Blog · October 14, 2026 · Illinois
Reading the Wood River Plat Map for a lot
Lots in Wood River trace back to recorded plats filed with the county.
Main page: Madison County, IL GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, county facts and neighboring maps).
Platbookmapper is an Amazon Associate. If you buy through an Amazon link on this page, we earn a commission. The link is a product, not the county map.
If a legal description for land in Wood River cites a lot number, the Wood River plat map is where those numbers come from. In this Wood River guide: where plats are filed, plat versus tax map, and the details that matter to buyers.
Who keeps the Wood River plat map
For a subdivision near South Roxana, the deed usually cites the plat; that makes the request quick.
The free map to start with
Go first to the Madison County parcel viewer; it covers each tax parcel around South Roxana and Roxana. Out toward East Alton, put in a street address, an owner's name or a parcel number, and the viewer zooms to the match. Closer to South Roxana, the parcel card typically gives the owner of record, assessed acreage, the parcel number and often a sale date.
Land outside a subdivision
Acreage around Roxana outside a subdivision is often described by metes and bounds or survey description; the deed and any recorded survey describe it instead.
Reading the legal description
Illinois follows the Public Land Survey System, so rural legal descriptions near East Alton cite section, township and range. A standard section is about one square mile, roughly 640 acres, with 36 sections to a township, though corrections make some sections near Bethalto odd-sized. Keep the legal description for land near Bethalto when you talk to a surveyor.
Replats and vacations
Lots near East Alton can be combined or reconfigured by a replat, search the index for replats of the same subdivision; street vacations near Alton show up in the records too.
Getting your bearings
Edwardsville holds the county offices, which is where the courthouse records live. Smaller places on the map include East Alton, Roxana, Bethalto, and Hartford, each with its own cluster of lots. About 262,752 people call Madison County home (Census estimate, 2023) on some 716 square miles. Madison County was organized in 1812, which matters when you trace an old farm's title. Places such as Mississippi River and Horseshoe Lake help you orient on the aerial around Hartford.
Limits of the parcel data
The acreage figure is an assessed number; only a licensed surveyor can set the real lines for a parcel near Roxana. Owner names and values update on a schedule, so a recent sale near Bethalto may not show yet.
City limits and county records
Wood River is part of Madison County, Illinois, which means parcel data comes from the county. Closer to Bethalto, the municipality handles things like zoning, permits and utilities within town limits, and the county still keeps the parcel and deed records. Land beyond the city limits toward South Roxana often answers to county rules instead.
Where the recorded documents are
Before you sign anything, request the recorded deed from the county Recorder of Deeds (in many counties the County Clerk and Recorder); the parcel map near Alton only summarizes it. Long-held tracts around East Alton can sit on a long string of deeds, so a title company is worth hiring on a real sale.
Recorded plat or GIS layer
If the tax map and plat differ near Roxana, go with the plat and a surveyor's work.
Getting answers from the right desk
Questions about value or the owner field for land near Roxana go to the Supervisor of Assessments, working with township assessors, which maintains the tax roll. Zoning, permits and septic questions near Hartford go to planning, building or health offices, town or county, depending on location.
What a plat shows
Near Hartford, the sheet usually includes lot and block numbers, dimensions and bearings, street rights-of-way and easements.
Getting a copy
Out toward South Roxana, many recorder offices offer an online index, while others require a visit or a request; small fees are common.
Land on the county line
Madison County touches Bond County, Clinton County, Jersey County, Macoupin County, and Montgomery County, and each of those keeps its own parcel map. Acreage along the edge near Bethalto can be split in two county records, so open the adjacent map too. For property near East Alton, our state page lists every bordering county map across Illinois.
Using it on a phone
Most viewers work in a phone browser, handy when you're parked on a road near Hartford, though signal can drop in rural spots. A printout of the tract near East Alton keeps working without signal.
Quick answers
How do I read lot and block in Wood River?
Good question; it points to a spot on the plat for that subdivision near Roxana, so pull that plat for dimensions.
What is a replat around Roxana?
In most cases, lot splits in Wood River go through the planning office.
Where are historic plats for Wood River?
Generally, older plats near East Alton may be on film or paper.
How do I get a copy of a plat in Wood River?
In most cases, copies come from the county Recorder of Deeds (in many counties the County Clerk and Recorder), often through an online index.
Does the parcel map work on a phone near Alton?
For a home near East Alton, most viewers run in a mobile browser; screenshots help offline.
Open the official Madison County, IL parcel map See it 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.