United States Sources

The UIUC Library has a vast amount of material that may be useful in your genealogical research. Some of these sources are listed below, with examples and call numbers. (Note: This page does not contain examples of Foreign sources.)

Local Histories | City Directories | Professional Directories | Biographical Directories | Family Histories | Published Vital Records | Military Rosters and Regimental Histories |
Publications of Genealogical and Historical Societies | Historical Maps and Gazetteers |
Legal Resources | Miscellaneous Resources

Local Histories

The UIUC Library has a voluminous collection of county and town histories.  Many of these were microfilmed in the 1980s and 1990s by University Microfilms and included in the HeritageQuest database.  To find these in the online catalog, go to "Advanced Search." Type the name of the locality (county or town) in the first search box, and type "history" in the second search box, selecting "subject" from the drop down menu.

Local history for Illinois is classified in the Dewey range: 977.31 – 977.39

Examples of local histories:

• Boley, Edwin.  The First Documented History of Jackson County, Indiana, 1816-1976.  (Seymour, Ind., 1980)  2 vols.  Q.977.22304 B637f
• Gross, Lewis.  Past and Present of DeKalb County, Illinois.  (Chicago, 1907)  2 vols.  977.328 G91p
• Woodbury County History, Iowa.  (U.S. Writers’ Program)  (Sioux City, 1942)  Q.977.741 W93w
• Farmer, Silas.  History of Detroit and Wayne County and Early Michigan: A Chronological Cyclopedia of the Past and Present.  (Detroit, 1890)  2 vols.  Q.977.434 F22

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City Directories

The UIUC Library holds city directories for communities throughout the country, dating in many cases from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century.  For example, we have the New York city directory (Q.917.471 N489) from 1846/47  to 1933/34 (with gaps); the Cleveland city directory (Q.917.7132 C599) from 1872/73 to 1942; scattered volumes of the Milwaukee city directory from 1923 to 1954; the Albany city directory from 1844/45 to 1948/49; and the Minneapolis city directory from 1880/81 to 1931. 

City directories can be tricky to find in the online catalog.  Start with the "Advanced Search" and type the name of the city in one search box and the word "directories" in another search box.

Most of the city directories are in the bookstacks.  Some of them are shelved with oversized material on deck 2E (call numbers preceded by the letter Q), others are shelved on deck 8W.  They are classified in the Dewey number 917 (Geography of North America), with additional numbers to the right of the decimal indicating region of the country.

Examples:

• Minneapolis City Directory.  (1880/81- ) 917.7691 M666
• Cleveland Directory Co.’s Cleveland City Directory.  (1872/73- )   Q.917.7132 C599
• Lakeside Annual Directory of the City of  Chicago.  (1874/75-1917)  Q.917.731 L14
• Polk’s Boston City Directory.  (1860-1919)  917.446 B656

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Professional Directories

Many professional organizations publish a directory of their members, and these can be useful sources of genealogical information.  To identify these directories, you can try combining elements of a subject heading as a Boolean "Advanced Search" (e.g., "physicians" in one search box and "directories" in another, designating subject terms in the drop-down menus on the right).

Examples:

• American Medical Directory  (Chicago, 1906- )  Q.610 Am3
• Chicago Medical Blue Book.  (Chicago, 1899- )  610 C43
• American Florist Company’s Directory of Florists, Nurserymen and Seedsmen.  (Chicago, 1887- )  634.3 Am35
• Naturalists’ Directory.  (Salem, Mass., 1877- )  500 N219
• Directory of the American Chemical Society.   (1902-1951)  540.6 AME
• Officers, Members, Charter and Bylaws of the Racquet Club of the City of Philadelphia.  (1904, 1919)   796.06 RAC

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Biographical Directories

Our collections include tens of thousands of biographical dictionaries, encyclopedias, and directories.  There is a very good two-volume bibliography of biographical sources by Robert Slocum, Biographical Dictionaries and Related Works (Detroit, 1986) located in the Reference Library: Q.016.92 Sl5b 1986. 

Examples:

• Who’s Who in the South and Southwest.  (Q.920.073 W63) 1954- present
• Duyckinck, Evert A.  Portrait Gallery of Eminent Men and Women of Europe and America.  (New York, 1872-1874)  2 vols.  Q.920.07 D95
• Indianapolis Men of Affairs, 1923.  (Indianapolis, 1923)  Q.920.077252 In2

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Family Histories

The UIUC Library has thousands of family histories published in North America and Western Europe, as well as from other parts of the world.  To find these works, start with the "Advanced Search" in the online catalog, and do a keyword search on the last name.

