Rock Island County Genealogy Resources
Below are links to resources that have information on Rock Island County history and its inhabitants.
General | Birth Records | Marriage Records | Death Records | County Histories & Directories | Newspapers | Court Records| Additional Resources
General Resources
Rock Island County Clerk
The Rock Island County Clerk maintains vital records for the County. Indexes of older records are now available on the County Clerk’s website for use in genealogical research. The indexes list the records the County holds on births, marriages and deaths. With the information provided in the index, copies of the actual certificates can be ordered from the County for $5.00 each. The specific information contained on the certificates varies over time and is detailed on the website.
Illinois State Archives Databases
The Illinois State Archives maintains a variety of databases and a drop down menu lets you limit the search to Rock Island County. Indexes include vital records, veterans and land tract sales among others.The State Archives also manages the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD). A list of original Rock Island County records held at the IRAD facility at Western Illinois University in Macomb can be found in the publication Local Government Records Listings, Arranged by County.
Rock Island County Historical Society
The Rock Island County Historical Society provides an index to selected materials in their collection including obituaries, newspapers, photographs and vertical files.
Rock Island County, Illinois Genealogical Research Wiki
Family Search maintains this free guide to Rock Island County, Illinois ancestry, family history, and genealogy.
Local Funeral Homes
Legacy.com maintains a listing of Quad-City area funeral homes which includes contact information and websites for each of the Rock Island County, Illinois and Scott County, Iowa funeral homes.
Birth Record Indexes
1824-1940
Illinois Births and Christenings
This partial index of Illinois births lists name, birth date and place, and names of father and mother.
1870’s through early 1940’s
Collection of Miscellaneous Documents Index
(birth certificates, stillbirth certificates, death certificates, transportation of corpse, burial permits,)
This name index is of 221 birth records (1870’s – early 1940’s) and 201 death records (1902 – early 1940’s). The index includes only the name, page number, and document type of the image contained in the image volumes.
The documents were copied from a book of unknown origin held at the Rock Island County Courthouse. Locations included are the upper Rock Island County area surrounding Hillsdale, Zuma Township, Canoe Creek and Whiteside County locations of Albany, Prophetstown, and Erie.
Images of birth and death certificates are available in 4 volumes. (RICIGS Members Only). Use the index shown above to search for a name and find the page number.
Volume 1 – pages 1-72
Volume 2 – pages 73-144
Volume 3 – pages 145-216
Volume 4 – pages 217-289
1872 through records that are 75 years old (an additional year is added each year)
Index of Rock Island County Births
This online index of Birth Records includes the name and date of individuals born in the County. The website explains how to order a certificate for genealogical purposes and what information was collected for various dates.
1877-1921
Index to Certificates of Births in Rock Island County, Illinois (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
This index contains transcribed records from Book 1 (1877-1907) and Book 2 (1908-1921) located at the Rock Island County Courthouse. Data includes name, parents’ names, and year of birth.
1922-1934
Index to Records of Births: 1922-1934, Rock Island County Illinois (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase in our RICIGS Shop)
This index contains transcribed records of births in Rock Island County 1922-1934 held at the Rock Island County Courthouse. Data includes name of child, father’s given name, mother’s given name, year of birth, and certificate number.
1935-1941
Index to Records of Births: 1935-1941, Rock Island County Illinois (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase in our RICIGS Shop)
This index contains transcribed records of births in Rock Island County 1935-1941 held at the Rock Island County Courthouse. Data includes name of child, father’s given name, mother’s given name, year of birth, and certificate number.
Marriage Records
1832 through records that are 50 years old (an additional year is added each year)
Index of Rock Island County Marriages
This index of Marriage Records includes the name of the couple, the date, and license number. The website explains how to order a certificate for genealogical purposes and what information was collected for various dates.
1833 – 1900
Illinois Statewide Marriage Index
This index lists marriages for Rock Island County from 1833 to 1900. The database includes the name of the bride and groom and the marriage license number and date of marriage. Additional information is available for some dates in the Supplements below.
Supplements
You will need the license number from the index above to find additional information in these supplements for Rock Island County marriages. Starting in Dec 1877 the place of residence and age of the bride and groom are listed. In Dec 1882 the names of the parents of the bride and groom were added to the record.
