Springfield Illinois Family History Center

The Springfield Family History Center serves Sangamon, Logan and Menard Counties. There is no cost to visit the Family History Center and everyone with an interest in genealogical research is welcome.

Center Contacts and Hours
Location and Map:
 * 3601 Buckeye Dr
 * Springfield, Illinois 62712 United States
 * Enter the grounds from either drive.
 * The Center is located in back of the building on the north side.

Location Map

Phone:
 * Center: 217-529-7930
 * Director: 217-391-6086

E-mail:mary.kirgan@gmail.com

Open Hours:

 * Tuesday: 6pm - 9 pm
 * Wednesday: 10 am - 2 pm

Collections
Extended Loan Microfilm


 * Kentucky Vital Records, including records for African-American and white residents, from 1851 - 1859 for 104 counties.
 * Tennessee Court, Newspaper Vital Records, 50 rolls
 * Germany Church Records for 6 Duchys
 * Italy Church Civil Records, 54 rolls

Microfiche collection:


 * 100 most frequently used books in the Salt Lake Family History Library
 * Family Histories *Vital Records indexes
 * Records from Europe South America

Databases and Software
FHC Portal This center has the Family History Center Portal which gives free access in the center to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions including:
 * 19th Century British Newspapers
 * Alexander Street Press (American Civil War Collections)
 * Ancestry.com (Family History Library edition)
 * FindMyPast
 * Fold3.com, formerly Footnote.com
 * Genline FamilyFinder (Swedish) *Godfrey Memorial Library

Physical Equipment

 * One microfilm reader
 * One microfiche reader
 * Four computers with internet connection and access to premium websites.
 * Printer for use with computers.
 * Digital camera for images of microfilm or microfiche records

Center Services

 * We encourage visitors to bring their digital cameras for copying images from microfilm or microfiche. If you choose to use the Center's digital camera, you can have the images printed or loaded to your own memory stick or CD.
 * Patrons may bring their personal computers for note taking or entering information into personal genealogical programs, although wireless internet access is not currently available. *Memory sticks can also be used to download information.
 * Programs can be developed for organizations desiring presentations or classes on using Family Search or the Family History Center. Please contact the Family History Center Director, Mary Kirgan (217-391-6086) to discuss programming.

Staff Research Specialties
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Resources in the Local Area
Illinois State Archives Margaret Cross Norton Building Capitol Complex Springfield, IL 62756 Telephone: (217) 782-4682 Fax: (217) 524-3930 Hours: Monday–Friday 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (Central Time Zone) 1st Saturday of month 8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. (except on holiday weekends)

Sangamon Valley Collection Lincoln Library 326 South Seventh Street Springfield, IL 217-753-4900 The Sangamon Valley Collection closes at 1 p.m. on Fridays. Regular library hours are observed all other days. The Sangamon Valley Collection (SVC) provides in-depth resources for the study of Springfield, Illinois, Sangamon County and the eleven adjacent counties. Of particular value is an index to obituaries published in Sangamon County newspapers from 1861 to the present.

Illinois State Library Gwendolyn Brooks Building 300 South 2nd Street Springfield, IL 62701-1796 Phone: (217) 785-5600 Within IL only: (800) 665-5576 TDD: (888) 261-2709 Hours: Mon. - Fri. 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Closed on official State of Illinois holidays The Illinois State Library has well over 500 different Illinois county histories and over 300 historical county atlases, with an additional 800 plat books representative of the 102 counties

Lincoln Presidential Library 112 N. Sixth Street, Springfield, IL 62701 Public and Research Hours Monday -- Friday -- 9:00 AM -- 5:00 PM Saturday, Sunday – Closed Appointments are necessary for research in the Manuscripts, Audiovisual, and Lincoln collections. Please make arrangements by telephone or mail. Manuscripts: (217) 558-8855 Audiovisual: (217) 785-7955 Lincoln: (217) 785-7954 A significant feature of the collection is the large number of Illinois newspapers available on microfilm. For a searchable list of their Illinois newspapers - Illinois History Government Library Newspaper

Links
Logan County IL Genealogical Historical Society, Morgan Area Genealogy, includes Cass, Green, Macoupin, Menard, Morgan, Sangamon and Scott Counties, Rootsweb Sangamon Illinois State Archives On-line Database Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, 1763–1900 Illinois Statewide Death Index, Pre–1916 Illinois Statewide Death Index (1916–1950), Missouri Digital History Archives Death Certificates Illinois Digital Archives, Indiana State Digital Archives, Texas Genealogy Resources, Genfirst Utah Vital Records, Utah Government Research Indexes State Digital Resources list, BYU Family History Archives,

Family History Center Staff
Staff is needed for customer service during the hours the Center is open. Volunteers should be comfortable with computer use and enjoy working with people. A knowledge of basic family history research principles is helpful but training will be provided. A minimum of 2 shifts per month in the Center is required and more is cheerfully allowed.

Indexing
FamilySearch is making records available on-line as quickly as possible. One of the keys to making these records useful is the Indexing program. Without an index, researchers have to browse through the images, sometimes one at a time, to find a specific record. Indexing can be done at home and is an excellent activity for Family History Center Staff when the Center is not busy. To find out more about indexing and take a test drive go to Familysearch Volunteer Indexing.