A newly signed law will allow Illinois county clerks to unseal military discharge papers after 62 years.
Tazewell County Clerk John Ackerman calls it “Sharon’s Law,” after deputy county clerk Sharon Sciortino. The push to unseal old records began after she showed Ackerman a book of 980 Civil War-era papers collecting dust in a storage closet.
Previously, those records were only available to direct descendants. In the case of the Civil War records, all of those who were eligible to look at the records are now deceased. With the new law, the discharge papers are now on display in the lobby of the county clerk’s office.
“It’s a testament to the heavy burden paid by the citizens paid by Tazewell County that have served in the military and provided us with the freedom that we enjoy today," said Ackerman.
Ackerman says the detailed descriptions of people in the discharge papers are a “genealogist’s treasure trove.”
Senate Bill 1007 was sponsored by state Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield) and state Sen. Chuck Weaver (R-Peoria).
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