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Illinois Montgomery County
Guide to Montgomery County Illinois genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Montgomery County, Illinois | |
| Map | |
| |
 Location of Illinois in the U.S. | |
| Facts | |
| Founded: | February 21, 1821 |
|---|---|
| County Seat | Hillsboro |
| Courthouse | |
 | |
| Address | Montgomery County Courthouse #1 Courthouse Square Hillsboro, Illinois 62049 (217) 532-9530 Montgomery County Website |
Montgomery County Organization
Montgomery County's civil records start the following years:
| Beginning Dates for Montgomery County Records | |||||
| Birth | Marriage | Death | Census | Land | Probate |
| 1862 |
1821 |
1877 |
1830 |
1819 |
1821 |
County records are most often kept at the County Courthouse or another local repository. For further information about where the records for Montgomery County are kept, see the Montgomery County Courthouse page.
Historical Facts
Parent County
- 1821--Montgomery County was created 12 February 1821 from Bond and Madison Counties. County seat: Hillsboro [2]
Boundary Changes
See an interactive map of Montgomery County boundary changes.
Record Loss
Places / Localities
Populated Places
To locate forgotton towns check the Montgomery County Genealogical Society web page.
Neighboring Counties
Records and Resources
Biography
- The Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois has a Montgomery County edition. This includes a state history section along with a county history and biographies of Montgomery County residents. See the wiki article for links to available copies and indexes.
Cemeteries
Illinois cemetery records often identify birth, death, relationship, and military information, as well as religious affiliation. See the Illinois Cemeteries wiki page for more information about how to use cemetery records in your research.
Published Records
- The Family History Library Catalog lists some records of cemeteries in Montgomery County.
- Records available at many libraries (WorldCat)
- Google Books Enter Montgomery County Illinois in the search box.
Online Gravestone Transcriptions
- Find A Grave can be searched by the name of a person or family to find where a person is buried. Usually gives birth and death dates often with a picture of the tombstone. May give obituaries, names of family members and links to their information in Find A Grave.
- Historical Society of Montgomery County Illinois Cemetery Burial Index. Can filter search by name, township or cemetery.
- Montgomery Co. IL USGenWeb Tombstone Project usually gives the names of the deceased in alphabetical order by last name with birth and death dates plus any remarks.
- Confederate soldiers buried in Montgomery County Courtesy of Illinois Trails.
Cemetery Gazetteers
- ePodunk list of Montgomery County cemeteries gives the names of the cemeteries in the county with a link to more information such as address, phone number, and web site.
- Montgomery County Genealogical Society has a list of the cemeteries for the county alphabetically and by townships.
- Historical Society of Montgomery County Ilinois Cemetery Locations. Can search by township.
- Illinois State Genealogical Society Cemetery Location Project
- Geographic Names Information System County Cemeteries
Census
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 | 30,836 | ||
| 1910 | 35,311 | 14.5% | |
| 1920 | 41,403 | 17.3% | |
| 1930 | 35,278 | −14.8% | |
| 1940 | 34,499 | −2.2% | |
| 1950 | 32,460 | −5.9% | |
| 1960 | 31,244 | −3.7% | |
| 1970 | 30,260 | −3.1% | |
| 1980 | 31,686 | 4.7% | |
| 1990 | 30,728 | −3.0% | |
| 2000 | 30,652 | −0.2% | |
| IL Counties 1900-1990 | |||
Censuses indexes from Montgomery County Genealogical Society
Federal Census
State Census
1840 Pensioners
- A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census. Washington, D.C., 1841. FHL 973 X2pc 1840; FHL 2321; digital version at Google Books. [See Illinois, Montgomery County on page 187.]
Church Records
Church records may give birth, death and marriage information as well as indictate family relationships. See Illinois state wiki article Church Records for more ideas about how to use church records in your research. Many libraries( WorldCat) and the Family History Library hold abstracts of church records for Montgomery County. Learn more about how to search WorldCat.
- The Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois has a Montgomery County edition. Church information can be found in the township histories beginning on page 848. See the wiki article for links to available copies and indexes.
- Perrin, William Henry. History of Bond and Montgomery County. Chicago: O.L. Baskin Historical Publishers, 1882. Internet Archive Digital Online Copy FHL Film 934970 Item 3FHL Book 977.38 H2h Begining on page 232 is a history of churches in Hillsboro. Search within township histories, beginning on page 248, for other county church information.
Baptist
- 1818–1950 Old Hurricane Church Primitive Baptist of Montgomery County, Illinois Other libraries (WorldCat)FHL Book 977.382 K28o Typescript. Includes index.
