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South Suburban Genealogical Serving south Cook and
east Will
counties, Illinois
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Research Policy and General Information on Area Sources
SSGHS Research Policy
BEFORE REQUESTING RESEARCH:
Please read the information below. Visit our site to see the geographic area
covered by SSGHS; our publications; our library and other information. You may find the answer to your question.
The SSGHS Research Library contains books on Chicago and Cook County with emphasis on southern Cook
County, northern Will County and the Roseland/Pullman neighborhood of Chicago.
Research by our volunteers WILL NOT BE DONE UNLESS:
- Request is written and mailed to SSGHS. E-mail research requests ARE NOT ACCEPTED.
- Request is accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped business-size envelope.
- Check (see below) accompanies request
- Needed information (see below) accompanies request.
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Research requests should be mailed to:
South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society
3000 W. 170th Place
Hazel Crest, IL. 60429-1174
PULLMAN LOOK-UPS:
Those seeking ancestors employed by the Pullman Palace Car Company in Chicago may receive a
quick look-up at no charge. This may be requested by postal mail, or see the Pullman Collection link to e-mail your request. See this site's Pullman page for information. This collection does NOT contain
records of Pullman porters or maids, which are housed at the Newberry Library in Chicago.
CEMETERY LOOK-UPS:
Those seeking ancestors who may be buried in one of the 93 cemeteries transcribed by SSGHS as part
of its Cemetery Census Series may receive a quick look-up at no charge. See this site's Cemetery Census page for information. If the name is found, or for copies of the cemetery reading, the donation for secretarial work is $5 plus the cost of copies (20 cents/page for non-members).
OBITUARIES:
You must provide the person's name, approximate date of death and other identifying information, plus your name and address. We will check the following sources upon receipt of $5.00 and a self-addressed, stamped envelope. If the obituary is found, a copy will be sent to you in the envelope you provided.
-- Card file (not complete) of obituaries from The Star, circa mid-1970s. Most are from the
Chicago Heights or South Holland editions.
-- Obituaries of the Blue Island Sun Standard 7 Feb. 1919-31 Dec. 1934
( in "Where the Trails Cross" Vol. 23:1)
-- Obituaries of the Blue Island Sun Standard 4 Jan. 1935 - 30 July 1942
(in "Where the Trails Cross" Vol. 26:4)
FUNERAL HOME RECORDS:
We receive requests for records from funeral homes in Chicago. A funeral home SURVEY of the Chicago area was compiled years ago and published as a quarterly. The survey was not inclusive; not all funeral homes responded. The survey asked if records were available from the funeral homes. SSGHS does NOT have these records. The quarterly is out of print. If this is your research request, this source only will be checked for a donation of $5, payable to the SSGHS Book Fund. Please provide the name of the funeral home; a location, if known; and a time period.
OTHER RESEARCH
Volunteers will research in our library for a donation
of $15 per hour, checks payable to SSGHS. This is to be paid before research is begun. Keep request brief,
clear and to the point.
Include the following:
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Name of person sought;
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Time period;
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Place;
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Type of record to search.
Because we appreciate your donation and wish you to
receive as much benefit as possible, please mention
sources you HAVE checked, and sources SSGHS should NOT check. Research requests
must include
accompanying donation and a self-addressed stamped envelope (International
requestors enclose a self-addressed envelope and two International Reply
Coupons) for a reply.
BISHOP/CONE FAMILY
RESEARCH:
A collection of materials from the estate of Ira Bishop, cofounder of the
society, were donated to SSGHS. Ira
apparently based his work on the book The Descendants of John Bishop
by William Whitney Cone and George Allen Root (published 1951 by John Guy
Bishop, Nyack, New York) and sought to add information to it. His method
was to gather any reference to BISHOP and attempt to place it correctly.
As a result, many folders of information exist on "unplaced" people. Researchers
may use the collection at the society or may request research by mail. Research
policy applies, as listed above. The collection includes:
- Notebooks arranged by family (indexed)
- Notebooks of "state" information- usually census extractions (un indexed)
- An index to the notebooks. Surnames other than Bishop were filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah (catalog card copy included)
- Miscellaneous published books and booklets
- The Cone Collection- used by Cone to write his book on the Bishop family. It includes family group sheets, correspondence, etc.
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Folders containing information about:
- Individuals surnamed Bishop (may or may not be included in the notebooks)
- Other families, areas, correspondence (may or may not be included in the notebooks)
- Both sets of folders are alphabetical and are not indexed.
General Information on Area Sources
CHICAGO AREA/COOK COUNTY
RESEARCH:
SSGHS often receives questions regarding Chicago and Cook County research.
Before contacting SSGHS,
please read "Chicago and Cook County Sources: A Genealogical and Historical
Guide" by Loretto
Dennis Szucs (published by Ancestry.com) or its revised edition, "Chicago
and Cook County: A Guide to Research," also by Szucs.
