Blog · October 13, 2026 · Illinois
Using the McDonough County Plat Book
Open the official McDonough County parcel viewer, find an owner or a vacant tract, and learn which land records back up what the map shows.
Main page: McDonough County, IL GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, McDonough County facts and neighboring maps).
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This page covers the McDonough County plat book: the official link, what each part of the parcel record tells you, and which Illinois land records to pull when the map isn't enough.
We link the official viewer and the McDonough County page in the Platbookmapper directory, explain the records behind the map, and cover the questions buyers, builders and hunters ask most.
What the map covers, from Macomb to the back roads
On the map, Macomb anchors the county as its seat, with Bushnell, Colchester, Bardolph, and Blandinsville spread around it. Crossroads communities such as Adair, Georgetown, and Colmar have their own small clusters of lots. Census Bureau estimates show 26,839 residents in 2023 and around 589 square miles of land in the county. You'll see dense subdivision lots around Blandinsville and a looser rural pattern in between.
Finding a McDonough County plat book
A plat book is the paper cousin of the online parcel map: a township-by-township atlas with owner names, handy in a truck near Macomb. The catch is age. A printed book is a snapshot from the year it was compiled, while the online McDonough County parcel map is updated as deeds are processed.
Work and land use in McDonough County
McDonough County had 609 business establishments in 2022 (County Business Patterns), led by retail trade, other services, and accommodation and food services. The local economy leans harder than average on utilities, nursing and residential care, and wholesale of nondurable goods (including farm products). Where a tract near Industry has highway or rail access, expect commercial and farm buyers to take an interest. That context helps when you read the parcel pattern around Bardolph: jobs and land use move together.
Where to open the official McDonough County plat book
The McDonough County WTH GIS map is the county's own public parcel viewer; it runs on a WTH Technology GIS parcel site. The quickest search in McDonough County is usually the parcel number from a tax bill; owner and address searches work too. We track the link on our McDonough County directory page, so check there if it stops loading.
Finding vacant land and acreage in McDonough County
To use the McDonough County plat book for a vacant land search:
- Follow the roads out of Macomb with aerials on and mark every tract without a rooftop.
- For the open ground around Macomb, copy the owner, acreage and mailing address into a simple spreadsheet.
- Compare land values on similar McDonough County tracts to see whether an asking price is in the ballpark.
- Confirm legal access. In McDonough County, as anywhere, a parcel with no road frontage depends on an easement.
- Ask the local offices serving Industry about building permits and septic rules before you buy.
Before you buy near Industry, read how to tell if land is buildable.
Who uses the McDonough County parcel map
The same map serves very different jobs around Blandinsville.
- Homesteaders eyeing the country near Georgetown use acreage and frontage on the record to narrow a long list to a few tracts worth visiting.
- Folks shopping for raw land click through empty parcels near Blandinsville, note the owners, and send letters.
- Contractors working in McDonough County use the map to find lot dimensions and neighboring owners before they stake a foundation or schedule a survey.
- A hunter driving the back roads near Georgetown can match a promising woodlot to an owner name in seconds.
How accurate are McDonough County, IL property lines?
Parcel boundaries on the McDonough County viewer are drawn to keep tax accounts straight, so small offsets from the true line are expected. Rural McDonough County land sits on the federal survey grid: a deed might call out a quarter of a numbered section in a given township and range. For rural ground near Georgetown, a recorded survey or a new one is the only reliable source for the true line.
Where McDonough County deeds and plats are kept
For land near Macomb, the parcel record is the index; the recorded deed is the source. Names differ across states, so confirm on the official McDonough County site which office records deeds and plats. If you need a plat for a lot in Good Hope, look for the plat book and page or the subdivision name in the parcel record, then request that document from the recording office.
Near the county line
If your land is near the edge, check the next county over too: Fulton County, Hancock County, Henderson County, Schuyler County, and Warren County border McDonough County. The Illinois county list links every neighboring map from McDonough County.
Common questions
How do I look up a property owner in McDonough County?
Click the parcel. McDonough County tax records show the owner of record and usually a mailing address, which may differ from the property address.
Does McDonough County have a plat book?
Whether a current printed edition exists for McDonough County varies; the free online map covering Blandinsville and the rest of the county is the dependable option.
What is the county seat of McDonough County, Illinois?
Macomb is the county seat.
How do I find property lines in McDonough County, Illinois?
Map first, then the recorded plat or deed, then a survey: that order works for any boundary question in McDonough County.
Open the official McDonough County, IL parcel map McDonough County in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey, especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.