Every time a courthouse burns, it is a great catastrophe for genealogists as well as the entire community. The place where the county’s business is conducted, a repository for modern and historic records, the center building of the town square-all of this is threatened by a fire. Late this May, another Indiana courthouse caught fire. This was the historic Jefferson County courthouse in Madison, Ind., originally built in 1854.
The facts of the fire are tragically ironic. The fire started on May 20, within hours of the completion of an extensive renovation of the courthouse to celebrate Madison’s bicentennial (1809-2009). The last of the work was soldering the copper guttering that went around the roof and a spark escaped, smoldered, and caught the roof afire. The old timbers quickly burned despite the efforts of 200 firefighters from Indiana and Kentucky. The roof and its gilded copula were lost.
The top floor was waterlogged and the water made its way into the basement, where the records were kept. Officials took quick action to save the records. Refrigerated trucks were brought in to freeze the records (to prevent molding) and transport them to a center where they can be thawed and the water quickly extracted. It is believed that most, if not all, of the saturated records will be saved. The county vows to rebuild and restore the courthouse to how it originally looked.
There have been 30 courthouses in Indiana and 22 in Illinois damaged or destroyed by fire. Below is a list of the Illinois courthouses. This information is taken from myillinoisgenealogy.com/index.htm. The key is: TRL (total record loss), MRL (most records lost), or SRL (some records lost):
n Adams: First fire on December 9, 1835, SRL. Second fire January 9, 1875, TRL. Third time courthouse damaged beyond repair by a tornado April 12, 1945.
n Brown: fire on March 8, 1939, SRL.
n Clark: fire on Dec. 30, 1902, SRL.
n Cook: fire on Oct. 9, 1871, TRL.
n Crawford: fire on March 28, 1999, SRL.
n Cumberland: fire on Nov. 5, 1885, TRL.
n Franklin: fire on Nov. 18, 1843, MRL.
n Hardin: fire on May 19, 1884, MRL.
n Iroquois: fire on Oct. 16, 1866, SRL.
n Jackson: fire on June 10, 1843, SRL.
n Kane: fire in 1843, SRL. Second fire on March 13, 1890, SRL.
n Logan: fire on April 15, 1857, TRL.
n McLean: fire on June 19, 1900, SRL.
n Morgan: fire on Dec. 6, 1827, MRL.
n Moultrie: fire on Nov. 25, 1864, MRL.
n Pike: fire in 1831, SRL.
n Pulaski: fire on Nov. 22, 1879, MRL. Flood in 1937, SRL.
n Shelby: fire on Nov. 17, 1894, SRL.
n Vermilion: fire in 1872, SRL.
n Wabash: fire on April 5, 1857, MRL.
n Wayne: fire on Nov. 17, 1886, TRL.
n Williamson: fire on May 30, 1875, SRL.
Next week will include the longer list of Indiana courthouses lost or damaged by fire.
History
GENEALOGY: Courthouse fires are great catastrophes for genealogists
- History
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Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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Traveling Civil War exhibit makes history personal
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LOOKING BACK: 1962: Flu outbreak forces Schulte closed
Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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Original copy of 13th Amendment at Lincoln Library & Museum
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BRUCE'S HISTORY LESSON: Freedom of religion — beliefs and actions
Because religious faith is, arguably, the quintessential example of our right to privacy, to say nothing of its prominent place in our First Amendment, throughout our history court cases involving the free exercise of religion have been handled with great trepidation and with particular care. One of the milestone “free exercise” religion cases, Davis v. Beason, was decided by the Supreme Court this week (Feb. 3) in 1890.
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LOOKING BACK: 2002: Disco Ernie featured on Maury
Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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HISTORICAL TREASURE: Flashing the mayor's badge
This mayoral badge was presented to the Vigo County Historical Society by Elizabeth K. Schultz, the granddaughter of Samuel E. Beecher Sr., who served as mayor of Terre Haute from 1936 to 1940.
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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: Deadly tornado devastates York in 1907
John T. Staff loved water and, particularly, the Wabash River.
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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: Notorious Western desperado Ellsworth Wyatt captured in Clay County
In October 1892, Terre Haute police received a circular from the State of Kansas containing a description of Ellsworth Wyatt and offering a $1,200 reward for his capture.
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LOOKING BACK: 2002: ISU students honor Martin Luther King Jr.
Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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HISTORICAL TREASURE: News letter filled with wonderful local news
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GENEALOGY: Peyton, Downey, Fifer queries and a plea for help from Scotland
This week, we have several queries.
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Extension plans seminar on land use
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BRUCE'S HISTORY LESSON: Kennedy, Camelot, and other myths
This week (Jan. 20) in 1961, John F. Kennedy was inaugurated as our 35th president, and his tragic death by assassination notwithstanding, his was a mediocre presidency that, undeservedly, became the stuff of legend — in part because of his assassination.
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Actor to portray Lincoln at dinner for historical society
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GENEALOGY: Celebrate MLK Day with the Indiana Historical Society
On Monday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Indiana Historical Society will offer free admission to celebrate Martin Luther King Day.
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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: Light Guards savor military and social experiences
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LOOKING BACK: 1962: 87 high school hoops teams compete in 47th annual Wabash Valley Tournament
Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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HISTORICAL TREASURE: A bottle of clove oil at the pharmacy
The Historical Treasure for today is a bottle of Clove Oil.
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LOOKING BACK: 1987: St. Mary’s Parish congregation celebrates 150th anniversary
Dorothy Jerse looks back at local history from 10, 25 and 50 years ago as reported in the Tribune and Tribune-Star.
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HISTORICAL TREASURE: Fire up the jukebox for a great night
The jukebox existed long before Glenn Miller’s “Juke Box Saturday Night” swing version.
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GENEALOGY: 1752 is one memorable year for genealogists
The year 1752 is one to remember if you have ancestors who lived in areas controlled by Great Britain; and this includes the American colonies.
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