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Lake County History and Information
County History | Court Records | Vital Records | CENSUS Records | TAX Records | Military Records |
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Lake County Facts

Lake County was created on March 1, 1839 (Laws, 1839, p. 216) and was formed from McHenry County . Present area, or parts of it, formerly included in: McHenry County (1836–1839), Cook County (1831–1836), Putnam County (1825–1831), Fulton County (1823–1825), Pike County (1821–1823), Clark County (1819–1821), Crawford County (1816–1819), Edwards County (1815–1816), Madison County (1812–1815), St. Clair County (1801–1812) and Knox, Northwest Territory (1795–1801).

The County was named for after the many small lakes in and around the county. The County Seat is Waukegan. Prior County Seats was Burlington (1839–1841) and Waukegan—Name changed from Little Fort in 1849 (1841–Present). See also County History for more historical details.

Counties adjacent to Lake County are Kenosha County, Wisconsin (north), Allegan County, Michigan (northeast), Van Buren County, Michigan (east), Berrien County, Michigan (southeast), Cook County (south), McHenry County (west).

Lake County Townships include Antioch, Avon, Benton, Cuba (Name changed from Troy), Deerfield, Ela, Fremont, Grant (Name changed from Goodale), Lake Villa (Formed from Antioch, Avon and Grant ), Libertyville, Newport, Shields, Vernon, Warren, Wauconda, Waukegan, West Deerfield (Formed from Deerfield), Zion (Formed from Benton on September 12, 1930) Townships

Cities, Towns and Communities include Antioch, Barrington - partly in Cook County, Barrington Hills - partly in Cook, Kane and McHenry County, Bannockburn, Beach Park, Buffalo Grove - partly in Cook County, Channel Lake, Deerfield - partly in Cook County, Deer Park - partly in Cook County, Forest Lake, Fox Lake - partly in McHenry County, Fox Lake Hills, Fox River Grove - primarily in McHenry County, Fox River Valley Gardens - see Port Barrington, Gages Lake, Grandwood Park, Grayslake, Green Oaks, Gurnee, Hainesville, Hawthorn Woods, Highland Park, Highwood, Indian Creek, Ingleside, Island Lake - partly in McHenry County, Kildeer, Lake Barrington, Lake Bluff, Lake Catherine, Lake Forest, Lake Villa, Lake Zurich, Lakemoor - partly in McHenry County, Libertyville, Lincolnshire, Lindenhurst, Long Grove, Long Lake, Mettawa, Mundelein, North Barrington, North Chicago, Old Mill Creek, Park City, Port Barrington - partly in McHenry County, Riverwoods, Round Lake, Round Lake Beach, Round Lake Heights, Round Lake Park, Third Lake, Tower Lakes, Venetian Village, Vernon Hills, Volo, Wadsworth, Wauconda, Waukegan, Winthrop Harbor, Zion

 

There are free downloadable and printable forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms, U.K. Census Extraction Forms, Research Calendar, Ancestral Chart, Research Extract, Correspondence Record , Family Group Sheet , Source Summary Form.

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Records at the Lake County Courthouse

See Also Illinois Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.

The Official County website is located at http://www.co.lake.il.us. All departments below at located at the Lake County Courthouse, 18 North County Street, Waukegan, IL 60085 , unless a different address is listed below. NOTE: The record dates below are from the earliest date to present time.

   Lake County Circuit Court Clerk has Probate Records from 1839 and Court Records from 1840 and is located at the address above. Phone Number: (847) 377-3380
   The Clerk of the Circuit Court, commonly known as the Circuit Clerk, is the keeper of the files and records of the Circuit Court.  The Circuit Clerk works at the direction of Circuit Court, Appellate Court and Supreme Court of Illinois and is mandated to follow and enforce the laws of the State of Illinois.  The Circuit Clerk's Office processes all documents in criminal law, chancery, support, probate, adoption, juvenile, drainage, local improvement, mental, small claims, traffic, ordinance violations, prepares appeals to the higher court, issues passports, summons jurors, tax deeds and handles approximately ten million dollars in costs, fines, restitution, investments and support each year.  The Office also issues summonses, writs, attachments, subpoenas and all other tasks as mandated by the courts.

   Lake County Recorder has Land Records from 1839 and is located at the courthouse. Phone Number: (847) 377-2575
   The County Recorder of Deeds serves the people of County by receiving, filing and maintaining all records related to real property in our county. These documents range from all types of conveyance deeds, mortgages, releases and assignments, property liens, as well as, assorted federal, state and local liens. The Recorder’s office is responsible for the recordation and storage of plats of subdivision, land surveys and monument records. Many other types of miscellaneous documents are recorded, such as; foreign birth certificates, foreign marriage licenses, and military discharge paperwork to name a few.

   Lake County Clerk has Birth / Death Records from 1877 and Marriage Records from 1839 and is located at the courthouse. Phone Number: (847) 377-2400
    The County Clerk maintains records and issues certificates of vital statistics (birth certificates, death certificates, and marriage certificates) for the entire County.

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Below is a list of online resources for Lake County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Court Records by clicking the link below:

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Lake County Vital Records

See Also Vital Records in Illinois

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.