Rock Island County Marriage Supplement Part II 1877 (Dec) – 1884 (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
Rock Island County Marriage Supplement Part III 1885 – 1900
1900 (January 3) – 1901 (February 28)
Rock Island County Illinois Marriages (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
This index includes license number, date of marriage and the following information for both the bride and groom: name, place of residence, age and parents’ names.
1907 (July 31) – 1910 (December 22)
Bride and Groom Index – Register of Marriages Rock Island County, Illinois: Book 5 and Book 6 Partial (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
This index includes license number, date of marriage, names of bride and groom and parents’ names.
Images of the marriage returns for July 31, 1907 – December 22, 1910 are available in 4 volumes. (RICIGS Members only). Use the index shown above to search for a name and find the license number.
Vol. 1: License no. 23800-24447
Vol. 2: License no. 24448-25803
Vol. 3: License no. 25804-25720
Vol. 4: License no. 25721-26369
Death Related Indexes
Cemeteries
Rock Island County Cemeteries
The Rock Island County Illinois Genealogical Society has organized information on cemeteries in the County on their website.
1834-1899
Rock Island County Probate Case Files Index
This index includes name, year and type of filing for 7,842 files from Rock Island County held by the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) System at Western Illinois University in Macomb. The collection is thought to be nearly complete for this period of time. Images of some Rock Island County Probate files can be found at FamilySearch, https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1834344
1837-1891
Rock Island County, Illinois Will Abstracts, Books A – D
These abstracts of Rock Island County wills usually contain the name of the decedent, family members, witnesses and executors and the dates of death and probate. Sometimes there is information on beneficiaries. (link to members only pdf RI County Will Abstracts A-D)
1870’s through early 1940’s
Collection of Miscellaneous Documents Index
(birth certificates, stillbirth certificates, death certificates, transportation of corpse, burial permits,)
This name index is of 221 birth records (1870’s – early 1940’s) and 201 death records (1902 – early 1940’s). The index includes only the name, page number, and document type of the image contained in the image volumes.
The documents were copied from a book of unknown origin held at the Rock Island County Courthouse. Locations included are the upper Rock Island County area surrounding Hillsdale, Zuma Township, Canoe Creek and Whiteside County locations of Albany, Prophetstown, and Erie.
Images of birth and death certificates are available in 4 volumes. (Available free to RICIGS Members). Use the index shown above to search for a name and find the page number.
Volume 1 – pages 1-72
Volume 2 – pages 73-144
Volume 3 – pages 145-216
Volume 4 – pages 217-289
1878 through records that are 20 years old (an additional year is added each year)
Index of Rock Island County Deaths
This index of Death Records includes the name, gender, date of birth and date of death of individuals dying in the County. The website explains how to order a certificate for genealogical purposes and what information was collected for various dates.
Early 1900’s-Early 2000’s
Rock Island County Historical Society Obituary Index
This Obituaries Database contains an index of approximately 63,000 obituaries published from the early 1900’s through early 2000’s. Information includes name, date of newspaper and file location of the obituary.
1916-1950
Illinois Death Certificates, 1916-1950
This database provides a list of death certificates filed with the Illinois Department of Public Health between 1916 and 1950. Index includes name, date of death, county and city.
1951-1971
Illinois Death Certificates, 1951-1971
This database provides listings of death certificates filed with the Illinois Department of Public Health between 1951 and 1971. This index is an ongoing project and the data presented here is not complete. If a record you are searching for is not listed, check back at a later date or contact the Illinois Department of Public Health.
2005-
Obituary Indexes (RICIGS)
The Rock Island County Illinois Genealogical Society (RICIGS) has compiled indexes of obituaries found in the Rock Island Argus and/or Quad City Times newspapers. The circulation area for both newspapers includes Eastern Iowa, Metro Quad Cities and Western Illinois. Information includes name, date of death, date of obituary, maiden name when available and newspaper publishing the obituary.
2005-
Funeral Memorial Card Index (RICIGS)
The Rock Island County Illinois Genealogical Society collects memorial cards from several funeral homes in the Illinois Quad-Cities. Information in the index includes name, birth date and place, death date and place, place of interment and name of funeral home. The cards are available for viewing in the RICIGS Library at Rock Island County Historical Society Library. Although there are some earlier memorial cards, most are from 2005 to present.
County Histories, Directories, and Maps
Pre 1877 Rock Island County Pioneer Family Program Index
(Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
This Pre 1877 Rock Island County Pioneer Family Index includes names of Rock Island County settlers prior to 1877 along with their year of arrival. Names of descendants are included. Additional material documenting these families is on file at the Rock Island County Historical Society Library. This program was part of the Rock Island County Bicentennial Commission, 1976.
