chicagogenealogy

User Rating:

532 Ratings
1337 Lookups completed

Cynthia

Specializes In: Chicago and Cook County research.

About Me:

I have 5+ years of experience locating Chicago records using Family History Center resources and over twenty years of experience researching my own family history. I usually visit the Circuit Court Archives once a week and I can retrieve death records from the local FHC on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

Genealogical Training, Certifications, or Society/Association Memberships:

I learned about handling, storing, and indexing archival records while working on two grant projects in a small upstate New York town. I have a bachelor's degree in Japanese and a master's degree in reading instruction.

Lookups Offered:

Client Feedback:

Lookup: Divorce Lookup Part II: Color Scans from File
Excellant as always. Im a very happy repeat customer. James

Lookup: Chicago / Cook County Coroner's Death Certificates
Lookup: Pre 1916 Coroner's Death Certificate Excellent site. 5 star service. Cynthia was very professional and helpful. Very prompt service and good quality records. First time using this site and will most definitely use it again. Thank you.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
awsome job and very very fast.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
another great very fast job. thanks bunches

Lookup: Divorce Lookup Part I: Index Search, Cook County, Illinois Circuit Court Archives
Wonderful service all around!

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Thanks so much for your quick reply and service. Also thanks for sending two different copies.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)
Prompt service

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)
Great service and document quality!

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Your great service is greatly appreciated again.

Lookup: Custom Research in Chicago/Cook Records
Very fast response and helpful to work with.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
I am totally satisfied with the service. The provider did more than I could have wished for.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Prompt service. Quality of document is good.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
As always, I had prompt emails explaining the time the order would be filled. High quality scans. I couldn't ask for any more.

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)
Very quick and pleasant document recovery. Thrilled beyond words! Recommend highly!

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Thank you very much for your wonderful and quick service. Much appreciated.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
The service, as always, was prompt and the document copy clear. Thank you so much for being there with such a quick turn-around!

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
thank you for your help it's very much appreciated. sincerely, john kirby

Lookup: Chicago Death Index ("Burial Permit Index")
Great work again. Thanks for helping me so often.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you don't have a certificate number)
thank you so much for solving that mystery for me i really appreciate your help, i'm sure i'll have more question's for you in the future. thanks, john

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)
Great service!!!!!

Lookup: Cook County Naturalization (Circuit, Criminal, Superior, and County Courts Only)
As usual, great service!

Lookup: Divorce Lookup Part II: Color Scans from File
I'm so grateful for your promptness and accuracy, and also for how wonderfully easy it was to send my request and retrieve the documents. This is an outstanding service!

Lookup: Custom Research in Chicago/Cook Records

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Super quick response and received my document right away. I am totally impressed with this.

Lookup: Chicago Death Index ("Burial Permit Index")
Super fast! Also took time to ask questions.

Lookup: Chicago Death Certificate (you have a certificate number)
Very prompt service and did the extra documents for me.

Lookup: Chicago Delayed Birth Index
Though I didn't get the one thing I was hoping for, I got 2 others that were my back ups. Thanks!

Custom Request: Chicago Tribune-4 Obits
Fair price for look-up service and fast delivery of documents.

Custom Request: Delayed Birth Index - Chicago
Fast, excellent service. I hope to use them again.

Custom Request: Guillemenot divorce papers
great service, prompt and clear communication, and reasonable prices. Most highly recommended

Custom Request: Photocopies from Minnich divorce file made by ChicagoGenealogy
Thanks for doing such a great job. I really appreciate your service and will use you again. I'd give you 10 stars!

Custom Request: Geissler/Hanrahan/Harrison/Michels
great as usual!!!

Custom Request: Well - Burman Divorce File Circuit Court Case 49 C 5952
The person I was in contact with rates 5 stars but as for this site I give a half star. I found it VERY difficult to even access this site - each time I received an email notice and clicked on the link I had to sign in and then a notice came up to sign in and it blocked the area for you to sign in if you were already a member(?). I have been doing research on-line for 12 years and this site has been my was worst experience EVER - I will never use it again!

Custom Request: Chicago Circuit Court Divorce File
Very reasonable rate for this amount of work. I received images of the entire file, clearly labeled. Communication with this provider is outstanding.

Custom Request: Pre-1916 Death Record
Very prompt and helpful

Custom Request: Test Request to Evaluate Current Custom Lookup Process

Rating for chicagogenealogy

FAQ for this lookup

Do these records list funeral home names and places of burial?

Yes, the undertaker's name is usually listed and I've only seen a few death records where a cemetery name isn't given.

What information can I expect to find on a death record?

The information will vary, depending on what an informant knew, but below is a list of information you might expect to find for the various years. 1878-1903 name sex and race age in years, months, days occupation date of death marital status nationality and place where born (usually a state or country) how long a resident in the state place of death (street address and ward) cause of death duration of disease place of burial name of undertaker 1904-1909 all of the information above father's birthplace (usually a state or country) mother's birthplace (usually a state or country) number of years in Chicago 1910-1915 all of the information above name and birthplace of father (usually a state or country) maiden name and birthplace of mother (usually a state or country) informant's name and address 1916 forward all of the information above name of spouse

What is the "Chicago Death Index, 1871-1933?

The long title for this index is "Indexes to deaths in the city of Chicago during the years 1871 to 1933 : showing name, address and date of death" but that is somewhat misleading. This index is probably for burial permits, and it includes entries for deaths that occurred inside and outside of Chicago, including out of state.

Here are some reasons to search it:

1) Sometimes an address can help distinguish between two or more individuals with the same name who appear in the Cook County Death Index, 1871-1916 or the Illinois Statewide Death Index, 1916-1950

2) The index lists individuals who died outside the city but are buried in Chicago. Sometimes this can help solve the "mystery" of why a person buried in a city cemetery doesn't appear in the Cook County Death Index. Local certificates for Out of Town Deaths, 1909-1915 are available on Family History Library microfilm.

3) Sometimes this index can lead to a death certificate for an individual who does not seem to appear in the Cook County or Statewide Death Indexes mentioned above. If you find an entry for a pre-1916 death in this index, but aren't able to find a certificate number in the online or microfiche index, it is worth scrolling thorough the certificate film for the surname letter/month/year. I have found a number of certificates in this way.

4) For pre-1916 death certificates, the register number in this index matches the number that is stamped on the death certificates but not the one that is handwritten. It is not useful in locating the pre-1916 death certificates on films that are arranged by the second, handwritten number, but it is useful in locating certificates if they fall on the "mixed" films from 1908-1915 or if they are for certificates for 1916-1933.

Are you able to get copies of burial permits?

No. Even though this index is often referred to as the "Burial Permit Index" (probably because it includes out-of-town deaths), it actually seems to lead to "regular" death certificates. In fact, from 1916 forward, the numbers in this index are the same as the numbers you'd find in the Illinois Statewide Death Index,

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