Among the topics addressed are:
- The availability of vital records
- The impact of the Chicago Fire (1871) on vital records
- Local sources for immigration and naturalization records
- The availability of Chicago area newspapers
These books are available at http://www.amazon.com
VITAL RECORDS:
Cook/Will counties births, marriages and deaths are at the state or county
level. Some marriages are on Illinois State Archives databases (see our Internet Links page). Microfilmed vital
records are listed in the catalog of the Genealogical Society of Utah Family
History Library (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) at
<http://www.familysearch.org>. Links are on our "Internet Links" page. The
State of Illinois did not begin keeping vital records until 1916. Will County records begin in 1877. Cook County records
begin in 1871 (earlier records destroyed by the Chicago Fire). Information may be incomplete for these earlier
years.
| Cook County Building 118 N. Clark Street Chicago, IL 60602 Vital Statistics, Randolph Street, Concourse (312) 603-5656 |
Will County Clerk Main Office 302 N. Chicago Street Joliet IL 60432 (815) 740-4615 |
CENSUS RECORDS:
SSGHS does have some federal census microfilm and some Illinois state census
microfilm.
Census records for the entire United States are at any National Archives
regional facility and many large libraries.
NARA Great Lakes Region
7358 South Pulaski Road
Chicago, Illinois 60629-5898
(773) 581-7816
OTHER PLACES TO LOOK FOR OBITUARIES OR OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS:
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An index to obituaries in The Times of Northwest Indiana
(also known as the Hammond Times)
for the years 1940-1999 are online through the Web site of :
HAMMOND PUBLIC LIBRARY
564 State Street
Hammond, IN
219-931-5100
http://www.hammond.lib.in.us
Since The Times publishes an Illinois edition, researchers may have success with this source.
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Obituary indexes of the Gary, Ind., Post-Tribune, 1931-1932
and 1985-1998,
in one-year increments are at
LAKE COUNTY (INDIANA) PUBLIC LIBRARY
1919 W. 81st Avenue
Merrillville, IN
219-769-3541 -
http://www.lakenetnwi.net
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Early newspapers for Northwest Indiana and Joliet,
IL carried news and columns from our coverage area.
Microfilms of Northwest Indiana papers may be found at the Lake County Public Library in Merrillville, Ind.; Porter County Public Library in Valparaiso, Ind. and at other Northwest Indiana libraries. Joliet newspapers are on microfilm at the Joliet Public Library.
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Obituaries in the Chicago Heights Star since 1906 are
indexed by the Chicago Heights Public
Library:
25 W. 15th Street
Chicago Heights, Illinois 60411
(708) 754-0323
<http://www.sls.lib.il.us/chs/index.html>
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The Illinois State Historical Library, the repository
for Illinois newspapers, offers an obituary look-up service.
Illinois State Historical Library
Reference Department
Old State Capitol
Springfield, IL 62701
<http://www.state.il.us/hpa/lib/ishlgen.htm#Newspaper Search Policy>
The following is from that library's Web site: http://www.state.il.us/hpa/lib/ishlgen.htm#Newspaper Search Policy
Illinois State Historical Library
Newspaper Search Policy
"Since our newspapers are not indexed, all search requests must include specific
information for a search
to be performed. Those specifics include the full name(s), exact date (day,
month, and year), and exact
location (city and county) of the occurrence. If such information is unavailable
and you live in the continental
United States, you may borrow newspaper microfilm on interlibrary loan through
your local library to do
your own research. Each search consists of looking for articles on one occurrence
(obituary notice, birth announcement, marriage announcement, etc.) for one
person.
Each letter must be accompanied by a self addressed, stamped, business sized
envelope. Checks and
money orders should be made payable to the Illinois State Historical Library.
A response will be sent
for successful and unsuccessful searches. Do not send a second letter until
you have received a response
to your first.
Illinois Residents: A non refundable copy fee of $1.00 must accompany each
letter. Each letter must be
limited to no more than two (2) search requests.
Non Illinois Residents: A non refundable fee of $10.00 per search must accompany
each search request.
Each letter is limited to no more than four (4) search requests."
AREA FAMILY HISTORY CENTERS (CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS)
| 402 Longwood Drive Chicago Heights, IL (708) 756-1280 (2 blocks west of Ashland Avenue & 2 blocks north of Joe Orr Road)
13150 South 88th Avenue
655 Springfield Avenue
|
Hyde Park 5200 S University Avenue Chicago, Illinois (773) 493-1830
Griffith Indiana
Valparaiso Indiana
|
AREA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETIES: There are at least 20 genealogical societies in the Chicago area, including Cook County, collar counties and northwest Indiana
- Several societies concentrate on a particular geographic area. A few of these include: Chicago Genealogical Society, North Suburban, DuPage, Fox Valley, Will/Grundy, Elgin, Zion, Tinley-Moraine and more.
- Several societies have an ethnic focus, such as: Czech-Slovak, Scottish, Polish, Lithuanian and more.
- For information on other Chicago area societies, or to find societies in Illinois and elsewhere, go to our Internet Links page and click "FGS Society Hall" or navigate to <http://www.fgs.org/>.
Copyright 2005,
South Suburban Genealogical and Historical Society
3000 West 170th Place, Hazel Crest, IL. 60429 - 1174
Telephone: (708) 335-3340
E-mail to: ssghs@usa.net
Last update 29 September 2005