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June 2018
Summer is a popular time for weddings, and our office is especially busy accepting marriage license applications this season. To apply for a license, couples must appear together at our Waukegan office, be free to marry, and present valid identification.
After completing the application process, couples often stop at our selfie booth and take a photo to commemorate the day.
More marriage license information
  
We are open
8:30 AM to 7:00 PM
every Friday in
June and July.
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A public lottery was held in the lobby of the Lake County Courthouse and Administrative Complex to determine the order of the political parties on November's ballot. Brian McClain, Lake County Facility Operations, drew from our patriotic basket to determine which party will be listed first.
Watch the video.
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 Shop for fresh fruits, vegetables, baked treats and then, stop to talk to us about your vital record needs, voter registration opportunities, or working as an election judge.
We will be appearing at four farmer markets this season:
June 20, Wed Highwood 4:30 PM to 9:30 PM
June 22, Fri Lake Zurich 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM
June 27, Wed Grayslake 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM
July 26, Thurs Libertyville 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Currently, Lake County holds almost 300 property tax liens for both vacant land and properties with dilapidated buildings -- all abandoned by the owner.
County Clerk staff has extensively searched the internet, reviewed national databases, examined other county records, and hunted through additional online resources to locate the last-known owner and all other financially vested parties for each property. In the case of the owner’s death, we have reached out to surviving family members.
Once located, we prepared three foreclosure notifications for each owner. The Sheriff’s Department delivered the first notice in-person. The Circuit Clerk’s office sent certified mail. And last, a legal notice of foreclosure was published in the newspaper.
Property owners have until November 16, 2018 to claim their property by paying their overdue taxes which includes interest and penalties. After April 15, 2019, the Clerk’s office will publish a legal notice containing the list of the unclaimed properties available for purchase by the public.
 As part of our history series, here is an interesting article about the County Clerk's office in times past.
During the years of 1933 and 1934, The Chicago World’s Fair was not the only newspaper-making subject in northern Illinois. Llewellyn (Lewis) A. Hendee served as Lake County Clerk (1910 to 1936) and was the focus of Milwaukee, Chicago, and Lake County newspaper articles for his “marriage mill.”
In Wisconsin, couples were required to apply for a marriage license five days before getting married. If the same couple came to Waukegan, they could obtain a license and get married the same day - any time of the day or night. Conveniently located half-way between Chicago and Milwaukee, Waukegan became a busy and popular nuptial place.
The unemployed and taxi cab drivers would hustle and hunt for couples arriving at the Waukegan train station. The passengers would be taken to the jewelers for rings, doctor for a health certificate, a florist for flowers, the county clerk for a license, and then to the Justice of the Peace for a ceremony. The “hustlers” earned a fixed-percentage of the money spent at each stop.
There was even competition between the Justice of the Peace for business. J.P. Henry F. Wallenwein, boasted that he averaged about 2600 marriages a year. Another J.P. Bert S. Love printed “Let Love Unite You” on his business cards. According to our records, 74 marriage licenses were issued and same-day ceremonies were performed over the weekend of June 30 and July 1, 1934. Only five of these licenses were for Lake County residents, and J.P. Wallenwein performed 45 ceremonies himself.
In October 1934, the “street solicitation of bridal couples” was banned by ordinance because frenzied cab drivers began driving on the left-side of the street to look for prospects. Hendee was defeated in the next election. His opponent, Russ Alford, campaigned that he would stop the marriage mill by refusing to sell licenses after hours. Records show that after taking office, Alford issued only 25 licenses in a weekend, compared to Hendee’s 75 to 100.
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Carla N. Wyckoff, Lake County Clerk
18 N. County Street, Room 101
Waukegan, IL 60085
847.377.2400
CountyClerk@lakecountyil.gov
LakeCountyClerk.info
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