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 Peru (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 Peru. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
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 north 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.
Peru is located in Portage County.
To see how the shape of Wisconsin's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Portage County: Adams, Marathon, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara & Wood.
Below are the counties that are near Peru. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Peru:
- Portage County (The home county of Peru)
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Garfield
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
- Garfield is located in Portage County
- Alban
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alban
- Alban is located in Portage County
- Rosholt
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest) - Nelsonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelsonville
- Nelsonville is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 151 people
- Amherst Junction
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Amherst Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Junction
- Amherst Junction is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 392 people
- Amherst
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Amherst is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,082 people
- Polonia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polonia
- Polonia is located in Portage County
- Custer
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer
- Custer is located in Portage County
- Ellis
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellis
- Ellis is located in Portage County
- Arnott
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest) - Torun
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Torun
- Torun is located in Portage County
- Park Ridge
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Ridge
- Park Ridge is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 496 people
- Marathon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Galloway
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galloway
- Galloway is located in Marathon County
- Elderon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north) - Ashley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashley
- Ashley is located in Marathon County
- Norrie
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north) - Hatley
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatley
- Hatley is located in Marathon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
- Evergreen
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest) - Kronenwetter
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kronenwetter
- Kronenwetter is located in Marathon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,143 people
- Mosinee
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest) - Weston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest) - Rothschild
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rothschild have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rothschild
- Rothschild is located in Marathon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,256 people
- Schofield
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest) - Moon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moon
- Moon is located in Marathon County
- Outagamie County
- Bear Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bear Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Creek
- Bear Creek is located in Outagamie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 439 people
- Bear Creek
- Shawano County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Split Rock
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Split Rock
- Split Rock is located in Shawano County
- Tigerton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tigerton
- Tigerton is located in Shawano County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 702 people
- Wittenberg
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittenberg
- Wittenberg is located in Shawano County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 986 people
- Eland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eland
- Eland is located in Shawano County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
- Bowler
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast) - Leopolis
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leopolis
- Leopolis is located in Shawano County
- Regina
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast) - Birnamwood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Birnamwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birnamwood
- Birnamwood is located in Shawano County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 772 people
- Almon
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almon
- Almon is located in Shawano County
- Gresham
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gresham
- Gresham is located in Shawano County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 563 people
- Aniwa
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Waupaca County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Iola
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast) - Scandinavia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scandinavia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scandinavia
- Scandinavia is located in Waupaca County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 349 people
- Big Falls
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east) - Sheridan
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
- Sheridan is located in Waupaca County
- Granite City ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Granite City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granite City
- Granite City is located in Waupaca County
- Cobb Town
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south) - Ogdensburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ogdensburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogdensburg
- Ogdensburg is located in Waupaca County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
- King
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
- King is located in Waupaca County
- Manawa
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast) - Waupaca
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast) - Marion
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
- Marion is located in Waupaca County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,167 people
- Little Wolf ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Wolf have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Wolf
- Little Wolf is located in Waupaca County
- Waushara County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Saxeville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saxeville
- Saxeville is located in Waushara County
- Wild Rose
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wild Rose
- Wild Rose is located in Waushara County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 651 people
- West Bloomfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bloomfield
- West Bloomfield is located in Waushara County
- Plainfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plainfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
- Plainfield is located in Waushara County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 832 people
- Pine River
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
- Pine River is located in Waushara County
- Wood County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Biron
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west) - Rudolph
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west) - Lake Wazeecha
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Wazeecha have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Wazeecha
- Lake Wazeecha is located in Wood County
- Grand Rapids
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Rapids have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Rapids
- Grand Rapids is located in Wood County
- Milladore
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milladore
- Milladore is located in Wood County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 258 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Peru, see our County-by-County Page for Peru.
Newspapers Published in Peru ...
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 93 newspapers that have been published in the area around Peru.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Peru, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Peru.
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 professional and volunteer websites 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 Peru:
- Websites specific to Wisconsin
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Website for the //www.wisconsinhistory.org/
- Pages specific to Portage County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Marathon County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Outagamie County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Shawano County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Waupaca County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Waushara County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Wood County
- Jump to Cyndi's List
- Jump to Family Search
- Jump to Genealogy Trails
- Marathon County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Wisconsin
- Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of Wisconsin
- Cyndi's List
- Cemeteries of Wisconsin
- Cemeteries of Portage County
- FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of Wisconsin
- Find-A-Grave: Home Page
- Interment.net
- Cemeteries of Wisconsin
Cemeteries Near Peru ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Peru.
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 Peru covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Northland Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Northland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Northland Cemetery
- Nelsonville Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nelsonville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nelsonville Cemetery
- Hitterdahl Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hitterdahl Cemetery
- St. Adalbert Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Adalbert Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #769005 <3>
- Scandinavia Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Scandinavia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Scandinavia Cemetery
- Iola Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Iola Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Iola Cemetery
- Lola Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lola Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lola Cemetery
- Bickel Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bickel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bickel Cemetery
- Amherst Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Amherst Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Amherst Cemetery
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
- St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Mary of Mt. Carmel Cemetery
- Lower Amherst Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lower Amherst Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lower Amherst Cemetery
- Continue List (162 more) ...
- Big Falls Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Big Falls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Big Falls Cemetery
- Kimball Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kimball Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kimball Cemetery
- Farmington Lutheran Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Farmington Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Farmington Lutheran Cemetery
- Big Falls 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Peru had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Peru, with the one closest to Peru listed first.
- Garfield
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
- Garfield is located in Portage County
- Northland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast) - New Hope
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south) - Alban
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alban
- Alban is located in Portage County
- Nelsonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelsonville
- Nelsonville is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 151 people
- Lake Emily ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Emily have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Emily
- Lake Emily is located in Portage County
- Amherst Junction
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Amherst Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Junction
- Amherst Junction is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 392 people
- Iola
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast) - Amherst
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Amherst is located in Portage County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,082 people
- Scandinavia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scandinavia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scandinavia
- Scandinavia is located in Waupaca County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 349 people
- Polonia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polonia
- Polonia is located in Portage County
- Custer
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer
- Custer is located in Portage County
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Ellis
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellis
- Ellis is located in Portage County
- Fancher
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest) - Stockton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Ellis
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Peru. See our List of 1890's Communities around Peru.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Peru. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Portage County: www.co.portage.wi.us/
The official website for State of Wisconsin: https://www.wisconsin.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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Peru) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Peru. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.5700, Longitude: -89.2434 In this case, the coordinates for Peru have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Peru, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |