Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society
“…increasing and enriching public knowledge of our heritage”
Ehrlicher Research Center
719 N. Eleventh Street
Pekin, Illinois
(309) 477-3044
Mailing Address:
PO Box 312
Pekin, Illinois 61555-0312
| Monday | Thursday |
| 9:00 am-1:00 pm | 9:00 am-1:00 pm |
| Tuesday | Friday |
| 9:00 am-1:00 pm | 9:00 am-1:00 pm |
| 7:00 pm-9:00 pm | |
| Wednesday | Sunday |
| 9:00 am-4:30 pm | 2:00 pm-4:30pm |
Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society is now a FamilySearch Affiliate Library! Visitors to our library have free access to many millions of additional digital images on the FamilySearch website than they can access from home.
Upcoming Events
A Historical Tidbit is a
short Tazewell County related article.
It could be a 5 or 6 page story but could be as simple as a
family photo, letter, or document.
If you have a Tazewell County related article, photo, letter, or document you’d like to share, here’s how to make a submission.
Here's the latest ten additions & modifications:
- 1941 – Four Generations of the Lampitt Family
01/14/2023
- 1900’s – James A. Williams & Mary E. Linn
01/14/2023
- 1926 – Pekin High Football Letterman
11/27/2022
- 1880’s – Dr. Samuel Kennedy Linn & Jane Lindsey
10/30/2022
- 1907 – Grimm Wedding Cake
10/29/2022
- 1900’s – James F. Rollings
10/21/2022
- 1949 – Roy & Florence Williams 50th Wedding Anniversary
08/15/2022
- 1933 – Pendergast Inn
07/21/2022
- 1904 – Kiblinger & Merchenthaler Grocery
05/09/2022
- 1844 – Old Horshor Mill
05/09/2022
Browse entire
Historical Tidbits
Collection
If you have a
Tazewell County related
article, photo, letter, or document
you’d like to share,
here’s how to make a submission.
AmazonSmile Donations Ended February 20!
Thank you for your support of TCGHS over the years while shopping at Amazon. Unfortunately, AmazonSmile was discontinued February 20.
Fortunately, there is a great alternative!
Join iGive today (for free) via this link: https://www.iGive.com/TCGHS When you login & shop their 2,000+ stores online (think Chewy, Walmart, Expedia, Walgreens, and so many more), we'll earn donations at least TWICE what we earned through AmazonSmile. The average donation through an iGive store is about 3%, with some offering 25% or higher!
Each new iGive member who joins to support TCGHS between February 10, 2023 and March 31, 2023 and makes their first purchase within 30 days of joining earns a $5 Bonus for the society! On top of the normal percentage donated.
You can make it all automatic. Download the iGive Button & turn your browser into an automatic donation generating machine! Anytime you are shopping on a vendor who supports iGive, you'll be automatically notified!
Again, thanks for your continued support!
Welcome to theTazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society!
The Society was established in 1978 to “stimulate interest; to collect, preserve, and safeguard records; and to provide related educational services for the purpose of increasing and enriching public knowledge of our heritage.”
Our library is staffed with one or more trained volunteer genealogists. Our collection currently contains almost 13,000 volumes.
Unexpected closings can occur but are very rare (usually due to inclement weather and, recently, worldwide pandemics) – if in doubt, call us at 309 477-3044 before leaving home. If you are coming through town and can't stop by during our normal hours, email us in advance and we'll try to make arrangements to meet you at the library.
Our meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm. Our monthly meeting starts with a one hour presentation about a genealogical or historical subject followed by a short business meeting. The public is welcome to attend any of our meetings/presentations. Many of our meetings may be attended virtually via Zoom - again, the public is welcome!
But we do encourage you to consider joining the Society - annual dues are just $25 for an individual or $28 for a family (two individuals living at same address). Here's how to join!
A good way to get a general idea of what's available on tcghs.org is to review our website map. Thanks for stopping by!
Library Will Be Closed April 5-17
We are running out (actually, have run out) of book storage!
So, we have decided to upgrade our static book shelving to high-capacity mobile shelving, allowing us to utilize the space formerly lost to the aisles between our fixed shelving units – almost doubling our linear shelving space.
But it takes a lot of work – we must first temporarily move our book collection from the static shelving, then remove the old static shelving, install the new mobile shelving, and, finally, return our collection to the new shelving.
As you can imagine, this process will totally disrupt our floorplan, requiring us to close the library from April 5 through April 17 (April meeting is cancelled) And, of course, those dates might change a little based on the arrival of the new shelving.
Tazewell County Veterans of World War II Remembrances
Buy One - Get One Free Sale!
The Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society believed that conserving our World War II veteran’s experiences was so important that in 2007 we recorded many of the Tazewell County veteran’s stories to preserve for future generations. Hundreds of veterans shared their unique experiences–many for the first time!
You’ll relive with “ordinary” men and women how their amazing sacrifices during these extraordinary times forged the values that made our people and nation great! No wonder they have been christened The Greatest Generation!
Hundreds of these memories were selected and published in an approximately 500 page 8.5″ x 11″ book entitled Tazewell County Veterans of World War II Remembrances. The book has a high quality, long-lasting library binding. Pictures of many of the veterans were included with their stories.
Many of these valiant men and women have since passed away. Now, extended through March 31, you can get 2 copies of the book for the original price of just one - $33 delivered to your home! Get yours today before they are gone!
Carolyn's Closet Rummage Sale
June 2 & 3
This year's rummage sale will be Friday, June, 2, 2023 – 8am-5pm and Saturday, June 3, 2023 – 8am-3pm.
Start saving items to donate for our annual “Carolyn’s Closet” rummage sale—please no electronics or clothing! Hardbound & paperback books are welcomed.
Members and friends are asked to drop off donations during library hours beginning Monday, May1 through Wednesday, May 31. All proceeds go to further the society’s collection. At the end of the sale, we always donate any remaining items to other local organizations.
April 2023 Mystery Photos Posted!
Unfortunately, we have many photographs in our collection that are undated with unnamed persons taken at an unknown locations. We have dubbed these as our Mystery Photo Collection This month we pass the 100 Mystery Photos milestone!
We publish one or more photographs each month in The Monthly newsletter and on our website. All additional details we have accompany each photo. Click on photo to see it full-size!
Here's the mystery photos from the April 2023 issue of The Monthly:
Please contact us even if you are not 100% sure of your information—sometimes a tiny tidbit can lead to big results! Thanks for your help!
Also, take a look at all the Mystery Photos we have posted in the past! Perhaps you can identify one of them.
Support TCGHS when Shopping
We get paid when you purchase
from these merchants!
Overview of programs we participate in!
Click Logo for more Details!
Click Logo for more Details!
Sellers of Used & Out-of-Print Books
Click for more Details