Genealogy News from Missouri and Illinois

Many of us are homebound as the winter of 2025 continues to surprise us with unexpected watery and icy bounty. What better time is there to learn about more genealogy resources as well as some upcoming projects and meetings?  You won't have to shovel a drop or get out of your comfy pjs to learn about the wonderful work the Missouri State Archives has accomplished this past year or to attend a virtual meeting on researching in Illinois. So, settle in and read on for more!

Did Cousin John Go to Jail?

As we do our family history research, some of us are horrified to discover that not all of our ancestors were law-abiding citizens. We may find cattle rustlers, murderers, extortionists, bigamists, and any number of people in our family trees accused of and possibly incarcerated for their criminal activities. Our first thoughts might be to skip over those people because of their misdeeds, but the notoriety of these ancestors should alert us to record sets we might otherwise miss.