- 1823–1837 Minutes of the Sangamon United (later Regular) Baptist Association
Lutheran
- 1866–1947 Mt.Zion Lutheran Church FHL Film 1316514 Items 11-12, 1316544 Items 1-4
- 1866–1947 Mt.Zion Lutheran Church FHL Film 1316514 Items 11-12, 1316544 Items 1-4
Presbyterian
- 1852–1952 Waveland Presbyterian Church 1316514 Item 8
- 1852–1952 Waveland Presbyterian Church 1316514 Item 8
Court Records
Illinois Court Records for more information. Original probate records are usually held by the circuit court clerk. However, in Montgomery County, the original circuit court case files 1821–1902 are held byIRAD–UIS. See the wiki page IRAD–UIS for more information about these records and how to access them. Probate records include wills, inventories, settlements, and guardianship records.
Original Records:
- 1821–1902 Circuit Court Case Files IRAD–UIS. Learn more about using IRAD
- 1837–1856 Circuit Court Dockets IRAD–UIS.
- 1838–1873 Circuit Court Fee Books IRAD–UIS.
- 1822–1862 Circuit Court Judgement Dockets IRAD–UIS.
- No date Circuit Court Judgement Dockets and Claim Registers IRAD–UIS.
- 1821–1863 Circuit Court Record IRAD–UIS.
- 1822–1870 Circuit Court Judgement and Execution Files IRAD–UIS.
The following copies are available:
- 1862–1955 Circuit Court Records, Chancery IRAD–UIS. Chancery court records are usualy civil court records and may include family information.
Ethnic Research
African American
The following have information concerning African American research.
- African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records
- Illinois State Archives pamphlet on African American Research describes what records are at the State Archives with an online method for ordering records.
- African-American Resources for Illinois
- Negro in Montgomery County - an article from the Illinois State Genealogy Society originally published in 1978
Genealogy
History
Land and Property
Original land records are held in the office of the County Clerk . See Illinois Land and Property for more information about using land records.
IRAD–UIS land holdings for Montgomery County. Search for Montgomery County. Records include: Explore the IRAD–UIS wiki page for more information about how to use IRAD.
- 1821–1958 Deed Index
- 1821–1958 Deed Record
- 1837–1868 School land sale
- 1865–1874 Swamp lands sale
- 1821–1848 Taxable lands
Various and land property abstracts may found in the Family History Library Catalog with a subject search.
Online Resources
- BLM GLO Records. Search original land patents for Montgomery County from the Govenment Land Office (GLO) or Eastern States Office. Some searches include images of the original warrants. All search results include the patant details needed for requesting copies of the land entry files at the National Archives. The GLO is the custodian of millions of land title documents. The General Land Office Automated Records Project is responsible for making these important documents available to the public.
- Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales. The Illinois State Archives has an online index to the records of Public land sales held by the State Archives. The indexes are by purchasers name and by legal description. This is a statewide collection with nearly 550,000 land sales fro 54740 square miles.
- 1796–1907 U.S. General Land Office Records found at Ancestry.com ($)
- Illinois Public Land Purchase Records This record extract includes over 538,000 land sales from the 19th Century. Each entry includes the purchaser's name, purchase date, number of acres, price per acre, and in some cases the purchaser's sex and residence. Available at www.ancestry.com ($)
- Sheldon, Theodore. Land registration in Illinois. Chicago: Callaghan Co., 1901. Digital book. Expains the laws regarding land and the land systems used in Illinois. Includes court cases involving land issues. In addition to being on Ancestry, this book is available online at no cost at Internet Archives and Google Books.
- Montgomery County Federal Township Plats
Maps
- Federal Township Plat Map Courtesy of IRAD–UIS.
- 1823–1958 Plat Index IRAD–UIS. Search for Montgomery County records. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS
Military
Civil War
Civil War service men from Montgomery 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 Montgomery County.
- - 1st Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company E.
- - 3rd Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, Company L.
- - 7th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.
- - 9th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (3 months, 1861), Company H.
- - 9th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company H.
- - 70th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company C.
- - 91st Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company A.
- - 117th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company B.
- - 119th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company K.
- - 126th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies D and F.
- - 143rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry (100 days, 1864), Companies C and H.
Military Soldiers Indexed from Montgomery County Genealogical Society.
Naturalization
- 1862–1910 Naturalization Records FHL Collection
Newspapers
Obituaries
Montgomery County Genealogical Society has an index to obituaries for 1980 to 1981 and 1984 to 2009. They also have forms to request the obituary.
Probate Records
Original probate records are held by the circuit court clerk. Probate records include wills, inventories, settlements, and guardianship records. See the Illinois Probate wiki page for more information about these records. Copies of probate records are held by IRAD–UIS. See the wiki page IRAD–UIS more information about these records and how access them. Additonal copies are held by the Family History Library.
Online Index provided by the Montgomery County Genealogical Society
- 1860–1906 Index to Wills and Probates Montgomery County Genealogical Society
Copies are as follows:
- 1821–1849 Probate Record IRAD–UIS.
