If you have any male ancestors of military age who lived in Illinois during
the Civil War years, there is a searchable database at
Illinois State Civil War Archives
http://www.sos.state.il.us/depts/archives/datcivil.html
Enter the surname only and it will list all with that surname and include
their regiment, company and county of enlistment. It also gives instructions
on ordering official copies of military records via snail mail.
By cross-referencing this database with the Andersonville database, I was
able to determine the first name of a Craig ancestor who died at
Andersonville but whose first name we did not know. I now know his grave
number, date of death and most importantly his first name....Simeon.
Another good Illinois site is
Illinois Public Domain Land Tract Sales
http://www.sos.state.il.us/depts/archives/data_lan.html
This gives data on land sale transactions and is searchable. Official
copies are available by mail.
I recently discovered a possible land purchase by one of the five wives of my
Richard Craig (that's right, folks, FIVE wives!) Am still researching this
one.
Chris B.
MusicaXina(a)aol.com