It is highly unlikely that you will find a birth record in Sangamon County prior to 1877 as with most of the counties in Illinois. Birth and death records were not suggested as a form of public record until 1877 by the Illinois government and they were not REQUIRED until 1916. Most counties have marriage records from the date that the county begins as this was proof of the couple not having been married to other people for the purpose of land transactions. You might want to check the Sangamon County Genealogical Society's book Birth Record, Sangamon County July 1860 to September 1878 to see if this person appears. That publication as well as others is for sale at the following address: <A HREF="http://www.rootsweb.com/~ilsangam/scgs/scgs-pub.htm">Publications List, Sangamon County Genealogy Society</A> . Remember those years as they will help in researching many Sangamon County documents. Dan Dixon, President Sangamon County Genealogical Society Sangamon County Genealogical Society PO Box 1829 Springfield, Illinois 62705-1829 Office Answering Machine: 217-529-0542 Email: Dbuttton2@aol.com