- 1849–1863 Probate Administrator's Settlement Record IRAD–UIS.
- 1849–1925 Will Records and Widow's Relinquishment Record Collection 1834344Online digital copy; browse for Montgomery County recordsFHL Film 1315679 Item 2, first of 5 films
- 1850–1914 Probate Records. Includes indexes. Record Collection 1834344Online digital copy; browse for Montgomery County recordsFHL Film 1315667, First of 14 Films
- 1855–1862 Probate Claim Dockets IRAD–UIS.
- 1858–1958 Probate Will Record IRAD–UIS.
- 1862–1864 Probate Settlement Record IRAD–UIS.
Repositories
County Courthouse
County records are most often kept at the County Courthouse or another local repository. For further information about where the records for Montgomery County are kept, see the Montgomery County Courthouse page.
Family History Center
Family History Centers (FHCs) are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah (United States) and are located all over the world. Their goal is to provide resources to assist you in the research and study of your genealogy.
The FHC center in Montgomery County is located in Litchfield. Be sure to call and visit the wiki page for hours of service and other information.
Litchfield Illinois Family History Center
12367 Roberson Rd
Litchfield, Illinois 62056
217-324-2396
You may search your address for a center near you on the FamilySearch site, if you live outside the area.
Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD)
IRAD is a system of Illinois Regional Archives Depositories managed by the Illinois State Archives, housing the archival records of local Illinois counties, townships, municipalities and school districts. The seven Regional Depositories are housed on state university campuses scattered throughout Illinois.
The University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) houses the records for Montgomery County. The link will help you find and use the records. There address is:
Illinois Regional Archives Depository
LIB144
University of Illinois at Springfield Region
One University Plaza, MS BRK 140
Springfield, Illinois 62703-5407
217-206-6520
Public Libraries
Doyle Public Library District
109 S O'Bannon
Raymond, IL 62560
Farmersville-Waggoner Public Library District
210 South Cleveland Street
Farmersville, IL 62533
Hillsboro Public Library
214 School Street
Hillsboro, IL 62049
Litchfield Carnegie Public Library
400 N. State
Litchfield, IL 62056
The Litchfield library's genealogical collection is housed in the Jackson–Walker Genealogy Room. The library also holds the Walter Sanders collection. Records include cemetery listings, local county and town histories, city directories and plat books, family histories, church histories, marriage and death records and many other useful genealogy tools.
Nokomis Public Library
22 South Cedar Street, Suite 2
Nokomis, IL 62075
Witt Twp. Memorial Library
18 North Second Street
Witt, IL 62094
Social Groups Online
Societies
- Montgomery County, Illinois Genealogical Society has many searchable birth, death, schools, military, census, wills, and many more links. You can also order publications.
- Historical Society of Montgomery County Illinois is a society for those who are interested in history of Montgomery County. Their website has searches for births, marriages, deaths, cemeteries, land records, and military records. There are online sources for churches, schools, cemetery locations, and maps.
Taxation
Vital Records
See Illinois Vital Records for more information about Vital records in Illinois. Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Original birth and death certificates recorded since 1877 are kept by the Montgomery County Clerk while those recorded after 1916 are kept by the Illinois Department of Public Health. with a copy to the County Clerk. A limited number of births were recorded between 1862 and 1877. Original marriage records are kept by the County Clerk from 1821 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 Catalog as a subject search, and the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) located at the University of Illinois Springfield(UIS) - search for Montgomery County records. For information on how to use IRAD see the IRAD–UIS Wiki page.
Birth
- 1862–1877 Birth records index Courtesy of Montgomery County Genealogical Society. Online index.
- 1862–1957 Birth Certificates IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
- 1877–1918 Birth Record Index IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
- 1918–1928 Birth Records (Litchfield) IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
Marriage
- 1821–1900 Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, 1763-1900 Online index
- 1821–1968 Marriage Record Index IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
- 1821–1905 Marriage Record IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
- 1821–1895 Marriage Records (Index 1821–1968) FHL Films 1315683–1315686
- 1821–1915 Marriage records index Courtesy of the Montgomery County Genealogical Society.
- 1821–1850 Marriage Index .Ancestry ($) The source of this collection is films in the Family History Library's collection
- 1821–1900 Marriage Index Ancestry ($) The source of this collection is films in the Family History Library's collection
Death
Montgomery County does not have death records included in the pre-1916 statewide death index.
- 1878–1905Death records indexCourtesy of the Montgomery County Genealogical Society.
- 1916–1921 Burial or Removal Permits 1316515 Item 6
- 1941–1956 Death Record IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
- 1902–1928 Death Record (Litchfield) IRAD–UIS search for Montgomery County. Explore how to search IRAD–UIS.
Web Sites
- Montgomery County, Illinois Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
References
- ↑ Richard Montgomery www.wikipedia.org
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
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