Marci is absolute right. When I went to visit the Washington County Courthouse last fall, I was by all appearances a novice genealogist. But I had my trump card: the voice of experience of the members of the Illinois Washington County Roots Web list. So all of you folks, listen up to the voice of experience (or fustration :). In my humble opinion, the staff of the Washington County Courthouse is not equiped to handle the flood of genealogical requests. If you do not know what you are looking for, then they do not have the time to help you. If you do, then they'll bring the AVAILABLE records out to you to view and photocopy. Notice the word AVAILABLE. There is still a problem in Washington County where official records have been lost, damaged, destroyed, and not recorded onto microfilm. In my humble opinion, this is a BIG problem. And Marci's efforts are important and could have a big impact. I have personally seen the marriage index and marriage register and they are pitiful. Notice that I did not say marriage records. The rumor is that they are stored in the Washington County Courthouse basement in boxes, unindexed, unrecorded, and unprotected. Unless there is a compelling legal requirement for public access to those records (Probate being the immediate exception), then (in my humble opinion) the Washington County Clerk is not going to do anything out of the ordinary to help purely genealogical research. I have personally met with the current Washington County Clerk. He is not opposed to genealogical efforts, but he has neither the staff, time, or money to support those efforts. He and other members of the County board understand our desires, but are unable to facilitate a solution. Our only recourse is through Illinois State channels. But time is a-wasting. John Greiman Highlands Ranch, CO [email protected] wrote: > Subject: Re: [ILWASHIN] 1831> 58 Marriage Book > Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2000 12:06:54 -0700 > From: "Marci" <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > > With all this controversy, I just had to write. > > Almost a year ago I started what I would call WAVES in Washington County. It included writing to Representative Luchtenfeld, the Washington County Courthouse, and to the newspaper (my letter seemed to have disappeared somewhere). I did not stop there, which would have confined it to Washington County. I wrote to State Senator Evelyn Bowles, > Mr. John Daly(Director of the Administative Section of the Illinois State Archives) Illinois State Representative: Steve Davis > Illinois State Attorney General: Mr. Jim Ryan. > I accused the Washington County Courthouse of being in violation of the Freedom of Information Act. Evelyn Bowles personally got involved with this and even called me at home. I was even called a rabble rouser by the City Clerk, (which is OKey-dokey by me). He even told me that they locked up rabble rousers there. :-) > Anyway, > > The results of my efforts can be found at: http://www.iltrails.org/Washington/#probate > > These probate files give you estate records, land records, wills, etc......All you have to do is write the courthouse, give them the number (which is after the name), the type of file that it states, and the NAME....they WILL copy your file, and send it to you....(Remember this, Washington County Courthouse officials are not researchers, they will not deciper what you need out of the box, they will just copy the whole of the folder for the person that you are asking for). > > This is not a new idea...everyone needs to remember that having the files copied by IRAD is totally voluntary on the part of the Washington County Courthouse, as well as the rest of Illinois. They do not have to give them up, have them copied, microfilmed or whatever....They are not telling you that you can not copy the materials, or have copies made.... > They are just limiting what you can and cannot do within their courthouse. > Of course, I am still in the mindset that they are in violation of the Freedom of Information Act. Write those letters....the more the merrier... > (Believe me, there is more than meets the eye in Washington County).(Someone should try and get in the basement!!!) > > Marci