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. Some documents are just too important to wait 6 weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. Birth, Marriage, Divorce & Death Certificates Signed. Sealed. Delivered. Often in as few as three business days!

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.
  • Birth, Death Certificates:
  • Birth, Death Certificates: The Division of Vital Records and Statistics maintains birth, death and marriage records that occur in Illinois from 1916 to the present. Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE
    • Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $17.00 (long) or $10.00 (uncertified) per certificate by mail.
      Make your check or money order payable to "Illinois Department of Public Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. The cost of each record includes a ten-year search if the exact date or place of event is not known. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep check amount for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
    • In Person: In-person orders can be dropped off for mail out within two business days at the Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records office, 605 W. Jefferson St., Springfield, on Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., excluding holidays. (Large volume orders may take longer.) PLEASE NOTE: the person requesting the record will be asked to show a valid picture identification card.
    • Processing Time: 6 weeks when ordered by MAIL [application for birth records, application for death records] or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
  • Marriage & Divorce Certificates: The Division of Vital Records also maintains an index of marriages & divorces from 1962 to the present. Copies of the marriage & divorce records are available from the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the county where the marriage license was obtained or divorce was granted. Fees vary.
    • Cost: $5.00. Make your check or money order payable to "Illinois Department of Public Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. The cost of each record includes a ten-year search if the exact date or place of event is not known. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $5.00 for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
    • Processing Time: 6 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY

Below is a list of online resources for Lake County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Vital Records by clicking the link below:

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Lake County Census Records

See Also Research In Census Records

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.

  Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Lake County, Illinois are 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your Family Tree in Lake 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 Lake County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Census Records by clicking the link below:

  • Lake County, Illinois Census Books at Amazon.com

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Lake County Maps & Atlases

   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
   You can view rotating animated maps for Illinois showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries.

Below is a list of online resources for Lake County Maps. Email us with websites containing Lake County Maps by clicking the link below:

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Lake County Military Records

See Also Military Records in Illinois

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.

   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 Lake County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Military Records by clicking the link below:

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Lake County Tax Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

   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 Lake County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

  • Lake County, Illinois Tax Books at Amazon.com

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Lake County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Illinois Genealogical Addresses

   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 Lake County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Lake County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

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Lake County Church & Cemeteries

See Also Church & Cemetery Records in Illinois

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

   There are many churches and cemeteries in Lake County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Lake 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 Lake County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Lake County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

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Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Search Online Click Here to Search Illinois Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

   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 Lake County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Lake County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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County History

Lake County, IL is situated on the shore of Lake Michigan between Chicago and Wisconsin. It is home to over 644,000 residents, some of whom live in highly developed urban centers while others live in beautiful rural communities.

Photo of first county courthouse The county, which was primarily unsettled prairie and was still home to its native Potawatomie Indians, was created by the Illinois State Legislature in 1839. Lake County's first permanent settler, Captain Daniel Wright, first came to the area in 1834. At that time, Libertyville, then known as Independence Grove, was the first county seat. In 1841, however, the county's residents voted to move the county government to Little Fort, now known as Waukegan, where the commissioners had purchased a section of land from the state. Lake County's first courthouse was built on part of that land in 1844 and the remainder was sold to pay for the $4,000 construction cost.

The county's first courthouse was used solely for court sessions and the jail, but in 1853, commissioners constructed a building to accommodate county administration offices and house records. When fire decimated the courthouse on October 19, 1875, the county records were saved because they were in the adjacent building.

Photo of old county courthouse After the fire, proposals were made to move the county seat to Highland Park, Libertyville or another site in central Lake County. The county commissioners, however, decided to rebuild in Waukegan. The east half of the building was reconstructed at a cost of $45,000. In 1895, the first jail building was added to the government complex and a west addition was added to the courthouse in 1922. By 1938, county commissioners saw a need for additional space and approved the addition of a 5th Floor. This courthouse, however, was demolished in 1967 to make room for a new high-rise administration building, which was completed with the addition of the jail in 1969 and courts in 1970.

Shortly thereafter, the Lake County Board commissioned the construction of a multi-faceted justice facility and ground was broken in 1986 for the Robert H. Babcox Justice Center, named in memory of Sheriff Babcox, who served as Lake County Sheriff from 1982-1988. The justice center, which houses the county jail, work release program, sheriff's administration offices and three courtrooms, was finished in 1989 at a cost of $29.6 million.

Photo of early employees of courthouse Additional county government facilities have been built or expanded throughout Lake County, including the Coroner's Office, Health Department/Community Health Center facilities, Division of Transportation, Public Works and Winchester House. Lake County government services extend throughout the county's 470 square miles.

Lake County, IL is a montage, with progressive urban areas, as well as picturesque rural communities. Along Lake Michigan's beautiful lakefront, which forms the county's eastern border, up to the Wisconsin border in the north and out to the chain-of-lakes in the west, the county's residents have diverse backgrounds and lifestyles.

Lake County government is also a mosaic, which allows it to provide the best possible services to these diverse residents. From addressing traffic congestion and balancing growth to providing elderly care and promoting healthy and safe communities, every Lake County employee specializes in providing customer service to the residents of Lake County. The county's departments and elected officials work daily to increase the quality, timeliness and cost effectiveness of the programs they provide.

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