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 / UIS IRAD
High-school activity: literary-society minutes
A literary society’s minutes offer a route beyond enrollment. Daily registers provide a separate school-record series for comparison.
School Literary Society Minutes, High School 1911–1916 · Accession 4/0356/04
School Teachers' Daily Registers 1895–1922 · Accession 4/0356/02
A focused question to ask
Which school and society do these records represent, and are names or dates indexed?
Evidence limit: The county catalog does not identify the school. Do not assume all schools or students are represented, or that the two series describe the same pupils.
STOP 02 / UIS IRAD
Litchfield: health decisions and burial permits
Health-board minutes and a short burial-permit record offer different municipal approaches to a local event.
Litchfield: Board of Health Minutes 1909–1924 · Accession 4/0231/04
Litchfield: Burial Permit Record 1902–1904 · Accession 4/0231/03
A focused question to ask
What subjects appear in the minutes, and is the burial-permit record indexed by name or date?
Evidence limit: These series cover different years. Board minutes are not necessarily patient records, and a burial permit is not a substitute for checking the corresponding death or cemetery record.
STOP 03 / UIS IRAD
East Fork Township: roads and local government
Compare highway commissioners’ records with the township record when researching a route or public project.
East Fork Twp: Highway Commissioners' Record 1872–1985 · Accession 4/0355/02
East Fork Twp: Township Record 1873–1961 · Accession 4/0355/01
A focused question to ask
Which volumes cover the road and date, and are there indexes or related decisions in both series?
Evidence limit: Long catalog spans do not establish every year survives. A mention of a person does not prove land ownership or a family relationship.
IRAD is an Illinois Secretary of State program administered by the Illinois State Archives. Depository location: University of Illinois Springfield. Direct IRAD research requests to the regional depository, not the university’s separate archives or special collections.
Call first. UIS official pages differ about appointment availability and whether email research requests are accepted. Mail is a listed request route; confirm current staffing, the mailing address, appointments and copying arrangements directly before visiting.
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 Montgomery County
Record series
Catalog dates
Accession
School Literary Society Minutes, High School
1911–1916
4/0356/04
School Teachers' Daily Registers
1895–1922
4/0356/02
Litchfield: Board of Health Minutes
1909–1924
4/0231/04
Litchfield: Burial Permit Record
1902–1904
4/0231/03
East Fork Twp: Highway Commissioners' Record
1872–1985
4/0355/02
East Fork Twp: Township Record
1873–1961
4/0355/01
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.