Probate Records

This pamphlet is one in a series designed to assist the genealogical researcher in using the most pertinent of related federal, state, and local governmental records in the possession of the Illinois State Archives and its Illinois Regional Archives Depositories (IRAD) System. The disposition of estates on the county level of government is the subject of this pamphlet.

Probate Records, 1772–1970

Historical Background
The Illinois General Assembly granted probate jurisdiction to the clerk of the county commissioners’ court in 1819. This jurisdiction was subject to review and reversal by the full commissioners’ court. Probate duties included issuing letters of administration for intestate (without a will) estates, distributing the estates of individuals who died intestate, recording all wills and letters, ruling on contested wills, receiving bonds from administrators, paying witnesses, ordering final distributions, ordering property sales for payments of debts, making pro rata distributions of assets to creditors, appointing guardians for children under the age of 14, approving guardians selected by children age 14 and over, and receiving bonds from those guardians.

The functions of the probate court were transferred from county commissioners’ court clerks to county probate courts in 1821. Probate judges were elected by the General Assembly to lifetime terms. Their duties included those specified in 1819 as well as bankruptcy and imprisonment for debt cases. Probate justices of the peace were established in each county beginning in 1837. These justices were selected for four-year terms by the electorate. Their jurisdictions included those cases in which claims did not exceed $1,000. Probate justice of the peace proceedings were reported to the circuit courts of their respective counties which either approved or rejected them.

The 1848 Illinois Constitution moved original jurisdiction in probate matters to the newly created county courts. County judges were elected to four-year terms. The 1870 Constitution gave the General Assembly authority to authorize separate probate courts in counties with populations of 50,000 or more. Legislation enacted in 1953 mandated free standing probate courts for counties with inhabitants exceeding 125,000 while it left it a local option for those counties with residents numbering between 70,000 and 125,000. By the terms of the Judicial Amendment of 1962, the functions of both the probate courts and the county courts were transferred to the circuit courts effective Jan. 1, 1964. Since that date probate cases have been handled by circuit courts

Record Contents
Four record series generated by local courts in their probate capacities are the most useful for the genealogist: Probate Case Files, the Probate Record, Probate Wills, and the Probate Will Record.

Probate Case Files and the Probate Record
Probate Case Files consist of loose papers which have been filed with the court in relation to particular decedents. Central documents include property inventories and appraisals, sale reports, bills and claims filed, and final settlements. Each of these case files concerns a single estate and the overall arrangement is chronological by the original filing date.

The Probate Record is bound in volumes. The information therein contained largely replicates that found in the case files. But besides formally recording the documents found in the files the Probate Record shows how the court acted upon each of those items. Like the Probate Case Files the Probate Record is arranged chronologically by the original filing date for each estate.

Probate Wills and the Probate Will Record
Probate Wills are made up of loose documents arranged chronologically by filing date. They show the name of the testator, that person’s provisions for his or her property after death, and the date the will was executed. As an official court record they also show the dates they were filed and probated.

The Probate Will Record is contained in hardbound volumes. This record includes a transcription of the will along with the date the testator died and documentation regarding the filing of the will and its submission to probate. In cases of intestate death the record contains a declaration of no will and the appointment and bond of an administrator. Probate Will Record entries are arranged chronologically by filing date for each estate.

Indexes and Dockets
Probate Case Files, the Probate Record, Probate Wills, and the Probate Will Record are arranged by filing date, and an approximation of the date of death is most useful in locating the name of the desired estate in these records. The Probate Record and the Probate Will Record may contain internal indexes. Related record series which help locate particular estates include Probate Case Files Indexes, Probate Record Indexes, and Probate Will Record Indexes, all of which provide access alphabetically by the estate name. Additionally, Probate Dockets which in summary form list cases chronologically by filing date aid in locating particular estates.

Searching for Probate Records Held by IRAD
Consult the Local Governmental Records Database to see if IRAD has probate records for the county and date span you are researching. Type the title of the probate record you are searching for in the title field to return a list of all records with that title held by IRAD. For example, enter PROBATE CASE FILES, PROBATE RECORD, PROBATE WILLS, etc. Keep in mind that they are often found with the probate case files.

If the genealogist is interested in a comprehensive listing of all county probate records maintained in the IRAD system, the published finding aid A Summary Guide to Local Governmental Records in the Illinois Regional Archives, 2nd Edition (Springfield: Illinois State Archives, 1999) can be consulted. Copies are available for use at the State Archives and at each of the seven regional depositories. This guide sells for $6.00 and may be purchased from: Illinois State Archives, Publications Unit, Norton Building, Springfield, IL 62756. Please make checks payable to: Secretary of State.

The most current listing of records, including recent accessions for a particular county in the regional system’s possession, can be obtained free of charge from the Illinois State Archives, IRAD Unit, Norton Building, Springfield, IL 62756.

Illinois State Archives: In addition to the county probate records held by the regional depositories some probate records also are available on duplicate microfilm at the Archives Building in Springfield. In-person users are invited to consult an in-house listing of these holdings.

Finding Your Ancestor
Mail and Telephone Requests
The Illinois Regional Archives Depository system welcomes mail and telephone inquiries. Click here for the addresses and phone numbers of the regional depositories. It also includes a map which shows the counties covered by each depository. In requesting a search of a particular county’s probate records contact the appropriate regional depository. Provide the name of the decedent and the county where the estate was probated as well as the approximate date of the transaction. (Indexes are not available for some IRAD probate records, making searches very difficult without a near date.)

A photocopy of the record requested will be provided by the appropriate regional depository if it can be located.

State Archives reference staff do not search county probate records on duplicate microfilm housed at the State Archives Building. These must be consulted by users on-site.

Researching On Your Own
For in-person searches of probate records stored at one of the regional depositories the researcher must visit the appropriate depository.

To use those local probate court records which are available at the Illinois State Archives, please ask reference staff for the listing of county records available on duplicate microfilm at the State Archives Building.

Probate records not located at one of the IRAD centers or at the State Archives generally are still maintained at the respective courthouses in the counties where they originated. In these instances the appropriate circuit court clerk’s office should be contacted.