Example:

• Allen, L. P.  The Genealogy and History of the Shreve Family from 1641.  (Greenfield, Ill., 1901)  929.2 Sh84a

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Published Vital Records

Although the vast majority of historical vital records have never been published, there have been notable efforts to publish these materials in the U.S. and England, and our holdings are very respectable.

Examples:

• Vital Records of Rhode Island: 1636-1850.  (Providence, R.I., 1891- )  21 vols.  Q.929.3 Ar6v
• Vital Records of the Towns of Massachusetts.  205 vols.  929.3 V83
• Early Connecticut Marriages as Found on Ancient Church Records Prior to 1800.  (New Haven, Conn., 1896-1906)  7 vols.  929.3 B152e
• Cathedral Burial Records, Baltimore, Maryland, 1793-1874.  (Baltimore, M.D.)  4 vols.  Q.929.3 B21c
• Maryland Account Book.  (Annapolis, 1939)  10 vols.  Q.929.3 B411ma
• A Register of Births, Marriages and Burials in Charles County, Maryland, 1654 to 1706.  (Annapolis, 1939)  Q.929.3 B411mch
• The State Records of North Carolina.  (Raleigh, 1886-1907)  30 vols.  Q.975.6 N81
• Maryland Indices to Testamentary Proceedings, Probate of Wills, and Administration of Estates, 1657-1678.  Q.929.3 B411mt
• Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England.  (Boston, 1853-1854)  974.4 M38s
• Index to the Register of Births, Marriages, and Deaths in the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Frederick, Maryland.  (Baltimore, 1940)  Q.929.3 F87l
• McLean, Malcolm Dallas.  Papers Concerning Robertson’s Colony in Texas.  (Forth Worth, 1974-1986)  18 vols.  Q.976.4M22p

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Military Rosters and Regimental Histories

The best way to identify regimental histories and published rosters of military units in the UIUC collections is to use the formal subject headings, such as:

United States—History—Revolution, 1775-1783—Registers
United States—History—Civil War, 1861-1865—Regimental histories
United States—History—Civil War, 1861-1865—Registers
Confederate States of America.  Army—Registers
Soldiers—Confederate States of America—Registers
Military pensions—United States—War of 1812
United States—History—War of 1812—Registers, lists, etc.
United States—History—King George’s War, 1744-1748—Registers, lists, etc.
Military pensions—United States—Revolution, 1775-1783
Military pensions—Kentucky—Revolution, 1775-1783
Bounties, Military—United States
Mexican War, 1846-1848—Registers
World War, 1914-1918—United States—Registers
World War, 1939-1945—Regimental histories—United States
Spanish-American War, 1898—Registers

Examples:

• Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War.  (Boston, 1896-1908)  17 vols.  973.3444 M38m
• Bates, Samuel P.  History of the Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-5. (Wilmington, N.C., 1993- )  10 vols.  973.7448 B319h 1993
• Illinois Infantry.  92d Regiment, 1862-1865.  Ninety-Second Illinois Volunteers.  (Freeport, Ill., 1875)  973.74 Il6i 92
• Howard, R. L.  History of the 124th Regiment Illinois Infantry Volunteers.  (Springfield, Ill., 1880)  973.74 Il6i 124
• Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1866.  (Akron, 1886)  12 vols.  973.74 Oh3o
• The War of the Rebellion.  (Washington, D.C., 1880- )  61 vols.  973.74 Un3
• Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion.  (Washington, D.C., 1894-1922)   27 vols.   973.75 Un3 ser.1
• United States.  Quartermaster’s Department.  Roll of Honor.  20 vols.  973.7 Un36r
• South Carolina Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865.  (Wilmington, N.C., 1998)  2 vols.  Q.973.7457 So87
• Chapin, Howard M.  Rhode Island in the Colonial Wars.  A List of Rhode Island Soldiers and Sailors in King George’s War, 1740-1748.  (Providence, 1920)  974.5 C36r
• The Official Roster of Ohio Soldiers, Sailors and Marines in the World War, 1917-18.  (Columbus, 1926-29)  23 vols.  940.91319 Oh31o

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Publications of Genealogical and Historical Societies

Examples:

• The New England Historical and Genealogical Register.  (Boston, 1874- )  929.05 NE
• The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record.  (New York, 1870- )  929.05 NEY
• The Mayflower Descendant.  (Boston, 1899- )  929.05 MA
• Nebraska State Historical Society Newsletter.  (Lincoln, 1948-2006)  Q.978.2 N27h
• Journal of the American-Irish Historical Society.  (New York, 1902- )  325.241506 AM
• Kansas Historical Quarterly.  (Topeka, 1931-1977)  905 KA

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Historical Maps and Gazetteers:

The UIUC Library has an extensive collection of maps and atlases, including plat maps for many regions of the country.   Maps and atlases are located in the Map and Geography Library, the bookstacks, and the Illinois Historical Survey.

