Bureau County, Illinois Genealogy

United States Illinois Bureau County

County Organization
Bureau County's civil records start the following years:

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

Historical Facts
Bureau County is named for Pierre Bureau (Belleau or de Beuro) who established a trading post on the Illinois River.

Boundary Changes
Prior to County Formation


 * 1801-1812 - Bureau part of St. Clair County
 * 1812-1821 - Bureau part of Madison County
 * 1821-1823 - Bureau part of Pike County
 * 1823-1825 - Bureau part of Fulton County
 * 1825-1837 - Bureau part of Putnam County
 * 1827-1831 - Some of Bureau part of JoDaviess County

County Formation and After


 * 1837 - Bureau County created from Putnam County
 * 1839 - Bureau gained from Putnam and unorganized area

For more information see Origin and Evolution of Illinois Counties or Bureau County Fact Sheet (Illinois State Archives). For interactive county boundary maps see Illinois County Boundaries, 1790-Present, Illinois Historical Counties, or Illinois County Maps and Atlases.

Cemeteries

 * [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] Find A Grave, list of cemeteries. Additional information can be found at local level (city, township, etc.)


 * Bureau 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.


 * Illinois Cemeteries by county.


 * Jennings, Harry and George Lindenmeyer. St. Valentine's Cemetery, Bureau County, Illinois. Ottawa, Illinois: LaSalle County Genealogy Guild, 1998.

Federal
For tips on accessing census records online, see Illinois 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. ; ; digital version at Google Books. [See Illinois, Bureau County on page 186.]

Court Records

 * 1872-1952 Court Records IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

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

History

 * The Biographical Record of Bureau, Marshall and Putnam Counties, Illinois. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1896. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Harrington, George B. Past and Present of Bureau County, Illinois. Chicago: Pioneer Pub. Co., 1906. Digital version at Ancestry ($); Another Ancestry ($) version; Internet Archive.

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.

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

Online Resources

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 ($)
 * 1800s-Present - Use the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Land Patent Index to obtain original federal land transfer records including homestead, military warrants, and cash entry patents. These records help a research establish location and lead to National Archives' records which may include genealogical information. Earlier land transfer records are housed at the National Archives.
 * 1800s-Present - Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales from Illinois State Archives also provides an index to federal land sales.
 * 1796–1907 U.S. General Land Office Records found at Ancestry.com ($)
 * Bureau County Federal Township Plats

Copies of Original Records


 * 1816-1900 Deed Index IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

Abstracts


 * 1984 Rockford Map Publishers Land Atlas and Plat Book, Bureau County, Illinois, 1984 (Rockford, Illinois:Rockford Map Publishers, c1984) ;

Maps

 * Federal Township Plats of Illinois (1804-1891)

Civil War
Civil War service men from Bureau 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 Bureau County.


 * - 27th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company I
 * - 33rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company E.
 * - 52nd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company B.
 * - 57th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies B, F, H and K.
 * - 64th Regiment, Illinois Infantry (Yates’ Sharpshooters), Company B.
 * - 66th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company C.
 * - 88th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Company D.
 * - 93rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies B, C, E, H, I and K.
 * - 148th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, Companies A, E, and K.
 * - 151st Regiment, Illinois Infantry (1 year, 1865), Companies F, G and H.
 * - 153rd Regiment, Illinois Infantry (1 year, 1865), Company E.

Naturalization

 * 1837-1923 Naturalization Papers IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

Newspapers and Obituaries
A good collection of obituaries and death notices can be found at Genealogy Trails.

Probate Records

 * 1837-1900, 1906-1955 Probate Records IRAD-NIU; search for Bureau County Records. (Learn more about IRAD.)

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

Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD)
The Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD), managed by the Illinois State Archives, houses 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 Northern Illinois University (IRAD-NIU) holds the records for Bureau County. Learn more about finding and using their records.


 * Illinois Regional Archives Depository c/o Regional History Center Founders Memorial Library, Room 400 Northern Illinois University DeKalb, IL 60115 Telephone: (815) 753-1807

Marriages

 * 1837-1854 Illinois Statewide Marriage Index at Illinois State Archives; Index

Deaths

 * 1916-1950 Database of Illinois Death Certificates at Illinois State Archives; Index


 * Bureau County, Illinois Obituary and Death Notices Collection Free from GenealogyBuff.com. From various funeral homes in the Princeton, Hall, Spring Valley, Selby, Arispie, Sheffield, Walnut, Wyanet, Ladd and surrounding area.

Websites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Bureau County, Illinois Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)