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Jo Daviess County, Illinois Public Records

Find the right office in Jo Daviess County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.

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Most requested Jo Daviess County records

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Showing 11 official sources

Official

City records

Jo Daviess County Library

The Jo Daviess County public library gives readers its catalogue, its online databases and the local history and genealogy collections it holds for the county.

galenalibrary.org
Open official site Jo Daviess County Library
Official

Property records

Jo Daviess County Clerk and Recorder

Jo Daviess County Clerk and Recorder, 330 North Bench Street, Suite 1C, Galena, phone 815-777-0161, files assumed business names and keeps county, land and vital records.

jodaviesscountyil.gov
Open official site Jo Daviess County Clerk and Recorder

Local record guide

About public records in Jo Daviess County

County profile

Jo Daviess County at a glance

State
Illinois
County seat
Galena
Population
22,035
Area
619 sq mi
Founded
1827
Cities and towns
4

Jo Daviess County offices and records

Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Jo Daviess County Sheriff's Office is responsible for maintaining law and order in Jo Daviess County.

Police Departments. Law enforcement in Jo Daviess County is provided by Jo Daviess County Sheriff's Office and several municipal police departments. These departments coordinate with the Sheriff's Office on major crimes and regional law enforcement initiatives, making sure of full coverage and response across Jo Daviess County.

Law Enforcement & Arrests. Jo Daviess County Sheriff's Office, located at 300 N. Bench Street, Galena, IL 61036, is the primary law enforcement agency for unincorporated areas of Jo Daviess County. Arrest records in Jo Daviess County are considered public records under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140/1 et seq.), which allows citizens to request arrest logs, incident reports, and booking information from the Sheriff's Office or municipal police departments. Jo Daviess County does not have tribal police jurisdictions, and the Illinois State Police District 16 in Pecatonica provides additional support for major investigations and highway patrol duties throughout Jo Daviess County.

Arrest Records. They are maintained by the arresting agency, primarily the County Sheriff's Office and municipal police departments.

Abandoned mine records

Old mine workings in Jo Daviess County

Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.

From the old mine records

What is on record in Jo Daviess County

Old mine sites
140
Sites with no status in the records
17
Still producing
11
Main minerals
Lead; crushed stone; Zinc
Holes drawn on the old survey maps
71
Shafts and tunnels
25
What they are
quarry, gravel pit, adit, mine shaft
Maps surveyed
1952 to 1985
Records behind them
374 records for 239 sites, the rest are the same working written down more than once

Is an old working under a property here?

The mine records hold 168 named mine sites inside the county, 140 of them worked out or abandoned; the old survey maps add 71 holes drawn inside the county, 25 of them shafts or tunnels. The minerals the records name are Lead; crushed stone; Zinc.

A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area. The Illinois Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund is a not for profit created by statute, not a state agency; the cover is bought through the homeowner insurer.

1 mile
Jo Daviess County: the boundary from the Census Bureau, and one dot for each old mine or hole on record inside it. Purple is a shaft or a tunnel. Hover a dot for its name.
Illinois mine map and abandoned mine records
Named workings recorded in Jo Daviess County (173 shown, 66 unnamed on the map)

Rows taken off the old survey maps open the USGS record of what sits at that spot, because no single feature on those maps has a page of its own. Rows from the mine records open their own USGS page.

Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.

Straight answers

Jo Daviess County public-records FAQs

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Where can I find mugshots or booking photos in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Jo Daviess County Sheriff or a city police department in Jo Daviess County. Ask that agency for its record. Under 815 ILCS 505/2QQQ, anyone who publishes criminal record information, including photographs, may not charge a fee to remove, correct or modify it. Under 5 ILCS 140/2.15(e), a law enforcement agency may not post booking photographs on its social networking site for civil, petty or business offenses or Class B and C misdemeanors, except to help find a missing person or a wanted person.

How do I get a criminal background check in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

The Illinois criminal history record comes from the Illinois State Police, Bureau of Identification. Under the Uniform Conviction Information Act, conviction information is public: request it by name with the UCIA name based request form or by fingerprints through a Live Scan vendor.

How can I look up sex offenders in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Search the Illinois Sex Offender Registry (Illinois State Police), or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.

How do I register to vote in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Register with the county clerk, or the board of election commissioners where one exists (the local election authority) or through the Illinois State Board of Elections. You can also register online with the state online registration. Regular registration closes 27 days before Election Day and online registration 16 days before; grace period registration and voting run in person at designated sites from the 27th day before through Election Day.

How do I look up property records in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Deeds and other recorded land documents in Jo Daviess County are kept by the Jo Daviess County Recorder of Deeds. Property values are set by the Township Assessor in township counties, or the County Supervisor of Assessments, and tax bills come from the County Treasurer, also called the County Collector. Source: official state page.

How do I get a birth or death certificate in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Certified birth and death certificates for Illinois come from the Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records. You may contact the county clerk where the event occurred. By mail with a check or money order payable to IDPH to Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records, 110 W Lawrence Ave., Springfield, IL 62704-2610, or through the county clerk where the birth occurred. Fee: $10 for a certified copy (or $15 for a certified copy with the information collected at birth); $2 for each additional copy requested at the same time.

How do I find business license records in Jo Daviess County, Illinois?

Business entity filings are searched with the Illinois Secretary of State, Business Services. Sole proprietorships and general partnerships using a business name other than the owners' legal names register it with the county clerk under the Assumed Name Act; some municipalities and counties impose their own taxes.

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Cities, towns and neighboring counties

Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.