St. Clair County Genealogical Society of Illinois

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Belleville, IL
St. Clair County Genealogical Society of Illinois

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The St. Clair County Genealogical Society (SCCGS) - address: P.O. Box 431, Belleville, IL 62222-0431. https://stclair-ilgs.org

Helping genealogists discover their Illinois roots since 1977. Monthly programs are free to the public and members online. Please visit SCCGS Events page at https://stclair-ilgs.org/events/ SCCGS's office is virtual, please contact us by email at [email protected] and read the NOTES for research hints. See all our holdings at the Belleville Public Library 618.234.1440.

11/13/2026

Unlock Your Roots: Annual Meeting & New Website Showcase! 🌐✨

Join the St. Clair County Genealogical Society for our final meeting of the year! We will conduct the installation of our new officers and give you an exclusive look at our newly transformed website.

Quarterly Editor and IT Chair Greg Wade will take center stage to unveil our site's fresh look and demonstrate its powerful new research tools.

What you'll discover:

🔍 Family Finder — Supercharge your search for local surnames and connections.
🔎 Upgraded Site Search — Find records, articles, and indexes faster than ever.
🗺️ Interactive Sitemap & Streamlined Menu — Effortlessly navigate our collections and holdings.

Whether you are a longtime member or just beginning your family history journey, come see how these modern upgrades can help break down your brick walls. A live Q&A will follow the presentation!

🗓️ Date: Thursday, December 10, 2026
🕒 Time: 7:00 PM Central
🎙️ Presenter: Greg Wade
💻 Location: Virtual via Zoom (Registration required)
👉 Register in advance to get your Zoom access link: https://stclair-ilgs.org/events/

11/11/2026

Ahead of Veterans Day tomorrow, the St. Clair County Genealogical Society pauses to honor all servicemen and servicewomen who have served our nation. St. Clair County ancestors who served, local veterans, service members stationed at Scott AFB, and veterans from every walk of life preserved the freedoms we enjoy today.

For genealogists, military records do more than trace service—they tell the story of a life. From pension applications and draft cards to unit rosters and discharge papers, these documents offer deep insights into our ancestors' courage, sacrifice, and daily lives.

Which veteran in your family tree are you remembering and researching this week? Share their name, service branch, or a story you uncovered below! 👇

11/10/2026

Celebrating National Library & Information Services Month! 🏛️

Libraries are the ultimate gateway to discovering your family history, preserving local heritage while giving communities free access to powerful research tools.

Here in Belleville, the St. Clair County Genealogical Society is proud to partner with the Belleville Public Library, where our physical collection of local cemetery records, compiled family histories, and vast printed materials are housed and open to the public. 📜

💡 Not in the St. Clair County area? You can still celebrate Library Month by visiting your own local library! Many public libraries across the country provide free access to major genealogy databases like Ancestry Library Edition from inside the library. 💻

Although not a library, don’t forget to visit the St. Clair County Genealogical Society website which provides information services to help you learn more about your St. Clair County ancestors.

No matter where you live, public information services make it possible for anyone to untangle family brick walls and trace their roots.

💬 How has public library access helped your genealogy research? Tell us what you discovered! 👇

11/06/2026

🔑 Word of the Week: Grass Widow

📑 Definition: A "grass widow" is a historical, colloquial term for a woman who is divorced, separated, or living apart from her husband for an extended period. Unlike a traditional widow, her husband is still very much alive—he is just physically absent, often because he deserted the family, traveled for long-term work, or moved west ahead of them.

💡 Why it matters: This term frequently pops up in old newspapers and local gossip columns. Recognizing a grass widow helps you:

🔎 Solve census mysteries where a woman is listed as the head of household with children but is marked as married rather than widowed.
🤠 Track transient ancestors, like husbands who went to the California Gold Rush or took distant railroad jobs, leaving their wives behind to manage things locally.
💔 Find hidden divorce records or abandonment notices in early county circuit court files.

🎯 Try it this week: If you have an ancestral couple that seems to vanish or live apart between federal census years, check the local historic newspaper archives for the phrase "grass widow" or look for local court desertion notices from that era!

11/04/2026

🚨 Reminder: German Genealogy Webinar Coming Up! 🚨

Stuck on a German brick wall? Don't forget to join us this Thursday, November 5 at 7:00 PM Central on Zoom for "7 Essential Steps for Starting German Genealogy" with expert Katherine Schober!

⚠️ Important: Live attendance is limited to the first 100 people who log in, so plan to jump on early!

👉 Register now: stclair-ilgs.org/events

11/03/2026

🎙️ November is Family Stories Month! Become Your Family's Detective 🕵️‍♂️

Did you know that November is officially National Family Stories Month?

As holiday reunions, Thanksgiving dinners, and family gatherings draw near, it is the absolute best time of year to start capturing the living memories and oral histories of your loved ones!

Genealogy isn't just about collecting dates—it's about gathering the rich, personal stories that bring your St. Clair County ancestors to life.

💡 3 Quick Tips for Gathering Stories This Month:

• Record the Conversation: Don't stress over fancy equipment! Use the voice memo app on your smartphone while chatting over coffee or dessert.
• Ask Open-Ended Questions: Ask prompt questions like "What was your favorite childhood tradition?" or "What is your earliest memory of growing up in St. Clair County?"
•Bring Out the Photo Box: Unlabeled black-and-white photos are wonderful story starters for older relatives.

