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Census -Federal
U.S. federal censuses for Lee County are 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930. In 1830 Lee County was part of Jo Daviess County, which covered northern Illinois. Indexes are available for the 1820, 1830, 1840, and 1850 censuses. A soundex index is available on microfilm for the 1880, 1900, 1910 and 1920 censuses. Census - Territorial and State Territorial and state censuses were also taken in 1810, 1818, 1820, 1825, 1830, 1835, 1840, 1845, 1855, and 1865. The 1810, 1818, 1825, 1830, 1835, and 1840 censuses have been indexed and published. Some earlier residents were also listed in the 1807 Indiana territorial census, which is indexed. Court Records - County Clerk The County Clerks offices has vital records, (birth, marriage and death) land, tax, and military registration forms. Court Records - Circuit Clerk The Circuit Clerk's office has civil and criminal case records, probate and estate files, divorce records, and naturalization records. Not all of these are open to the public. Probate, estate, wills, divorce, and naturalization records are areas of focus for genealogists. There is an index of the Lee County estate records at the Family Tree Center. The naturalization records are being scanned and indexed, (see Naturalization). City Directories Dixon has directories dating back to 1869. The Family Tree Center's collection consists of these years: 1868, 1878, 1890, 1896, 1898, 1900, 1906, 1908, 1912, 1914, 1916, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1928, 1930, 1934, 1936, 1938, 1940, 1942, 1946, 1949, 1951, 1955, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1963, 1965, 1967, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1985, and 1989. The Major County History Books
Lee County Histories Index The Lee County Genealogical Society has created an every name index of 25 Lee County town and county histories. Listed below are the books that are included in this index. This one index, contains over 107,000 entries.
Indexes The Family Tree Center has indexes of: County death and marriage records, cemetery (by cemetery or alphabetic), Histories Index, an index of 25 Lee County and town histories, newspaper, some plat book and census. The Lee County Genealogical Society continues to index other items, please check for the newest additions. Land & Property The land records for Lee County start when the county was formed in 1839. Any record previous to 1839 would be in the county that the property was in at the time. The land records are located in the County Clerk's office in the Old Court House. Lee County uses the tract system for land records. Grantor/grantee books are also available. The Lee County Genealogical Society does not do land record searches. Maps & Plat Books There are a number of maps for Lee County, mostly they are in plat book form. Plats available at the Family Tree Center, 1863, 1872 (indexed), 1900, 1915, 1921 (indexed), 1935, 1947, 1949, 1955. The 1956, 1958, 1960, 1965, 1972, 1979-80, 1988, are all indexed. Naturalization The Lee County Circuit Clerk's Office holds the naturalization records of Lee County. They are in the process of scanning the records. When the process has been completed, the Lee County Genealogical Society will be indexing these records.Newspapers The earliest newspaper for this area was the Dixon Telegraph which started in May 1851. The Family Tree Center has newspaper indexes for the Telegraph 1851 to present, Amboy Journal 1856-1880, Amboy New 1882-1886. Indexing is ongoing, please check to see if additional indexes have been added. Dixon Public Library has an index of the Telegraph 1851-1947. Other libraries may also have indexes. The majority of newspapers for Lee County are available on microfilm. The following libraries all have film collections.
Historical Society: Telegraph and Amboy Obituaries There is a collection from the Dixon Telegraph at the Family Tree Center from 1994 to present. Newspaper indexes also list obituaries and death notices. Probate Records Probate records are court records containing information on matters involving estates and the guardianships of minors. The probate records are in the Circuit Clerk's Office in the Courts Building. Vital Records - County Birth and Death Records The County Clerk's Office has birth records that start in 1856 and death records that start in 1877. People did not always register births and deaths, so it is possible that you may not find your ancestor's birth or death recorded. But there are other sources for that information, such as: cemetery records, death and marriage records, and newspapers. The state of Illinois did not require birth or death certificates until 1916. Marriages The Lee County Clerk's office has marriage records that start in 1839. Couples would sometimes get their marriage license in one county and marry in another. This practice was stopped, but I don't know when. Divorces In the early 1800's, the legislature and the circuit courts granted divorces. Circuit or city courts have handled most divorce proceedings. |
For corrections or additions, please contact me: State Coordinator