Peoria County, Illinois, U.S., Births 1878-1915

General Collection Information

This collection contains county birth registries for people who were born between 1878 and 1915 in Peoria County, Illinois. All records are handwritten in standardized ledgers.

County birth records are a valuable source of genealogical data, because the information they include is often thorough and accurate. Birth records can also be useful in helping you find other family members, since parents’ names are often listed.

Using this Collection

The registry information may include the following:

Can’t find a record? Registering births wasn’t widely enforced in Illinois until 1915, so your relative’s birth may not have been recorded by the county. However, you might find it recorded in other places. If you know your family member’s religious affiliation, try searching local church records. Many churches recorded the baptisms of new babies and often include their birthdates. Checking local newspapers for birth announcements may also be useful.

Please note that during this time period, most people were born at home. Births were reported to the county clerk by a family member, and dates may be approximate.

Collection in Context

Although counties in Illinois began registering births in 1843, it wasn’t mandatory and very few births were recorded. Recording births became more common in 1877, when the State Board of Health was formed and began overseeing the collection of vital statistics. Births were recorded by county clerks, who then reported to the State Board of Health. However, there were no penalties for non-compliance, and as a result, the recording of births was irregular.

The statewide registration of births didn’t become mandatory until 1915, when local registers were required to report births to both the county clerk and State Board of Health. The collection of records began the following year. In 1933, the U.S. government began to require the civil registration of births on a federal level.

Bibliography

Ancestry.com “Illinois State Research Guide.” Last Modified 2016. https://www.ancestrycdn.com/support/us/2016/11/illinois.pdf.

Cdc.gov “The Organization of the Civil Registration System of the United States.” Last modified May 1980, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/isp/008_the_organization_of_the_civil_registation_system_of_the_united_states.pdf.

Office of the Illinois Secretary of State. “Genealogical Research.” Last Modified November 13, 2018. https://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/gen_research.html.