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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 Will-O-The-Wisp (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 Will-O-The-Wisp. 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.

Will-O-The-Wisp is located in Park County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Park County: Chaffee, Clear Creek, Douglas, Fremont, Jefferson, Lake, Summit & Teller.

Below are the counties that are near Will-O-The-Wisp. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Will-O-The-Wisp:

  • Park County     (The home county of Will-O-The-Wisp)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Bailey
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Shawnee
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Weller
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Weller is located in Park County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weller
    • Grant
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Webster ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Webster is located in Park County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
    • Jefferson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Como
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
  • Arapahoe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Bow Mar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Bow Mar is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow Mar
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 947 people
    • Columbine Valley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Columbine Valley is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbine Valley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,508 people
    • Fort Logan ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Fort Logan is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Logan
    • Littleton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Sheridan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Southglenn
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Southglenn is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southglenn
    • Englewood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Cherry Knolls
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Cherry Knolls is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Knolls
    • Cherry Hills Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Castlewood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Castlewood is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castlewood
    • Greenwood Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Centennial
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Glendale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Clear Creek County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Brookvale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Brookvale is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookvale
    • Idaho Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Georgetown
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Silverdale ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Silverdale is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverdale
    • Downieville - Lawson - Dumont
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Downieville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Dumont
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Lawson
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Lawson is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawson
    • Silver Creek ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Silver Creek is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Creek
    • Silver Plume
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Empire
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Empire is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 302 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Empire <1>
    • Bakerville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Bakerville is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bakerville
    • Alice
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Alice is located in Clear Creek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alice
  • Denver County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • West Denver
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • West Denver is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Denver
    • Denver
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Denver is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 735,538 people
      • Former names for Denver:
      • Auraina
      • Denver City
      • Montana City
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denver <1>
    • Cherry Creek
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Cherry Creek is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Creek
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Twin Cedars ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Twin Cedars is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Cedars
    • Roxborough Park
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Roxborough Park is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxborough Park
    • Louviers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Sedalia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Highlands Ranch
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Westcreek
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Westcreek is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westcreek
    • Perry Park
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Perry Park is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perry Park
    • Carriage Club
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Carriage Club is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carriage Club
    • Castle Pines North
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Castle Pines North is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Pines North
      • Estimated population in 2011: 10,602 people
    • Castle Pines
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Gateway
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Gateway is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gateway
    • Acres Green
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Heritage Hills
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Heritage Hills is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heritage Hills
  • Gilpin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Cottonwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Cottonwood is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood
    • Russell Gulch
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Russell Gulch is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell Gulch
    • Smith Hill ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Smith Hill is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Hill
    • Black Hawk
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Central City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Nevadaville ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Nevadaville is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevadaville
      • Nevadaville has also been known as:
      • Bald Mountain
      • Nevada City
    • American City ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • American City is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for American City
    • Apex ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Apex is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apex
    • Kingston ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Kingston is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Crossons
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Crossons is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crossons
    • Indian Springs Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Pine
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Conifer
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Brook Forest
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Brook Forest is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brook Forest
    • Aspen Park
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Aspen Park is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspen Park
    • Foxton ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Foxton is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foxton
    • Buffalo Creek
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sky Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Sky Village is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sky Village
    • Dome Rock
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Dome Rock is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dome Rock
    • Evergreen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Twin Forks
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Twin Forks is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Forks
    • Indian Hills
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Summit County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.
    • Chihuahua ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Chihuahua is located in Summit County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chihuahua
    • Montezuma
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Rexford ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Rexford is located in Summit County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rexford
    • Saint Johns ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Saint Johns is located in Summit County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
    • Swandyke ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Swandyke is located in Summit County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swandyke
    • Dyersville ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Dyersville is located in Summit County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyersville

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

Cemeteries Near Will-O-The-Wisp ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Will-O-The-Wisp.

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.

Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Will-O-The-Wisp - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Will-O-The-Wisp covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.

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.<3>

While we didn't find Will-O-The-Wisp in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Will-O-The-Wisp.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Will-O-The-Wisp, with the one closest to Will-O-The-Wisp listed first.

  • Crossons
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Crossons is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crossons
  • Bailey
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Pine
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Buffalo Creek
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Dome Rock
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Dome Rock is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dome Rock
  • Brookvale
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Brookvale is located in Clear Creek County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookvale
  • Evergreen
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • South Platte
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • South Platte is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Platte
  • Grant
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Morrison
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Webster ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Webster is located in Park County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster
  • Archer
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Archer is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Archer
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Idaho Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Cottonwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Cottonwood is located in Gilpin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood
    • Acequia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Acequia is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acequia

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

Newspapers Published in Will-O-The-Wisp ...

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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Will-O-The-Wisp.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Will-O-The-Wisp, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Will-O-The-Wisp.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Will-O-The-Wisp:

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<2>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.
<3>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 Will-O-The-Wisp, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Will-O-The-Wisp) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.