Sources checked October 29, 2026. Holdings checked against official catalogs and repository descriptions. Staff-confirmed details are identified below; other holdings are based on published sources. No name-level search; dates do not guarantee complete coverage or online images.
STOP 01 / SIU IRAD
Cairo council minutes: locate the public decision
City minutes provide a municipal route distinct from county-government records.
City Council Minutes (Cairo) 1857–1944 · Accession 6/0396/01
A focused question to ask
Which volume or subject index covers this street, project or meeting date? Are supporting petitions held separately?
Evidence limit: Minutes need not name every resident or preserve all supporting papers. An authorization is not proof that a project was completed.
STOP 02 / COMMUNITY COLLECTION
Cairo Public Library: identify the newspaper before searching
The University of Illinois newspaper directory lists Cairo Public Library holdings for titles including Cairo Daily Bulletin, Cairo Citizen and War Eagle. Use the exact title rather than treating every Cairo newspaper as one run.
A focused question to ask
Which issues and format survive for my date, and can I use a reader or request a copy?
Evidence limit: The directory’s displayed publication dates are not the library’s exact issue coverage. Confirm holdings, gaps and equipment directly.
STOP 03 / COMMUNITY COLLECTION
Community interviews: schools, businesses and the 1937 flood
The college’s Alexander section includes recollections of school life and Cairo businesses, plus interviews about segregation and the 1937 flood. Student collectors assembled the project in the 1970s.
A focused question to ask
Which interview passage concerns my school, workplace or neighborhood, and what contemporary source could corroborate it?
Evidence limit: Recollections are evidence of an interviewee’s account, not independent confirmation of every event. Preserve speaker, interviewer and page when citing.
IRAD is an Illinois Secretary of State program administered by the Illinois State Archives. Depository location: Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. Direct IRAD research requests to the regional depository, not the university’s separate archives or special collections.
Call before visiting the IRAD facility in the Library Storage Building, 1835 University Press Drive, Carbondale. It is separate from the main library. Follow the statewide telephone/mail request policy; reduced summer hours and university closures can affect access.
Start with no more than two names, approximate dates, the county and the record type. Include the township or school where known and the accession number above. Ask whether an index exists, which volumes survive and what copying will cost. For an unindexed series, agree on a manageable search before requesting a long period. The statewide policy directs research requests to telephone or mail rather than email; wait for a response before sending another request. See the statewide research policy ↗.
Request template: I am researching [person or place] in [locality] around [years]. Your catalog lists [title], accession [number]. Which volume covers that period, is it indexed, and how can I consult or obtain the relevant pages? Please let me know any gaps, restrictions and copying charges.
Collection dates at a glance
The table lists IRAD series with verified date spans. Community collections above may have different or unspecified coverage and separate access rules. Catalog spans are starting points, not guarantees of every year, locality or individual. Use the Research Planner to compare your years with these cataloged series.
Selected cataloged series for Alexander County
Record series
Catalog dates
Accession
City Council Minutes (Cairo)
1857–1944
6/0396/01
Keep the record and your interpretation separate.
Save the depository, collection, accession number, volume, page, dates and any copy correspondence. Record uncertain names as uncertain. A shared road, school or signature can suggest an association; it does not establish a family relationship.
Suggest a correction, an overlooked collection or an updated access detail. An official link or source helps us check it before making a change. Please leave out private family documents and sensitive personal information.