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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 Benson (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 Benson. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Benson is located in Black Hawk County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Black Hawk County: Benton, Bremer, Buchanan, Butler, Fayette, Grundy & Tama.

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

  • Black Hawk County     (The home county of Benson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Cedar Falls
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • North Cedar
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Cedar
      • North Cedar is located in Black Hawk County
    • Cedar City
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar City
      • Cedar City is located in Black Hawk County
    • Finchford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchford
      • Finchford is located in Black Hawk County
    • Janesville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Waterloo
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Hudson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
      • Hudson is located in Black Hawk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,473 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
    • Evansdale
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Evansdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansdale
      • Evansdale is located in Black Hawk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,734 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Evansdale <1>
    • Edwards ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwards
      • Edwards is located in Black Hawk County
    • Voorhies
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Voorhies have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voorhies
      • Voorhies is located in Black Hawk County
    • Elk Run Heights
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elk Run Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Run Heights
      • Elk Run Heights is located in Black Hawk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,135 people
    • Dewar
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewar
      • Dewar is located in Black Hawk County
    • Blessing
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blessing
      • Blessing is located in Black Hawk County
  • Benton County
    • Mount Auburn
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Auburn have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Auburn
      • Mount Auburn is located in Benton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 144 people
  • Bremer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Waverly
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Denver
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denver have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
      • Denver is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,879 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denver <1>
    • Bremer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bremer
      • Bremer is located in Bremer County
    • Klinger
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klinger
      • Klinger is located in Bremer County
    • Knittel
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knittel
      • Knittel is located in Bremer County
    • Readlyn
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Readlyn have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Readlyn
      • Readlyn is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 854 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Readlyn <1>
    • Plainfield
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plainfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
      • Plainfield is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 413 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plainfield <1>
    • Horton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horton
      • Horton is located in Bremer County
    • Seigel
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Seigel. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seigel
      • Seigel is located in Bremer County
    • Tripoli
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tripoli have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tripoli
      • Tripoli is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,375 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tripoli <1>
    • Frederika
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frederika have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frederika
      • Frederika is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 205 people
    • Sumner
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Buchanan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Fairbank
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairbank have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairbank
      • Fairbank is located in Buchanan County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,132 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fairbank <1>
    • Shady Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Shady Grove. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Grove
      • Shady Grove is located in Buchanan County
  • Butler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • New Hartford
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Sinclair
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sinclair. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinclair
      • Sinclair is located in Butler County
    • Shell Rock
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Rock
      • Shell Rock is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,268 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shell Rock <1>
    • Coster
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coster. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coster
      • Coster is located in Butler County
    • Parkersburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkersburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkersburg
      • Parkersburg is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,913 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Parkersburg <1>
    • Butler Center
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler Center
      • Butler Center is located in Butler County
    • Clarksville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarksville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
      • Clarksville is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,333 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clarksville <1>
    • Aplington
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aplington have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aplington
      • Aplington is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,039 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Aplington <1>
    • Allison
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Allison have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allison
      • Allison is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 965 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Allison <1>
    • Kesley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kesley
      • Kesley is located in Butler County
    • Austinville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Austinville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austinville
      • Austinville is located in Butler County
    • Bristow
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristow
      • Bristow is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 147 people
    • Dumont
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dumont have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumont
      • Dumont is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 595 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dumont <1>
  • Chickasaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Nashua
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashua
      • Nashua is located in Chickasaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,571 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nashua <1>
    • Bradford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
      • Bradford is located in Chickasaw County
    • Republic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Republic
      • Republic is located in Chickasaw County
  • Fayette County
    • Oran
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oran have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oran
      • Oran is located in Fayette County
  • Franklin County
    • Faulkner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Faulkner. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faulkner
      • Faulkner is located in Franklin County
  • Grundy County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Fredsville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fredsville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredsville
      • Fredsville is located in Grundy County
    • Dike
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dike
      • Dike is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,267 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dike <1>
    • Stout
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stout
      • Stout is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 214 people
    • Fern
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fern
      • Fern is located in Grundy County
    • Reinbeck
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reinbeck have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reinbeck
      • Reinbeck is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,613 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reinbeck <1>
    • Morrison
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Buck Grove
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buck Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck Grove
      • Buck Grove is located in Grundy County
    • Holland
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holland
      • Holland is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holland <1>
    • Grundy Center
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grundy Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grundy Center
      • Grundy Center is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,670 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grundy Center <1>
    • Wellsburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wellsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellsburg
      • Wellsburg is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 685 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wellsburg <1>
    • Beaman
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beaman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaman
      • Beaman is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
    • Conrad
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Conrad have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conrad
      • Conrad is located in Grundy County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,067 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Conrad <1>
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Ackley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Abbott
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Abbott. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
      • Abbott is located in Hardin County
    • Cleves
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleves
      • Cleves is located in Hardin County
    • Steamboat Rock
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Robertson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robertson
      • Robertson is located in Hardin County
    • Whitten
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitten
      • Whitten is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 140 people
  • Tama County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
    • Dinsdale
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dinsdale
      • Dinsdale is located in Tama County
    • Lincoln
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
      • Lincoln is located in Tama County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
    • Buckingham
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buckingham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckingham
      • Buckingham is located in Tama County
    • Traer
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Gladbrook
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Dysart
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dysart have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dysart
      • Dysart is located in Tama County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,311 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dysart <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Benson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Benson.

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 Benson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Benson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Benson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Benson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Rarick Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rarick Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rarick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bidwell Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bidwell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bidwell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hillcrest Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillcrest Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillcrest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairfield Twp. Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairfield Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairfield Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Highland Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Highland Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Highland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gerholdt Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gerholdt Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gerholdt Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hillside Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (240 more) ...
    • Cedar Valley Memorial Gardens
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cedar Valley Memorial Gardens
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cedar Valley Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Washington Chapel Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Washington Chapel Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Washington Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Finchford Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Finchford Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Finchford Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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>

While we didn't find Benson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Benson.

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

  • Fredsville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fredsville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredsville
    • Fredsville is located in Grundy County
  • Cedar Falls
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • New Hartford
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Finchford
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchford
    • Finchford is located in Black Hawk County
  • Dairyville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dairyville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dairyville
    • Dairyville is located in Grundy County
  • Swanton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swanton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swanton
    • Swanton is located in Butler County
  • Janesville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Waverly Junction
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waverly Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly Junction
    • Waverly Junction is located in Bremer County
  • Lincoln
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
    • Lincoln is located in Grundy County
  • Hudson
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
    • Hudson is located in Black Hawk County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,473 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
  • Waterloo
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Shell Rock
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Rock
    • Shell Rock is located in Butler County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,268 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shell Rock <1>
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Coster
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coster. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coster
      • Coster is located in Butler County
    • Parkersburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkersburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkersburg
      • Parkersburg is located in Butler County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,913 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Parkersburg <1>
    • Denver
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denver have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
      • Denver is located in Bremer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,879 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denver <1>

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

Newspapers Published in Benson ...

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 114 newspapers that have been published in the area around Benson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Benson, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Benson.

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 helpful 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 Benson:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Benson. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Black Hawk County: www.co.black-hawk.ia.us/

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/

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 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.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<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 Benson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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- Benson) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Benson. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.5425, Longitude: -92.5421       In this case, the coordinates for Benson have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025