Cook County Clerk's Office, 69 W. Washington St., 5th Floor

Genealogy Records

The Cook County Clerk's office provides non-certified copies of vital records for the purpose of genealogical research.

Please note, the Chicago Fire of October 8, 1871 destroyed all county vital records prior to that date.

Under Illinois law, genealogical records are defined as:

Birth certificates older than 75 years.
Marriage certificates older than 50 years.
Death certificates older than 20 years.

All genealogical records issued by the Clerk's office are considered non-certified documents and stamped "For Genealogical Purposes Only."

Document	Cost
Birth	$15; and $4 for each additional copy
Marriage	$15; and $4 for each additional copy
Death	$15; and $4 for each additional copy

If you are uncertain of the exact date of birth, marriage or death and want us to search more than one year, include $1.00 for each additional year you want searched, up to a maximum of 10 years.

Other sources you can contact directly may be helpful in your search and locating state file numbers:

Illinois Secretary of State's State Archives website
RootsWeb.com
Chicago Genealogical Society

Requesting a record

To obtain a genealogical record, you must:

Fill out and sign a Genealogical Request Form*.
Pay the required fee (see above).
Mail or deliver the form to the Cook County Clerk's office:

Write us
Mail your request to:

Include the following items:

a completed Genealogy Request Form*
a check or money order payable to the Cook County Clerk
a self-addressed stamped envelope

Visit us in person
Downtown Chicago
Cook County Vital Records
Daley Center
50 W. Washington St.
East Concourse Level
Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 603-7790
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday

North suburbs/Skokie
5600 W. Old Orchard Road, Room 149
Skokie, IL 60077
(847) 470-7233
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday;
8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

Northwest suburbs/Rolling Meadows
2121 Euclid Ave., Room 238
Rolling Meadows, IL 60008
(847) 818-2850
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday;
8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

West suburbs/Maywood
1311 Maybrook Square, Room 109
Maywood, IL 60153
(708) 865-6010
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday;
8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

South suburbs/Markham
16501 S. Kedzie Ave., Room 238
Markham, IL 60426
(708) 210-4150
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday;
8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

Southwest suburbs/Bridgeview
10220 S. 76th Ave., Room 238
Bridgeview, IL 60455
(708) 974-6150
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday;
8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday

*Please note that some requests made at suburban locations may not be ready the same day.

For more information

Call: (312) 603-7790
E-mail:

(*) = Documents Require
Adobe Acrobat Reader

For information call: (312) 603-5656