- City Council Audio Recordings, 1970-2012
Explore over 800 audio recordings of Chicago City Council meetings made between 1970 - 2012. Access them from the collection finding aid which includes links to all of the recordings and captions. This project was supported by a Recordings at Risk grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). The grant program is made possible by funding from The Mellon Foundation.
A related collection is the City Council Audio Recordings Tape Log, 1970-2010, a hand-written tape log of the audio recordings which can be found on the Chicago City Clerk's Internet Archive page.
The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) is an independent, nonprofit organization that forges strategies to enhance research, teaching, and learning environments in collaboration with libraries, cultural institutions, and communities of higher learning. To learn more, visit www.clir.org and follow CLIR on Facebook and Twitter.
- Index to Legislative Documents, 1833-1998
The Index to Legislative Documents is a chronological record of official actions by the Chicago City Council. From 1833 to 1998, these indexes were kept in handwritten ledgers. 57 digitized ledgers are now available on the Chicago City Clerk’s Internet Archive collection page.
- Annual Indexes to the Journals of the Proceedings, 1905-2004
Annual indexes to the Journal of the Proceedings of the Chicago City Council were published from 1905 to 2004, detailing all legislation filed, introduced and passed each year. Digital copies are available for select years and can be accessed on the Chicago City Clerk’s Internet Archive page and the Chicago History Museum's Journal of the Proceedings guide.
- Collections Finding Aids
A finding aid provides details about an archival collection, including its context and a list of its contents. The Chicago City Clerk’s Office retains many collections, such as City Council committee and administrative records dating back to 1945 and earlier.
As they become available, finding aids for these collections will be uploaded to the Chicago City Clerk’s member page on the Chicago Collections Consortium website. Visit: City of Chicago, Office of the City Clerk.
Additional Resources
- City Council and Related Documents Prior to 1945 - IRAD
Legislative documents and related records from the City of Chicago dated mostly from before 1945 are available for research at the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD), located in the Ronald Williams Library on the Northeastern Illinois University campus in Chicago. Find their contact information here: Depository Information and University Map.
- Chicago City Council Proceedings Files, 1833-1871 - Illinois State Archives
The Illinois State Archives offers a searchable online index of over 35,000 Chicago City Council legislative files, covering the period from Chicago's incorporation as a town in 1833 to the Great Fire of 1871. Visit their website: Illinois Secretary of State.
- A Guide to Accessing the Digital Copies of the Journal of the Proceedings - Chicago History Museum
The Chicago History Museum has created a guide to aid access to digital copies of the Journal of the Proceedings of the Chicago City Council available online. Most of the journals from 1865 to the present are available online. Visit the Journal of the Proceedings guide.
- Municipal Reference Collection - Chicago Public Library
The Chicago Public Library is also a valuable resource for City of Chicago records. The Municipal Reference Collection at Harold Washington Library Center provides an extensive collection of documents, statistics, historical records and publications dating back to the mid-1800s. Visit the Municipal Reference Collection page.
- Chicago Municipal Records Subject Guide - Chicago Collections Consortium
Find archival collections, databases, and other resources related to Chicago municipal government records available at local repositories. Visit: Chicago Municipal Records Guide.
If you have any questions about our collections, please contact us at our City Clerk Archives email: city_clerk_archives@cityofchicago.org