An old proverb states that “the eyes are the windows into the soul.” A genealogy corollary is that “a photo is a window into the lives of your ancestors.”
I love old photos, whether they are portraits of my ancestors or historical photos for the period when they lived. And it is important to a complete research that one attempts to understand the environment that surrounds our ancestors’ lives if one wants to truly appreciate what they went through.
So where can they be found? Obviously the best resource is our own photo albums and those that our relatives possess. But what about other resources? Many archives, historical societies, libraries and genealogical societies have collections of old photos. And in the past few years there has been a massive movement towards making these historical photo collections available online. Some have search capabilities where you can actually put in a surname or a location, name of a building or historical event and find what is available.
For the state of Illinois what collections are available for you to browse and/or search online? Here is a list of sites to start with. Please feel free to add in the comments other online resources that you might be aware of in the state.
Please be aware that there may be very strict rules regarding downloading or other use of the images that you may find. Copyright and other legal protections may be in force. Make sure that you read the limitations of use for any image that you find in these collections and wish to download and/or copy. It is your responsibility to adhere to the rules for all of these collections.
Please note that links to these sites may change in the future. The author (me) will not be constantly checking and updating these links, so if you find a broken link, please use your favorite search engine to locate the new link.
(Updated October 2021)
- Adams County Historical Photos
- African American Cultural Life (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville)
- Altona Historical Photos
- American Sokol Organization – Brookfield
- Bartlett History Museum (IL) – Bartlett
- Belleville Historical Photos
- Benedictine University and Area Photos
- Bloomington-Normal Local History Resources -Photos
- Brookfield Photo Collections
- CCC I & M Canal Photographs (Lewis University)
- Champaign County Historical Society Online Collections
- Chicago – In Old Photos
- Chicago Field Museum
- Chicago Historical Photographs
- Chicago History Museum Images
- Chicago – Photographic Images of Change (University of Illinois at Chicago)
- Chicago Urban League Photos (University of Illinois at Chicago)
- Chicago Image Collections
- Chicago Public Library Digital Collections Photographs
- Chicago Tribune Vintage Photos
- Chronicling Illinois – Illinois Photographic Collection
- Clark County Photo Album
- Clinton County Photo Gallery
- Cook County ILGenWeb Photos
- Crawford County Photos
- Daily Life Along the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad (Newberry Library)
- Decatur Public Library Local History Photos
- DeKalb County History Center – Sycamore
- DeWitt County Photograph Collections
- Digital Image Collection (Western Illinois University)
- Doc Horrell Southern Illinois Mining Photo Collection (Southern Illinois University Carbondale)
- DuPage County Historical Museum – Wheaton
- EIU – Booth Library Digital Photo Archive
- Elgin Area Photos
- Elgin Historical Society – Elgin
- EFCA Historic Photograph Collection (Trinity International University)
- Elk Grove Park District – Farmhouse Museum – Elk Grove Village
- Encyclopedia of Chicago
- Erikson Institute Historical Photos
- Evansville Historic Photo Collection
- Evergreen Park Public Library – Evergreen Park
- Explore Chicago Collections
- Hanover Park Historic Photos
- Hieronymus Mueller Museum – Decatur
- Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County – Quincy
- Illinois Ancient Faces
- Illinois Archives – Abandoned Building Photography
- Illinois Civil War Soldiers Photo Album
- Illinois Civil War Photos – Boys in Blue
- Illinois Dead Fred
- Illinois Digital Archives
- Illinois Harvest Image Collections
- Illinois Old Family Photos
- Illinois Penny Postcards
- Illinois Railway Museum Photo Galleries
- Illinois State University History Photo Collection
- Illinois Wesleyan University Historical Collections
- Illinois, DP.LA Photos
- Illinois, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives
- Images of Chicago Ridge
- Indian Prairie Public Library Photo Albums
- Jefferson County Photo Collections
- John Dewey Photograph Collection (Southern Illinois University Carbondale)
- Joliet Historical Photos
- Joliet Museum Photo Gallery
- Kewanee Historical Photographs
- Knox College Photos
- Labor & Industry Museum – Belleville
- Lake Bluff History Museum – Lake Bluff
- Lake Forest – Lake Bluff Historical Society – Lake Forest
- Lake Forest College Digital Collections
- Lane County History Museum Photos
- Lawrence County Photo Gallery
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs – Illinois
- Litchfield Photograph Collection
- Lockport Area Photos
- Lockport Slides, 1966-1995
- MacMurray College Digital Images
- Macoupin County Photographs
- Madison County Historical Archive
- Marion Photo Albums
- McDonough County Genealogical Society Historic Photos
- McLean County Museum of History – Pantagraph Negatives Collection
- Millikin University Big Blue Photograph Collection
- Monroe County Photos and Pictures
- Morgan County Photos
- Museum of Broadcast Communications – Chicago
- National Archives – Digital Photograph Collections
- Newberry Library Image Research
- North Park University Historical Photograph Collection
- Northeastern Illinois University Images
- Northern Illinois University Digital Library Photos
- Northwestern University Online Photo Exhibits
- Oak Lawn Public Library – Oak Lawn
- Peoria Historical Society Image Collection
- Pictures of Early Ogle County Settlers
- Pieces of Parkridge – Photos
- Polish Museum of America – Chicago
- Pullman Museum Photographs
- Quincy Area Historic Photo Collection
- Randolph County Photo Albums
- Riverdale Library Photo Albums
- Rock Island Photo Gallery
- Rockford Midway Village Museum Image Collection
- Rockford Photo Collections
- Roosevelt University Gage Gallery Photo Exhibits
- Saint Xavier University Historical Photos
- Saline County Photos
- Salvation Army Central Territory History Museum – Hoffman Estates
- Schuyler County Photo Album
- Smithsonian Images
- Southern Illinois University Photographic Collections
- Springfield Vintage Photos
- State Historic Preservation Photo Galleries
- Stephenson County Photos and Postcards
- Swenson Center-Augustana College – Rock Island
- University of Chicago Photographic Archive
- University of Illinois Archives
- University of Illinois Chicago Images
- University of Illinois Springfield Photos
- University of St. Francis, A Visual History
- Upper Mississippi Valley Digital Archive
- Urbana Free Library Digital Collections
- Vintage Aerial Photos – Illinois
- Vintage Chicago Tribune Photos
- Vintage ISU Photos
- Western Illinois University Libraries Digital Image Collection
- Wilmette Library Photos
- Woodridge History Photos
- Woodstock Illinois Historic Photographs
For historical photos from other states as well as articles about photo research, please visit the Photos page.
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!
For other Free Illinois Links, click on the category of interest:
Newspapers
Yearbooks
Births
Marriages
Deaths
BMD Records
Alumni Records
Cemetery Records
Church Records
Coroner Records
Criminal Records
Directories
Divorce Records
Immigration Records
Military Records
Mortuary Records
Naturalizations
Obituaries
Photos
Probate and Wills
School Records
Tax Records
Voter Records
One reply on “Illinois Online Historical Photos Research”
Fabulous! My ex-husband’s parents came from IL, before heading for California around 1900s. I’ll be digging here for awhile I think. Thanks, Kenneth.