Gail Borden Public Library District has some free, online genealogy records including: 

VITAL RECORDS – search newspaper collections below for birth announcements, marriage announcements, obituaries and death notices

DEATH – Elgin Death Records – Follow the links to view the death records on Illinois Digital Archives.

• Volume 1 contains death records from 1837 – 1924.
• Select volume 1,  part 1 for last names beginning with the letters A – G.
• Select volume 1, part 2 for last names beginning with the letters H – O.
• Select volume 1, part 3 for last names beginning with the letters P – Z.
• Volume 2 contains death records from 1925 – 1949.
• Select volume 2, part 1 for last names beginning with the letters A – H.
• Select volume 2, part 2 for last names beginning with the letters H – R.
• Select volume 2, part 3 for last names beginning with the letters S – Z.

VETERANS – Veterans’ History Project – oral histories WWII

VETERANS – Veteran Voices – oral histories

NEWSPAPERS – Local Newspaper and Vital Records Index – an index of Elgin area articles from the Courier News & Daily Herald. The Vital Records Surname (i.e., last name) search provides a way to find obituaries, birth notices, and marriage announcements listed in Elgin newspapers from July 1, 2002 to date. In addition, records for newspapers that were published prior to 1915 are being entered as time permits.

NEWSPAPERS – Digitized Newspapers online

• • • The Elgin Daily Courier
      3,745 Pages
      1887-1889
    • The Elgin Advocate
      3,299 Pages
      1882-1889
    • Elgin Every Saturday
      2,474 Pages
      1884-1899
    • Every Saturday
      2,465 Pages
      1884-1889
    • The Elgin Daily News
      2,445 Pages
      1878-1882
    • Elgin Daily News
      1,994 Pages
      1877-1879
    • Elgin Advocate
      1,985 Pages
      1873-1881
    • Elgin Gazette
      899 Pages
      1850-1873
    • Elgin Daily Frank
      513 Pages
      1882-1882
    • Elgin Weekly Frank
      391 Pages
      1881-1882
    • Second District Democrat
      32 Pages
      1863-1864
    • Chicago Times
      25 Pages
      1872-1872

MAGAZINES – Elgin Area Memories, photos, veterans histories, WatchWord magazines, history, newspapers

• • • The Elgin Advocate  1873 – February 22, September 6
      1875 – May 8
      1876 – entire year
       1878 – entire year
      1879 – entire year
      1880 – entire year
       1881 – entire year
       1882 – entire year
      1883 – entire year
      1884 – entire year
      1885 – entire year
       1886 – entire year
      1887 – entire year
      1888 – entire year
      1889 – entire year     
    • The Elgin Business Mirror  1865 – May 12
    • The Elgin Daily Courier1884 – March 18 through December 31;
      1885 – entire year
      1886 – entire year
       1887 – entire year
       1888 – entire year
      1889 – entire year
    • The (Elgin) Daily News1877 –  entire year
      1878 –  entire year
      1879 –  January 23, May 3, July – December
      1880 –  3 issues
       1882 – partial year
       1883 – entire year
       1884 – entire year
    • The Elgin Daily Frank1882 – February 1 through March 31
      1882 – April 1 through May 31
      1882 – June 1 through July 6
    • (Elgin) Every Saturday1884 – April through December
      1885 – entire year
      1886 – April 3
      1887 – entire year
      1888 – entire year
      1889 – entire year
      1899 – December 30 – (final issue)
    • The Elgin Gazette1850 – August 10, October 19, December 28
      1851 – January 18 and 25, April 19, May 17,
      June 21
      1856 – June 18, October 22
      1857 – January 21, February 4
      1858 – February 27, December 31
      1860 – partial year
      1861 – partial year
      1869 – February 4, February 11, February 25
      1872 – April 6
      1873 – February 22
    • Elgin Weekly Frank  1882 – entire year
    • The Fox River Courier  1851 – August 16, November 1 and 12,
      September 20
      1852 – April 7
    • The Illinois Weekly Palladium  1853 – October 27
      1854 – February 2, September 14
      1855 – April 19, November 1
    • Second District Democrat1863 – September 16 and 23, October 7 and 14
      1864 – March 16, 23, 30 and July 27
    • Valley Chronicle  1884 – November 28
    • The Weekly Gazette1861 – May 16 through December 25
      1862 – entire year
      1863 – entire year
      1864 – January 6 through November 30
      1865 – February and May 24
    • Elgin WatchWord magazine – personal stories, photos, engineering successes, and company history for employees of the Elgin National Watch Company1921 – August through December1922 – the complete year1923 – the complete year

      1924 – the complete year

      1925 – the complete year

      1926 – January through April, June through December

      1927 – the complete year

      1928 – January through October, December

      1929 – January through November

      1930 – the complete year

      1931 – the complete year

      1932 – January through June, September through December

      1933 – May 1935 – Publication was suspended during the Great Depression.

      1935 – June through December

      1936 – January, February, April, May, August, November

      1937 – March through December

      1938 – January through March, May

      1940 – March, July through December

      1941 – January through May, August through October

      1942 – January, February, April through December

      1943 – January, February, April through November

      1944 – the complete year

      1945 – Special Anniversary issue – 80th Anniversary and War Production Issue, January through August, December

      1946 – January, February/March, April, June

      1947 – Anniversary issue, June through December

      1948 – January, March through December

      1949 – January through May, July, August, October through December

      1950 – the complete year

      1951 – February through April, June through December

      1952 – December

      1953 – December

      1954 – April, June, August through December

      1955 – January through June

      1956 – January through June, September through December

MAGAZINES – WatchWord magazine online

PHOTOS AND POSTCARDS – Elgin photos, postcards, lithographs, and more

ETHNIC/AFRICAN AMERICAN – Black pioneers of Kane County and Elgin, Illinois, 1855 to 1880 : a genealogy and history

HISTORY – Gail Borden Library History – Collection of photographs of the Gail Borden Public Library from its location on Spring Street to its building at 270 N. Grove Avenue.

HISTORY – Elgin Area History – Collection of photographs and postcards related to the history of the Elgin area. Includes topics such as Sears houses in the area, the tornado of 1920, the Elgin Watch factory, and the Northern Illinois Hospital and Asylum for the Insane.