Alumni records are part directories, part newspapers, and magazines, part biographies, part obituaries, part yearbooks, part vital records, etc. You get the idea. If you are seeking genealogy clues, these “records’ are full of them. All of the information is derivative, but it can provide leads for you to search for original documents. And if you are documenting a person’s family story, well, there’s a ton of that kind of information too.
So what am I including in Alumni Records?
- Alumni directories
- Alumni registers
- Alumni newsletters, bulletins, newspapers, and magazines
- Commencement programs
And what information is available in them?
- Graduation dates and degree(s) received
- Current photos and/or those of their family
- Current address lists
- Where are they now and what are they doing?
- Obituaries and “In Memoriam”
- Marriages
- Children born to the alumnus
- Deaths in their family
- Life achievements and awards
- Interesting stories about the alumnus and their family
Below is a list of links to free online alumni record and index collections for the state:
Note: Some links listed take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections’ images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital. To take full advantage make sure that you are logged in to FamilySearch. The results may be different if you are signed in, rather than not.
(Updated October 2023)
Illinois Alumni Records
- Blue Mound Community High School Alumni, 1898-1927
- DePaul University Commencement Programs
- Evanston Township High School Alumni Newsletter
- Fenwick High School Alumni Newsletters
- Galesburg High School Alumni
- Governors State University Commencement Programs
- Greenville University Alumni Magazine
- Historical Souvenir of the Springfield High School Alumni Association, 1902
- Illinois College Alumni News
- Illinois Institute of Technology Magazine
- Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy Alumni Newsletters
- Illinois State University Alumni Magazine
- Illinois State University Alumni Register
- Illinois State University Department of Philosophy Alumni Newsletters
- Illinois Wesleyan University Alumni Bulletins, News, and Magazines, 1891-1992
- Illinois Wesleyan University Class Newsletters
- Illinois Wesleyan University Magazine
- Illinois. State Normal University (Normal). Alumni Quarterly
- Knox College, Alumni and non-graduate Address List, 1915
- Lake Forest College, Alumni Register, 1908
- Lake Land College Alumni Magazine
- Lombard College Commencement Programs
- Loyola University Chicago Commencement Programs
- Macon County, Alumni of Blue Mound Community High School 1898-1927
- Mater Dei Catholic High School Alumni Newsletter
- Millikin University Alumni News
- National Louis University Alumni Publications
- North Shore Country Day School Alumni Bulletin, 1952
- Northern Illinois University Alumni Magazine
- Northern Illinois University Department of Mathematical Sciences, Alumni Newsletter
- Northwestern University Alumni Journal
- Northwestern University Alumni Mailing List, 1909
- Northwestern University Commencement Programs
- Northwestern University Magazine
- Northwestern University Alumni Mailing List, 1909
- Northwestern University, College of Liberal Arts, Alumni of Class of 1895
- Northwestern University, College of Liberal Arts, Alumni Record, 1903
- Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing Alumnae News Letter
- Quincy University Alumni Magazine
- River Grove, Rhodes School Alumni
- Roosevelt University Alumni News
- Rush Medical College Alumni Directory
- Rush University Alumni Magazine
- Shimer College Record Magazine
- Southern Illinois University Alumni Magazine
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale Commencement Programs
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale Commencement Programs
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Alumni Magazine
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Alumnus Magazine
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Commencement Programs
- St. John’s Lutheran School Alumni Newsletter
- St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing Alumnae Newsletter
- Steinmetz High School Alumni News
- Sterling High School Graduation Programs
- Stevenson High School Alumni Newsletter
- University High School Alumni Newsletters
- University of Chicago Alumni Directory, University of Chicago Press, 1910
- University of Chicago Alumni Newsletter
- University of Chicago, Alumni Directory
- University of Illinois Agriculture and Consumer Economics Alumni Newsletter
- University of Illinois Alumni 1898
- University of Illinois Alumni Magazine
- University of Illinois Alumni News
- University of Illinois Alumni News
- University of Illinois Alumni News, 1909-1922
- University of Illinois Alumni Record: Technological, Scientific, Agricultural, Literary, Library, and Law Departments, 1872-1903
- University of Illinois at Urbana, The Alumni Record
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Commencement Programs
- University of Illinois College of Pharmacy Alumni Magazine
- University of Illinois Commencement Programs
- University of Illinois Directory for 1929, including the Names of All Students Who have attended the University
- University of Illinois Sociology Alumni Newsletter
- University of Illinois Springfield Alumni Magazine
- University of Illinois Springfield Commencement Programs
- University of Illinois Springfield Commencement Programs
- University of Illinois The Alumni Record
- University of Illinois, Chicago Colleges of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Pharmacy Alumni Record, 1921
- Vienna High School Graduation Programs
- Western Illinois University Alumni Magazine
- Western Illinois University Alumni Register 1903-1915
- Wheaton College Alumni Magazine
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!