IL Sleuthing my grandpa

[Saltgirl]

Hopefully this is the correct place to get some answers/be pointed in the right direction.

I have begun to do some family tree work; which has led to discussions with my mom and her side of the family. Her Dad died in 1974 when she was 14. He was an abusive addict. She has blocked out a lot of her memories involving him & most likely was not aware of most of it anyways.

I (with her consent) want to dig into his criminal history. I have attempted to find things online but have not found much. I'm sure he was in the newspaper more than what I will add below.

What I really want to gain access to is his entire record....old police/court records. I do not know how to go about getting those things.

Do I just call around/show up to police stations or court houses? I would be willing but they lived in Chicago so you could imagine the amount of buildings that could possibly help and the attitude I would receive if I walked in or called semi clueless to what I am even looking for.

TIA <3

I am attaching an old newspaper article I was able to find. I am attaching the entire page but the part involving him is titled "Dad Faces Dynamite Counts"

 

[Laughing]

Most court records are public.

You need to know (generally) the county.

Once you know that, you may find good resources/addresses here:

The ILGenWeb Project

There may not be much left, as storing records is expensive. You may find microfilmed records & pay for photocopies.

For more newspaper articles, try here:

Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections

Keep us posted!

 

[Saltgirl]

Most court records are public.

You need to know (generally) the county.

Once you know that, you may find good resources/addresses here:

The ILGenWeb Project

There may not be much left, as storing records is expensive. You may find microfilmed records & pay for photocopies.

For more newspaper articles, try here:

Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections

Keep us posted!

Thanks for the response! Unfortunately, I was told court records are most likely long gone now.

 

[Laughing]

Thanks for the response! Unfortunately, I was told court records are most likely long gone now.

I suppose that depends on the location. I've done quite a bit of genealogy research, maybe I've just been lucky?

Best of luck on your newspaper quest!