk. See Illinois Naturalization Records for more information about using naturalization records.

The following copies of original records may be accessed through the Family History Library or the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Western Illinois University (WIU) - search for Champaign County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the ISU IRAD Wiki page.

IRAD

  • Circuit Court:
1858-1906 Naturalization Records
1866-1906 Naturalization Records of Minors
1866-1892 Naturalization Records of Soldiers
1872-1906 Naturalization Records
  • County Court:
1860-1902 Naturalization Records
1866-1896 Naturalization Records of Minors
1866-1889 Naturalization Records of Soldiers
1896-1906 Naturalization Decarations of Intent


Family History Library and Centers

1858-1906 Naturalization records (Circuit Court) FHL Film 1026928
1860-1906 Naturalization records (County Court) FHL Films 338057 - 338058


Online Records

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

Ancestry.com ($) has:

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

Newspaper death notices and obituaries from 1894 to the present are included in the Champaign County Historical Archives, and can be searched on-line using Local History Online. Obituaries are indexed by both a woman’s maiden as well as her married name(s) if that information was included in the obituary. The index covers the following newspapers:

Urbana Courier  -  August 1894– March 1979
Champaign News Gazette  -  September 1938 – April 2011

Search Screen - Local History Online at the Champaign County Historical Archives

Obituaries from other newspapers, including the Champaign County Gazette, Champaign Daily Gazette, Champaign Daily News and others may be included in the index, but those newspapers have not been fully indexed and so may not include every obituary published. Record the surname and document number (circled in red in the image at the left) to use when requesting a copy of the original obituary using the Champaign County Historical Archives’ Record Request form. $

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

The original files for all known probate cases from 1833 - 1922 are kept at the Champaign County Historical Archives at the Urbana Free Library.

Original estates and wills from 1923 to the present are held in the office of the Circuit Court Clerk.  Probate records from 1992 to the present are indexed and available on-line at Champaign County's Public Access Case Lookup System .

See Illinois Probate Records for more information about using probate records.

Online Probate Records

Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD)  at Illinois State University

The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the Illinois State University (ISU). To see all probate records available for Champaign County, search the Local Government Record Holdings with Champaign County selected and the word "probate" in the title search box.  For more information about how to access records held at an Illinois Regional Archive Depository, see the ISU IRAD Wiki page.

1835-1976 Probate Record Index 1833-1953 Probate Will Records 1833-1891 Probate Case Files (microfilm copies)
1838-1851 Probate Records 1859-1952 Probate Inventory Record 1864-1943 Probate Appraisement Record 1868-1907 Probate Sale Record, Real Estate 1950-1955 Probate Appraisement Review Record

  • Family History Library and Centers

The following abstracts and copies of original records may be accessed through the Family History Library

1833-1851 Probate Records. - FHL film 338058 Items 4-5 1851-1921 Probate Records. - FHL film 1026924-1026927 1877-1900 Probate Packets. - FHL 21 films

Online Resources

  • 1851-1921 Wills are also available in Illinois, Probate Records, 1819-1970. Click on the browse through images link, select Champaign County, and select the record type you are interested in.

1833-1948 Probate Will Records (handwritten copies in Will Books)
1833-1922 Probate Case Files (complete, original files)

Public Records[edit | edit source]

1833-1942 Board of Supervisors' Minutes
1956-1964 County Officials' Bonds and Oaths of Office
1872-1966 Notary Public Registers
1916-1922 Optometrist Registers
1869-1872 Patent Record, Invention
1877-1965 Professional Registers
1950-1962 Drainage District Accounts
1937-1963 Drainage District Assessment Record, Delinquent
1942-1947 Drainage District Bank Books
1928-1951 Drainage District Collector's Books
1908-1957 Drainage District Collector's Books, Kankakee District
1911-1955 Drainage District Collector's Books, Special District
1914-1931 Drainage District Ledgers

Repositories[edit | edit source]

  • County Courthouse

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

  • Public Libraries

Urbana Free Library
210 West Green Street
Urbana, IL 61801
Phone: (217) 367-4025
Fax: (217) 531-7088

Expanding on an index-card based index created in the 1960's and 1970's, the Champaign County Historical Archives located at Urbana Free Library has created an on-line index of Champaign County historical records of genealogical interest called Local History Online. Included are newspaper mentions of birth, marriage and death notices, along with official county records of birth, marriage, death, wills, probate, cemetery and other records. The index includes details (names and dates) that make it easy to identify records of interst.

