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Schuyler County History and Information |
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County History |
Court Records |
Vital Records |
CENSUS Records |
TAX Records |
Military Records |
Church & Cemetery | Maps & Atlases | Genealogy Addresses | Genealogy Related Sites | |
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Schuyler County was created on January 13, 1825 (Laws, 1825, p. 92) and was formed from unorganized land and Pike County . Present area, or parts of it, formerly included in: Pike County (1821–1825), Madison County (1812–1821) and St. Clair County (1795–1812). The County was named for ? . The County Seat is Rushville . Prior County Seats was Beardstown—A site near present-day Pleasant View (1825–1826) and Rushville—Originally named Rushton: changed to Rushville on April 24, 1826 (1826-Present). See also County History for more historical details. Counties adjacent to Schuyler County are McDonough County (north), Fulton County (northeast), Mason County (east), Cass County (southeast), Brown County (south), Adams County (southwest), Hancock County (northwest). Schuyler County Townships include Bainbridge, Birmingham, Brooklyn, Browning, Buena Vista, Camden, Frederick, Hickory, Huntsville, Littleton, Oakland, Rushville, Woodstock Township Cities, Towns and Communities include Browning, Camden, Littleton, Rushville
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The Official County website is located at http://www.schuylercountyillinois.com/. All departments below at located at the Schuyler County Courthouse, 102 S. Congress Street, P.O. Box 200, Rushville, IL 62681 , unless a different address is listed below. NOTE: The record dates below are from the earliest date to present time. Schuyler County Circuit Court Clerk has Probate Records from 1825 and Court Records from 1825 and is located at the address above. Phone Number: (217) 322-4633 Schuyler County Recorder has Land Records from 1817 and is located at the courthouse. Phone Number: (217) 322-4734 Schuyler County Clerk has Birth / Death Records from 1877 and Marriage Records from 1825 and is located at the courthouse. Phone Number: (217) 322-4734
Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Court Records by clicking the link below:
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Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records, 605 W. Jefferson St., Springfield, IL 62702-5097. It can take up to 6 weeks to get a vital record from Illinois. A number of resources are available for individuals doing genealogical research using vital records filed in the state of Illinois. Births and deaths before January 1, 1916 and marriages before January 1, 1962 are recorded only in the office of the county clerk where the event occurred. Most county clerks have indexes to the records that are prior to 1916 that are available for the purpose of genealogical research. These indexes generally provide the name, date and place of occurrence and are located in county courthouses located throughout the state. Although self-service access to the indexes is generally permitted, the law limits physical access to the individual records to the clerk's staff. When you locate a record from the index, it will be necessary for the clerk to pull the record for you once you have paid the appropriate search fee. Please check with the county clerk for fees and policies on reviewing indexes.
Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
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Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Schuyler County, Illinois are 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your Family Tree in Schuyler County, Illinois are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms. See Also Statewide Records that exist for Illinois Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Census Records by clicking the link below: |
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Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Ohio and other states. You can view rotating animated maps for Illinois showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Maps. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Maps by clicking the link below: |
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The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Military Records by clicking the link below:
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The first known tax authorization in Illinois fell under the jurisdiction of the Territory of the United States North West of the River Ohio. The tax was based on every hundred acres of unimproved uncleared prairie or wood land, divided into three classes based on quality of earth surface and soil. The rates were thirty, twenty, and ten cents, to be paid annually. Property with delinquent taxes was sold at public auction. There do not appear to be any surviving tax records from this territorial period. Beginning with statehood, tax records form a large part of county archival material. The 1819 laws provided the first taxation process, imposing taxes on land, bank stock owned, slaves and indentured negroes or mulattoes, plus a poor tax. The tax was collected by the county with income divided between the county and state. Taxpayers lists were eliminated in 1824, and in 1825 a county road tax and school taxes were enacted. Original and microfilmed tax records at Illinois Regional Archives Depositories include taxable land lists, assessors books, railroad tax books, road tax records, and collectors books, the earliest record dated 1817. Other county tax records are located in county seats. Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Tax Records by clicking the link below: |
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The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over. Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
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There are many churches and cemeteries in Schuyler County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Schuyler County Tombstone Transcription Project. Despite the early Catholic missionaries in Illinois, their church had almost totally disappeared from the state by the time of the American Revolution. Later migration of English-speaking Catholics reestablished the church in the state. In 1850 the largest religious denomination in Illinois was the Methodists. Baptists, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, and Congregationalists followed. Episcopalians had organized in the state in 1835, the Disciples of Christ were in Illinois prior to 1830, and the Lutherans grew in numbers with the German and Scandinavian emigration of the 1840s. The Genealogical Society of Utah and the Daughters of the American Revolution have compiled cemetery records for the state of Illinois. Soldiers' Burial Places in State of Illinois for Wars 1774-1898 is available on thirty-one reels of microfilm from the FHL. Local genealogical societies may have information and possible printed records of cemeteries in their locale. Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