Examples:

• Andriot, John L.  Township Atlas of the United States.  (McLean, Va., 1987)  Q.912.73 An291t 1987
• Abate, Frank R., ed.  Omni Gazetteer of the United States of America.  (Detroit, 1991)  11 vols.  Q.917.3003 Om5  
• Columbia Gazetteer of the World.  (New York, 1998)  3 vols.  Q.910.3 C723
• National Gazetteer of the United States of America.  (1983-  ) [different call numbers for different states]
• United States Board on Geographic Names.  Gazetteer.  (1955-1990) [series with separate number for each country, e.g., Hungary: Official Standard Names Approved by the United States Board of Geographic Names.  (Gazetteer, no. 52)]

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Legal Resources :

The UIUC Law Library holds the annotated codes and compiled statutes for all fifty states, as well as federal case reports, Illinois case reports, and a compilation of the decisions of other states’ courts.  There is also an extensive collection of legal encyclopedias and dictionaries. 

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Miscellaneous Resources:

Catalogs of other academic institutions

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, catalogs of American colleges and universities included not only information about courses and faculty, but in many cases also a list of students by undergraduate class or a list of graduating students.  The UIUC Library has a huge collection of the publications of other colleges and universities, particularly before 1970.  In addition to catalogs, for some institutions we have scattered holdings of commencement programs, lists of faculty publications, and yearbooks. 

The Library used a special cataloging code for college publications, starting with the letter C, and these materials are shelved between 378 and 379 in our libraries.  Not all of these catalogs and registers are represented in the online or card catalog, so please ask a reference librarian for help if you don’t find what you’re looking for through the online catalog.  For the most part, these materials are shelved on deck 9.5W of the bookstacks.

Examples:

• Catalogue of Dartmouth College.  C.D25h
• Columbia College Handbook and Register of Students.  C.C72uI
• Howard University Catalogue.  C.H83uH

Publications of professional organizations

Many professional societies publish journals and newsletters containing information about individual members.  Some of these can be found in the UIUC Libraries.

Examples:

• Cigar Makers’ Official Journal.  (Chicago, 1875- ) 
• North Carolina Beekeeper.  (Raleigh, 1917- ) 
• Southern California Professional Engineer.  (Gardena, Calif., 1956-1963) 
• Air Line Pilot.  (Washington, 1932-1970)
• Thoroughbred Record.  (Lexington, 1896- )
• Variety.  (New York, 1905- )

Publications of religious organizations

Throughout the 19th century and most of the 20th century, each major religious denomination in the U.S. published minutes of national and regional meetings, reports of local, regional and national committees, and accounts of missionary work.  Many of these documents record minute detail of the organizational and operational history of the church, with lists of clergy and lay office holders.  These documents are classified by denomination as follows:

• 281 Eastern Orthodox
• 282 Roman Catholic
• 283 Anglican
• 284 Lutheran
• 285 Presbyterian, Reformed, and Congregational
• 286 Baptist, Disciples of Christ, and Adventist
• 287 Methodist
• 288 Unitarian
• 289 Universalist, Quaker, Mennonite, Christian Scientist

In addition, material pertaining to Judaism is classified under 296.  Material about missions may be included in reports of specific churches or may be classified under 266.

Examples:

• Methodist Episcopal Church.  Illinois Conference.  Journal of the Illinois Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church.  (1836- )  287.6M569i
• Methodist Episcopal Church.  Northwest Iowa Conference.  Official Journal.  (Iowa City, 1883-1941)   287.6 M569nwi
• American Jewish Year Book.  (Philadelphia, 1899- )   [Volume 2, 1900/01, contains an appendix, "Jews in the Spanish-American War"]
• The Official Catholic Directory.  (New York, 1886- )  282 Of3  [Arranged by diocese, with lists of clergy, members of orders, school teachers]
• Unitarian Universalist Association.  Directory.  (Boston, 1962- )  288 Un36d
• United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A.  Synod of Oklahoma.  Minutes of the Synod of Oklahoma.  (Oklahoma City, 1952- )
• Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S.  Diocese of California.  Journal of the Convention.    283 P94c  [check years and place of publication]

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