Free Illinois Marriage Records Online

The Illinois State Archives and State Genealogical Society came together on a project to compile pre-1901 marriage records of the state. Thanks to the project, Illinois marriage records from 1763 - 1900 are now available to the public. Anyone can access and view marriage records from the period and volunteers can also send data directly to it for inclusion over the internet.

These old marriage records of Illinois have been put online. Online marriage records include also those of post-1900 period up to the current with the Statewide Marriage Index. As long as they are captured under the index, free Illinois marriage records search can be conducted online without having to go in person or writing in to a government agency like they used to.

For the most part, the information on these records is derived directly from the County Clerk's original files. The contents include marriage registers, licenses, certificates and so forth. Additionally, information is also contributed by publications of county Genealogical societies and private individuals. The index is manned by the Illinois State Archives but it is also supported in no small way by volunteers.

The basic information found in Illinois marriage records comprise of particulars of the couple, names of parents, witnesses and conducting official of the ceremony, date and county of marriage and issuance of license. If there were multiple marriages on the part of either the groom, bride or both, those that occurred in the state of Illinois will be produced. Getting married in a county other than the one of residence is allowed so if a search fails in a particular county, it's a good idea to try statewide search instead.

All Illinois marriages from Day 1 are supposedly captured. It's believed that Cook County was the first to start record keeping and the Great Fire of Chicago in1871 destroyed quite some original documents which were listed on the Sam Fink Index. Nevertheless, the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) today still has under its holdings marriage records of more than 70 of the 102 counties in Illinois. Individual County records are the most complete but they are decentralized. Their offices are also the only authorized agencies to issue certified copies.

Online commercial information brokers are another popular option. Professional fees are charged but they beat the red tape and spare the legwork, coming in plug-and-play readiness. Fees are usually very reasonable and so is the quality impressive as competition is fierce. The top ones are often capable of delivering extras over the public agencies by drawing upon private and proprietary sources.

For Online Marriage Records in Illinois, you can start with a Free Illinois Marriage Records search at IRAD or let us help to get them served to you plug-and-play.