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When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Schuyler County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Schuyler County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
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n 1823, a roving band of Kickapoo Indians met the first white settlers to venture into what is now Schuyler county. A peaceful tribe, they seem to have accepted this incursion into their hunting grounds, and by 1825 a new County had been established and named after the gallant Revolutionary soldier General Schuyler. Traveling by the Overland Trail winding across southern Illinois, and via the Illinois River, settlers Calvin Hobart and O. Matheny were the first to settle here, having heard from soldiers who had camped along the Mississippi of the rich prairie without stones in the soil, grass which grew as high as a man’s shoulders, and the abundance of trees and water. The nearest post office was Jacksonville – the nearest neighbor twelve miles away on the opposite side of the river – and the bare necessities of life were rare. But soon others came to join them. When Hobart purchased a “Band Mill” to grind flour, all the early settlers came to his cabin to grind their grain, each person taking his turn at driving the oxen which furnished the power to turn the mill. The city of Rushton was founded in 1826, established as the county seat and named after prominent physician D. B. Rush – soon the name was changed to Rushville. Early on the morning of October 20, 1858, wagons, horsemen and people on foot began pouring into Rushville for a very special occasion. By mid-morning delegations from other towns began to congregate. A large procession from Beardstown arrived, and was joined by others from the north and west. A parade was formed, estimated to be one and one-half miles long, led by a local brass band and another from Beardstown. At precisely 2 P.M. the guest of honor arrived – Abraham Lincoln, candidate for the U. S. Senate. Mounting a stand in the square, he spoke to the crowd of about 2,500 people. His subject was slavery, and the policy he espoused was that in states where it about3already existed it should not be interfered with, but in laying the foundation of societies where slavery does not exist it should not be introduced. Not everyone was happy about Lincoln’s appearance in Schuyler county, at that time a Democratic stronghold. Partisanship ran high, and the visitors were greeted with a black flag fluttering from the top of the courthouse steeple. As Lincoln spoke, a group of boys climbed to the steeple and heckled him until they were brought down and rebuked. But an even greater disturbance came from several females in the upper windows who made offensive remarks, interrupting Lincoln until he was compelled to stop and request them to be still until he was done! Other than these exhibitions of bad manners, the day passed pleasantly, with the spirits of Stephen Douglas’s supporters going down to zero. On Flag Day, June 14, 1928, a tablet to mark the spot where Lincoln spoke in 1858 was dedicated in Rushville’s Central Park. Rushville's Central Park When our founding fathers laid out the town of Rushville, they wisely centered business buildings around a park, surrounded by hitching racks for the horses and buggies that brought customers to town. The park was originally centered by a small log courthouse, soon to be replaced by a more substantial one built of stone. This, in turn, was demolished and replaced by the handsome structure still to be seen just off the southwest corner of the square. With the courthouse gone, the next structure to occupy the space was a large pond (home, we are told, to an alligator, although no photos exist to prove this astonishing fact!) In the early 20th century, brass bands were the pride of every town, and Rushville was no exception. A bandstand was built to accommodate weekly concerts, a custom which continued into the 1940’s. But when many men went to war, the ranks of band members were depleted, and the bandstand was little used. By the 60’s, the bandstand needed painting and repairs. A newly formed organization, PRIDE – for Promote Rushville’s Image, Design, and Environment, restored the bandstand and a plaza and plantings were added! Today, PRIDE members still plant flowers each spring and lovingly tend the plantings. The Central Park “Gazebo” (as it is often called, although the old-timers know it’s really a bandstand!) has become our town’s logo as well as the site of frequent community events. Arts In The Park – lighting the community Christmas Tree – Prom Preview for the high school kids – even an occasional wedding all take place there. So come – stroll through the trees, read the inscription on the stone marking the spot where Lincoln spoke, perhaps have a little picnic – you’re welcome to Central Park! Schuyler County Courthouse The present courthouse is the third such structure, the first being made of logs and located on the north side of the square, with the second being constructed in Central Park in 1831 and was used until 1881 when this building was constructed. The land upon which this structure rests was purchased at a cost of $3,600, and the building was constructed at a cost of $36,000. The county board sent a delegation to Monroe, Michigan in 1880 to inspect that county's new courthouse, and the committee was so impressed that the contractor was subsequently hired and an exact copy was built here in Schuyler County. The renovation of our courthouse was initially started quite by accident as the one primarily responsible for the restoration, namely Marty Trinkle, was a talented roofer by trade who found himself unemployed during the winter months. He and Judge Carson Klitz struck up an agreement whereby Mr. Trinkle would work on the building in the winter months. It was intended that the courtroom look as close to what the room looked like in 1881 as possible. The Schuyler County Courthouse is located on the southwest corner of the Rushville square. The hours of operation are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday - Friday. For more information, contact the County Clerk at 217-322-4734. |
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