ChicagoGenealogy: Research Insights from Study and Serendipity

Yesterday I learned that a document number listed in a Cook County tract book was actually the case number for a divorce granted in the Superior Court. Here's the story: A few weeks ago, I visited the Tract Department in the Cook County Recorder of Deeds office ( 118 N. Clark Street, Room 120, Chicago, Illinois 60602 ) and got some help book and paging some c. 1910 documents that I wanted to view. As the clerk looked at the list, three document numbers stood out to her. One had the letters "M L" following the number. I learned that this means "mechanic's lien" and that those early records aren't available. One of the other two numbers--six digits each--had "C" following it and the other had an "S." The clerk mentioned that they might be "corporation" documents. It seemed a bit odd--the transaction appeared to be between family members--but we book and paged them and I went across the hall t

I'm working on a blog post about Northwestern Memorial Hospital Records which include birth registers from the Maxwell Station. One Google search led to another this evening and I landed on the page for The Chicago Jewish Historical Society . If you have some time, check out their Journal Archive . Simply put, it's rich with history worth reading.