This page created and maintained by the Kane County Genealogical Society © 2007 through 2015. All rights reserved.
Online Resources
Newsletter Index Addenda
The Kane County Genealogical Society (KCGS) has been in existence since 1978 and in 1979 the organization began the publication of its newsletter. At the onset, the newsletter was published 5-6 times a year and contained genealogical queries, society announcements, and family history information obtained from its early members.
As time went on, the newsletter became a quarterly and the content expanded to include information from a variety of sources not readily available to the public. Such items included bible records, marriage notices, newspaper accounts, and cemetery records. The newsletter developed into a great wealth of genealogical information for its readers.
The Kane County Genealogical Society is proud to add this listing to its long list of works and thanks all those who have contributed to the success the quarterly newsletter, the Kane County Chronicles.
User's Guide to the Every Name Index of the Kane County Chronicles
- This index contains the names of all persons with a discernable surname and first name contained within the body of the Chronicle Newsletter. In the interest of privacy, those persons who submitted queries, submitted or authored articles, are not identified in the index.
- The format of the index lists the surname, person's first name or initial, volume, issue, and page number where individual would be found.
- Where possible, women are listed in the index under both their married and maiden names. Example: Helen Smith Brown is listed as Helen Smith and Helen Brown
- Even though a woman may not be cited specifically by either her married or maiden name, the appropriate surname was presumed. Example: "Mrs. Helen Brown, daughter of John Smith, was visiting…." The index lists Helen Smith and Helen Brown.
- Married couples cited as Mr. and Mrs. Male Name Surname are listed in the index as Male Name Surname and Mrs. Male Surname. Example: Mr. and Mrs. George Smith are listed as George Smith and Mrs. George Smith
- When specified, female persons identified with first initials were titled with Miss or Mrs., as appropriate.
- When no or only first initials were available, a title was used to further identify an individual. Examples: Rev. A. Brown, Mr. Black, Mrs. J.A. Smith, Dr. Johnson
Abbreviations used in the index Genl. General Capt. Captain Eld. Elder Lt. Lieutenant Rev. Reverend Dr. Doctor In some instances, a title preceded the full name of a person. If the name was complete, a title was not used in the first name. Example: Hon. John Adams is indexed as John Adams
- When first initials or names were not specified or discernable or the surname referred to a family, the abbreviation SUR was used as the first name.
The following links are a supplement to the Every Name Index of the Kane County Chronicles.
Probate Addendum
In 2003, the Kane County Genealogical Society introduced the publication Index to: Kane County, Illinois Probate and Guardianship Records located in local historical societies. This publication covered these records generated from the approximately 1837 to the early 1960’s.
The following was noted within the introduction of this resource:
“ Unlike most counties, which have one historical society, Kane County posses twelve historical societies. Each covers roughly the township in which it is located. This fragementation creates a problem for the genealogist searching for a family within the county borders. Thus, the Kane County Genealogical Society serves as the umbrella society collecting and processing records on a countywide basis. Because of this unique position, the KCGS became the default group to oversee the dispersion of probate and guardianship packets in the early 1990’s.
When the Kane county Circuit Court announced the plan to microfilm and dispose of the original probate and guardianship packets, the twelve historical societies asked if they could acquire the packets. Jan Carlson, the Clerk of the Circuit Court, determined it was legal to disperse the packets to the societies for their specific historical use.
It took two years to sort the packets. Wills and negotiable bonds were removed when found and returned to the court. At times it was difficult to determine where the packet should go. In those cases, workers made determinations based on land descriptions, lawyers appearing on the documents, doctors mentioned and funeral homes used. Elburn and Countryside Historical Society took all packets and pieces of paper not identified by a locale.
Several areas were not represented by historical societies. The village of Hampshire consented to receive the Hampshire and Burlington township records. When the Hampshire Historical Society formed a few years ago, they assumed control of those packets. The Plato township records had been located in several places and are now stored at the Elgin Area Historical Society.”
It was noted during the processing of this index that the Plato and Burlington township packets seemed to end about 1900 creating a question of the whereabouts of subsequent packets. KCGS volunteers investigated the discrepancy but no resolution was found.
Very recently, the KCGS was made aware that a number of packets relating to the Plato and Burlington areas had been found in a local, private collection. These packets were removed from the collection, provided to the KCGS, sorted, and relocated to the proper storage facility.
The following link is a listing of the records recently found. As in the original publication, the name of the individual, the year of the event, and storage location of the record is listed.