Copies (non-certified) can be requested using the library's printable PDF Request Form.$

Social Groups Online[edit | edit source]

Societies[edit | edit source]

Champaign County Genealogical Society
201 S. Race St.
Urbana 61801
Website

Champaign County African-American History Committee
Champaign Park District, Douglass Annex
512 E. Grove
Champaign, IL 61820
Website

Champaign County Genealogical Society

Taxation[edit | edit source]

IRAD - ISU (Illinois State University)

1857-1872 Tax Sale Record
1935-1945 Tax Assessment Abstracts
1947-1965 Tax Ledgers
1906-1964 Collector's Accounts
1950-1966 Collector's and Treasurer's Accounts
1931-1964 County Annual Audit Reports
1948-1965 Treasurer's Ledgers
1946-1958 Motor Fuel Tax Allotment Record

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

See Illinois Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Illinois. See also How to order Illinois Vital Records or order electronically online.

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Original birth and death certificates recorded until the year 1916 are kept by the Champaign 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.

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 Illinois State University (ISU) - search for Champaign County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the ISU IRAD Wiki page.

Births[edit | edit source]

Marriages[edit | edit source]

Online Resources

Deaths[edit | edit source]

  • 1878-1949 Death Record Index - IRAD (ISU) Also available through Family History Library and its centers FHL Films 1032320 first film
  • 1878-1901 Death Record - IRAD (ISU) Also available through Family History Library and its centers FHL films 1032316 first film
  • 1902-1915 Death Certificates - IRAD (ISU)
  • 1986-2001 Champaign County Coroner’s Death Certificates - indexed in Champaign County Historical Archives Local History Online

Online Resources

Voter Registration[edit | edit source]

Place/Localities[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[11]

Cities
Villages
Unincorporated communities
Census-designated places
Townships
Ghost towns

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]

The Urbana Free Library
210 West Green Street
Urbana, Illinois 61801-5326
217-367-4025
217-531-7088  Fax

The Champaign County Historical Archives located at Urbana Free Library offers a variety of resources to new and experienced genealogists, including access to on-line premium genealogy web sites Ancestry.com, Footnote.com, HeritageQuest and WorldVitalRecords, and more than 25,000 books and journals.  See Local History Online to search the index of Champaign County birth, marriage, death, probate, burial, yearbook, and other records available through the library.

Family History Center
[edit | edit source]

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

Champaign Illinois Family History Center

605 West Windsor Road
Champaign, IL  61820
217-352-8063

To learn more about the genealogical resources available at Family History Centers, see Introduction to Family History Centers.  For center hours and holiday closure information, see Champaign Illinois Family History Center.

Champaign County Public Library
200 W. Green St.
Champaign, IL 61820-5193
Phone: (217) 403-2000
Website
Genealogy and Local History

Champaign County Historical Museum
102 East University Avenue
Champaign, IL 
217-356-1010

The Champaign County Historical Museum is a non-profit organization that preserves and displays artifacts associated with the people and events of Champaign County. Collections include University of Illinois yearbooks, historic quilts, photos and other items that may be of interest to genealogists.  The museum is currently closed (as of August 2011) while changes are made to exhibits.

Websites[edit | edit source]

Databases Pertinent to Champaign County[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Champaign County, Illinois. Page 192-199 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 194-197.
  2. ↑ Champaign County Fact Sheet, Illinois State Archives, accessed May 25, 2011.
  3. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Champaign County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champaign_County,_Illinois 4/11/2017.
  4. ↑ WorldCat 50140092, FHL Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed.] (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002)
  5. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/images/1/10/Igiillinoisac.pdf.
  6. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/images/1/10/Igiillinoisac.pdf.
  7. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/images/1/10/Igiillinoisac.pdf.
  8. ↑ :*1877-1895 - First Methodist Church, Urbana, Marriage Index 1877-1895 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch M730541.
  9. ↑
  10. ↑ :*1881-1892 - First Presbyterian Church, Champaign, Baptism Index 1881-1892 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch M730511.
  11. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Champaign County, Illinois," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champaign_County,_Illinois, Last accessed 16 November 2019.
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