ILLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES

Illinois Statewide Death Index, Pre-1916

Entering Search Criteria

Enter the individual's name in the format: last name comma space first name space middle initial (for example, Smith, John D). The first name and middle initial may be omitted to accomplish a surname search. Searches are not case sensitive: you may use any combination of upper and lower case letters. The following types of searches may be conducted:

• Enter at least the first two letters of the surname of the decedent and select STATEWIDE from the drop-down option box to return a list of deaths for the name you entered.
• Enter at least the first two letters of the surname of the decedent and select the name of a county from the drop-down option box to return a list of deaths for the name you entered from a particular county.

Work in Progress

The creation of Illinois Statewide Death index is an ongoing project of the Illinois State Archives. The task of entering all Illinois deaths before 1916 is far from complete.

View a list of counties and date spans in Illinois Statewide Death Index.

More information about how to obtain copies of original death records.

Tips on using Illinois Statewide Death Index

• To print the list of deaths from the results screen, set your printer's page orientation to landscape.
• Death records were recorded in the county where the death occurred and not necessarily in the county where the deceased resided. If your search does not find a death record in the county where you expected it to occur, try selecting STATEWIDE in the location option box.