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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Aitkin (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Aitkin. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Aitkin is located in Aitkin County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of Minnesota's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Aitkin County: Carlton, Cass, Crow Wing, Itasca, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Pine & Saint Louis.

Below are the counties that are near Aitkin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Aitkin:

  • Aitkin County     (The home county of Aitkin)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Aitkin, with the one closest to Aitkin listed first.
    • Hassman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hassman
      • Hassman is located in Aitkin County
    • Kimberly
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimberly
      • Kimberly is located in Aitkin County
    • Wealthwood
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wealthwood
      • Wealthwood is located in Aitkin County
    • Nichols
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nichols have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nichols
      • Nichols is located in Aitkin County
    • Palisade
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palisade have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palisade
      • Palisade is located in Aitkin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Palisade <2>
    • Malmo
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malmo
      • Malmo is located in Aitkin County
    • McGregor
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Minnewawa
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnewawa
      • Minnewawa is located in Aitkin County
    • Haypoint
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haypoint
      • Haypoint is located in Aitkin County
    • Swatara
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swatara have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swatara
      • Swatara is located in Aitkin County
    • Libby
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libby
      • Libby is located in Aitkin County
    • McGrath
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McGrath have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGrath
      • McGrath is located in Aitkin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 73 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for McGrath <2>
  • Cass County
    • Outing
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Outing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Outing
      • Outing is located in Cass County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Outing <2>
  • Crow Wing County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Aitkin, with the one closest to Aitkin listed first.
    • Deerwood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deerwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerwood
      • Deerwood is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 725 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deerwood <2>
    • Cuyuna
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cuyuna have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuyuna
      • Cuyuna is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 365 people
    • Bay Lake
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Lake
      • Bay Lake is located in Crow Wing County
    • Crosby
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crosby
      • Crosby is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,315 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Crosby <2>
    • Ironton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Trommald
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trommald have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trommald
      • Trommald is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
    • Garrison
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garrison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrison
      • Garrison is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Garrison <2>
    • Riverton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
      • Riverton is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 115 people
    • Emily
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emily have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emily
      • Emily is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 841 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emily <2>
    • Crosslake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Merrifield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merrifield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrifield
      • Merrifield is located in Crow Wing County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Merrifield <2>
    • Breezy Point
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Breezy Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breezy Point
      • Breezy Point is located in Crow Wing County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,435 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Breezy Point <2>
  • Mille Lacs County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Aitkin, with the one closest to Aitkin listed first.
    • Vineland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vineland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
      • Vineland is located in Mille Lacs County
    • Wahkon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wahkon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wahkon
      • Wahkon is located in Mille Lacs County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 218 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wahkon <2>
    • Isle
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Isle have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isle
      • Isle is located in Mille Lacs County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 790 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Isle <2>

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Aitkin, see our County-by-County Page for Aitkin.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Aitkin ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Aitkin.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Aitkin. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Aitkin and those printed in the larger area surrounding Aitkin.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3> of Aitkin.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Aitkin:

Cemeteries Near Aitkin ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Aitkin.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Aitkin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Aitkin, with the one closest to Aitkin listed first.

  • Lakeview Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakeview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakeview Cemetery
  • St. Thomas Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Thomas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Thomas Cemetery
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Evergreen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Evergreen Cemetery
  • Spencer Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spencer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spencer Cemetery
  • Dorris Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dorris Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dorris Cemetery
  • Diamond Lake Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Diamond Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Diamond Lake Cemetery
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethlehem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethlehem Cemetery
  • Pine Knoll Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Knoll Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Knoll Cemetery
  • Cedarbrook - St. John's Lutheran Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cedarbrook - St. John's Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cedarbrook - St. John's Lutheran Cemetery
  • St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Immanuel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immanuel Cemetery
  • Church of the Blessed Virgin Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Church of the Blessed Virgin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Church of the Blessed Virgin Cemetery
  • Continue List   (76 more) ...
    • Carrol Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carrol Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carrol Cemetery
    • Forest Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Forest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Forest Cemetery
    • Riverside Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverside Cemetery

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Aitkin had a population of 737 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Aitkin had a population of 1,970 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Aitkin, with the one closest to Aitkin listed first.

  • Rossburg
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossburg
    • Rossburg is located in Aitkin County
  • Deerwood
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deerwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerwood
    • Deerwood is located in Crow Wing County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 725 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deerwood <2>
  • Kimberly
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimberly
    • Kimberly is located in Aitkin County
  • Nichols
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nichols have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nichols
    • Nichols is located in Aitkin County
  • Malmo
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malmo
    • Malmo is located in Aitkin County
  • Garrison
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garrison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrison
    • Garrison is located in Crow Wing County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Garrison <2>
  • McGregor
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Opstead
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Opstead have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Opstead
    • Opstead is located in Mille Lacs County
  • Vineland
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vineland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
    • Vineland is located in Mille Lacs County
  • Libby
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libby
    • Libby is located in Aitkin County
  • Brainerd
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Tamarack
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tamarack have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tamarack
    • Tamarack is located in Aitkin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 94 people

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Aitkin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Aitkin.

The official website for Aitkin: www.ci.aitkin.mn.us/

The official website for Aitkin County: www.co.aitkin.mn.us/

The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Aitkin) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Aitkin. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.5334, Longitude: -93.7066    
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Aitkin, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024