Quad Cities Genealogy Resources
A curated directory of the societies, libraries, archives, and record offices that hold your family’s story on both sides of the Mississippi — Scott County, Iowa and Rock Island County, Illinois.
The Quad Cities sit at a crossroads of German, Swedish, Belgian, and Irish immigration, and that history is scattered across state lines, county courthouses, municipal libraries, and volunteer‑run historical societies. This guide gathers the key repositories in one place so you know exactly where to look.
Every listing links to the organization’s official site for current hours, addresses, and fees. Prefer to have it all handled for you? Bear Roots does the digging, visits these repositories in person, and hands you answers — start your story here.
Societies
Rock Island County Illinois Genealogical Society (RICIGS)
Founded 1972. A 3,000+ volume library of books, maps, and periodicals, plus obituary indexes, newspaper abstracts, and Civil War monument transcriptions. Offers paid lookups for remote researchers. Library co‑located with RICHS.
Rock Island County Historical Society (RICHS)
Founded 1905. Hundreds of archival collections, thousands of photographs and books, vertical files, and microfilm — plus tens of thousands of pages of free, searchable historical county newspapers online.
Scott County Iowa Genealogical Society (SCIGS)
Organized 1973. Its collection lives inside the Richardson‑Sloane Special Collections Center at the Davenport Public Library. Publishes a newsletter and offers member research assistance.
Heritage Centers
Center for Belgian Culture
Preserves the heritage of Moline’s large Belgian community. Holds an index of bidprentjes (Belgian death‑memorial cards), regional travel guides, and offers translation and research help bridging local families to Belgian archives.
German American Heritage Center & Museum
Housed in the historic Standard Hotel, a 19th‑century immigrant gateway. Documents the German‑American experience and runs genealogy workshops with access to experts in old German script and overseas parish records.
Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center
A national archive for Swedish‑American genealogy. Holds Swedish‑American church records and provides access to Swedish parish databases such as ArkivDigital and SVAR. Modest research fee for non‑members.
Libraries
Davenport Public Library
The hub of Iowa‑side research and a FamilySearch Affiliate Library. Its Richardson‑Sloane Special Collections Center holds the deep genealogy and local‑history archives, the SCIGS collection, city directories, and historic newspapers.
Moline Public Library
Illinois‑side local history and genealogy resources, including online research databases.
County & Government Records
Scott County Recorder (Iowa)
Land deed registries, marriage contracts, and early vital indexes, with online index databases hosted in partnership with the Iowa GenWeb Project and Davenport Public Library.
Rock Island County Clerk (Illinois)
Civil records dating back well over a century, with historical vital indexes digitized and searchable online for free, plus reduced‑fee “genealogical copies” of historical records.
Upper Mississippi Valley Digital Image Archive
A searchable archive of historical photographs from across the Upper Mississippi Valley — a great source for putting faces and places to your family lines.
FamilySearch Network
Davenport FamilySearch Center
The primary FamilySearch research facility in the metro. On‑site premium databases and restricted digital images that can’t be viewed from home, plus guidance from trained staff.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries
The Davenport Public Library, Geneseo Public Library, and Western District Library (Orion) unlock much of FamilySearch’s restricted digital images locally — no trip to Salt Lake required.
Surrounding Counties
Muscatine County, Iowa (IAGenWeb)
Volunteer genealogical society and free county records for the county just south of Scott County.
Clinton County Historical Society & Museum
Museum and library preserving the history of the county upriver from the Quad Cities.
Henry County, Illinois (ILGenWeb)
Free volunteer lookups and record links for the county east of Rock Island.
Rather have it all handled?
Knowing where the records live is half the battle — getting them, reading them, and piecing the story together is the rest. Bear Roots visits these repositories in person and does the work for you.
Start Your StoryLocations, hours, and fees are set by each organization and can change — always confirm on their official site before visiting. Bear Roots Genealogy · Serving the Quad Cities and beyond.