1877 Past and Present of Rock Island County, Ill
The Past and Present of Rock Island County, Ill contains a history of the county, its cities, towns, & a biographical directory of its citizens, war record of its volunteers in the late rebellion, portraits of early settlers and prominent men, general and local statistics, map of Rock Island County, history of Illinois, Constitution of the United States, miscellaneous matters, etc. Chicago: H.F. Kett & Co.
1885 Portrait and Biographical Album of Rock Island County, Illinois
The Portrait and Biographical Album of Rock Island County, Illinois history contains full-page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the county: together with portraits and biographies of all the governors of Illinois, and of the presidents of the United States : also containing a history of the county, from its earliest settlement to the present time. Chicago: Biographical Pub. Co.
1886 Rock Island County Directory, extract
Rock Island County Directory, 1886 is an extract of the names of rural residents living outside the cities of Moline and Rock Island. Rock Island, IL: Blackhawk Genealogical Society.
1894 Plat Book of Rock Island County, Illinois
These maps from the 1894 Plat Book of Rock Island County Illinois include maps of villages, cities and townships of the county and show land ownership.
1897 The Biographical Record of Rock Island County, Illinois
The Biographical Record of Rock Island County, Illinois. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co.
1905 Early Rock Island
Early Rock Island. Moline, Ill. Press of Desaulniers & Co.
1905 Atlas of Rock Island County, Illinois
These maps from the 1905 Atlas of Rock Island County Illinois include maps of villages, cities and townships of the county and show land ownership.
1908 Historic Rock Island County
Historic Rock Island County contains history of the settlement of Rock Island County from the earliest known period to the present time : embracing references of importance, and including a biography of Rock Island County’s well-known citizens. Rock Island, Ill.: Kramer & Co.
1914 Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Rock Island County
Chicago: Munsell Pub. Co.
- Volume 1: Historic Rock Island County.
- Volume 2: Biographical history of Rock Island County’s early settlers and leading business men.
Newspapers
Abstracts from Rock Island County Illinois Newspapers
Genealogical Abstracts from Rock Island County Illinois Newspapers contains items of genealogical interest from early Rock Island County newspapers. Volumes Indexes will be published in the link below as they are digitized.
Rock Island Argus
The Rock Island Argus for the years of 1861 – 1923 has been digitized and is available through the Library of Congress, Chronicling America National Digital Newspaper Program.
- 1861-1871 The Evening Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1871-1872 Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1872-1873 The Rock Island Daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1873-1877 The Daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1877-1885 Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1885-1886 The Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1886-1893 Rock Island Daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1893-1920 Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.)
- 1920-1923 The Rock Island Argus and Daily Union. (Rock Island, Ill.)
Moline Dispatch
The Moline Public Library has digitized the Moline Dispatch and early Moline Newspapers
Rock Island County Historical Society Newspaper Project
The following newspapers can be browsed at this link from Advantage Archives.
- 1884-1992 The Port Byron Globe
- 1897-1963 Reynolds Press
- 1907-1970 East Moline Herald
- 1915-1940 Gazette van Moline
- 1903-1907 East Moline Enterprise
- 1915-1916 De Nieuwe Wereld
- 1935-1936 Our Sunday Visitor
- 1992-2013 The Review
The Catholic Messenger
The Catholic Messenger, published by the Diocese of Davenport Iowa contains articles on individuals and businesses in Rock Island County, Illinois.
1883-2001 The Catholic Messenger
Newspapers published in RI County
The Illinois Newspaper Project has published a list of known newspapers published in Rock Island County and identifies libraries that hold each newspaper.
Court Records
1842 – 1901
Rock Island County Illinois, Chancery Court Abstracts, Volumes 1 -19 Index
Janet Pease abstracted items rich in genealogical information from the Chancery Court record books. Cases included are divorces, estate partitions, change of name, foreclosures, and items involving deeds and titles, among others. This index of names gives the page number where an abstract can be found. The abstracts are found in 3 parts. (
Abstracts: (Available free to RICIGS Members) (Available for purchase to non-members in our RICIGS Shop)
Part 1: 1842-1881, pages 1-114
Part 2: 1882-1893, pages 115-244
Part 3: 1894-1901, pages 245-375