🕵️ Ready to step up your detective skills?

If you're ready to dive deeper and start piecing together your family tree, check out the SCCGS Genealogy Starter Kit! Our free kit gives you the exact roadmap you need to become a confident family detective:

📘 Free 16-Page eBook: Learn expert strategies for gathering stories, doing "home scavenger hunts," and organizing your research step-by-step.
💻 Online Resource Hub: Quick digital links to local St. Clair County vital records, church books, censuses, and local archives.
📊 Printable Research Tools: Free pedigree charts, family group sheets, and research logs.

🔗 Download the Free Starter Kit & Start Investigating:
https://stclair-ilgs.org/search-help/how-to/starter-kit/

💬 Who is the best storyteller in your family tree?

11/01/2026

🕯️ Remembering Those Who Came Before Us: Día de los Mu***os & Family Memory

Today marks the beginning of Día de los Mu***os (Day of the Dead)—a traditional holiday dedicated to honoring, celebrating, and remembering family members who have passed on.

At its heart, genealogy shares that exact same purpose. We trace names, dates, and places not just to build a list on paper, but to ensure the stories, lives, and legacies of our ancestors are never forgotten.

Whether your family roots in St. Clair County go back to early colonial days, 19th-century immigrant arrivals, or recent decades, our ancestors all left behind pieces of themselves:

📜 Their Stories: The hardships they endured, the communities they built, and the traditions they passed down.
🍲 Their Recipes & Culture: The heirloom dishes, family sayings, and customs still practiced in our homes today.
🕊️ Their Final Resting Places: The quiet pioneer family plots, rural churchyards, and historic burial grounds across St. Clair County.

A Moment for Remembrance: Take a moment today to speak an ancestor’s name aloud, share a favorite family story with a child or grandchild, or look back at an old photograph.

💬 Who is an ancestor in your family tree whose story you are most proud to preserve?

10/31/2026

🔑 Word of the Week: Sexton 🎃

📑 Definition: A sexton is a church or municipal officer responsible for maintaining church grounds, ringing church bells, and overseeing cemetery burials and grave maintenance. (Think of them as the real-life historical cemetery caretakers behind those spooky Halloween tales!)

💡 Why it matters: While movie sextons carry lanterns in the dark, real historical sextons carried something far better for family historians: meticulous burial ledgers! When searching for ancestors whose gravestones are missing, damaged, or were never erected, sexton records are pure gold.

📜 Burial Ledgers: Sextons kept detailed logbooks recording exact burial dates, plot locations, grave purchase costs, and often the cause of death.
🕯️ Unmarked Graves: Sexton ledgers frequently reveal infants, paupers, or ancestors buried in unmarked family plots who don't appear in grave transcriptions or Find a Grave.
⛪ Church vs. City Records: In early St. Clair County, local sextons managed both private churchyards (Catholic, Lutheran, Evangelical) and municipal cemeteries like Mount Hope or Green Mount in Belleville.

🎯 Try it this week: Don't let missing gravestones haunt your research! If you've hit a brick wall locating a grave in St. Clair County, check out our cemetery collection (https://stclair-ilgs.org/collections/cemeteries/) which includes cemeteries by location and our tombstone surname index to about 150 cemeteries.

10/29/2026

🔎 Navigate Your Research Faster: Explore Our Expanded "Search & Help" Menu!

Finding your St. Clair County ancestors just got a whole lot easier!

We have revamped and expanded the "Search & Help" section on our website at stclair-ilgs.org to give you powerful new tools for your family history journey.

Whether you're breaking down a brick wall or just beginning your tree, here are three essential tools you’ll find under the expanded menu:

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family Finder: Quickly scan and track down where specific family surnames appear across our extensive local collections and databases.
🔍 Site Search: Instantly look up keywords, articles, research guides, and resources across the entire SCCGS website with a single click.
🗺️ Site Map: Get a clear, bird’s-eye view of everything our site has to offer, making it effortless to jump straight to the exact record categories you need.

Take a few minutes today to test out these tools and see what new clues pop up for your St. Clair County ancestors!

🔗 Explore the Search & Help Hub: https://stclair-ilgs.org/search-help/

10/27/2026

🤝 It’s Not Too Late to Join the St. Clair County Genealogical Society!

Whether you are just beginning to trace your family tree or have been researching St. Clair County roots for years, now is the perfect time to become a member!

Join today, and your membership will be active all the way through December 31, 2027!

Your membership directly supports the St. Clair County Genealogical Society (SCCGS) an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to the researchers of today and the ancestors of yesterday. Since 1977, we have worked to ensure that the rich history of St. Clair County is not only preserved but made accessible. Our members and donors support our general operations including expansion of our collection housed at the Belleville Public Library, digitization and preservation projects, microfilm acquisitions, and website infrastructure.

Join online and take advantage of your member benefits right away including full access to members-only databases, records, and indexes on our website stclair-ilgs.org, digital access to the SCCGS Quarterly archive featuring over 250,000 indexed local surnames, and much more.

🔗 Join today: https://stclair-ilgs.org/about-membership/

If you are already a member, don’t forget to renew your membership for 2027.

Address

Belleville, IL
62220

Website

https://stclair-ilgs.org/

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