Williamson County was a very violent mining area in the early part of the 1900s. A large portion of the black population lived in an area known as No. 9, near Colp.

If you're searching for a birth record, I would first contact IRAD at SIU in Carbondale: 618-453-3040. They have a birth record index for the years in which you are interested. If I remember correctly, they will charge a fee for photocopying, but not for searching.

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/IRAD/...

You may also contact the Williamson County Historical Society. Also, there used to be an African American Museum of Southern Illinois.