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 Berlin (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 Berlin. 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 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.
Berlin is located in Hardin County.
To see how the shape of Iowa's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Hardin County: Butler, Franklin, Grundy, Hamilton, Marshall, Story & Wright.
Below are the counties that are near Berlin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Berlin:
- Hardin County (The home county of Berlin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Owasa
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Owasa is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owasa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41 people
- Eagle City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Eagle City is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle City
- Steamboat Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Eldora
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Robertson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Robertson is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robertson
- Abbott
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Abbott is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
- Cleves
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cleves is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleves
- Iowa Falls
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- New Providence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- New Providence is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Providence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Gifford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ackley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Buckeye
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Buckeye is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckeye
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Austinville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Austinville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austinville
- Aplington
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Kesley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Kesley is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kesley
- Sinclair
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Sinclair is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinclair
- Parkersburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Dumont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Bristow
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bristow is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristow
- Population from the 2020 Census: 147 people
- Butler Center
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Butler Center is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler Center
- Coster
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Coster is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coster
- New Hartford
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Aredale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Allison
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Faulkner
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Faulkner is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faulkner
- Bradford
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Bradford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
- Geneva
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Reeve
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Reeve is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeve
- Oakland
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Oakland is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Popejoy
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Popejoy is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popejoy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 74 people
- Hampton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Hansell
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Coulter
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Coulter is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coulter
- Population from the 2020 Census: 261 people
- Latimer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Chapin
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Chapin is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapin
- Grundy County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Wellsburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Buck Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Buck Grove is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck Grove
- Holland
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Conrad
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Fern
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Fern is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fern
- Grundy Center
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Beaman
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Beaman is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaman
- Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
- Stout
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Stout is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stout
- Population from the 2020 Census: 214 people
- Morrison
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Dike
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Reinbeck
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Fredsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Fredsville is located in Grundy County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredsville
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Williams
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Ellsworth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Blairsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Blairsburg is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
- Randall
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Randall is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 166 people
- Jewell
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Jewell is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,138 people
- Jewell has also been known as:
- Jewell Junction
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jewell <1>
- Kamrar
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Bangor
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Bangor is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bangor
- Liscomb
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Liscomb is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liscomb
- Population from the 2020 Census: 296 people
- Saint Anthony
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Saint Anthony is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Anthony
- Population from the 2020 Census: 101 people
- Clemons
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Clemons is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clemons
- Population from the 2020 Census: 141 people
- Albion
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Marietta
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Marietta is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marietta
- LaMoille
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- LaMoille is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for LaMoille
- State Center
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Green Mountain
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Green Mountain is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Mountain
- Marshalltown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Luray
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Luray is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
- Story County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Zearing
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- McCallsburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- McCallsburg is located in Story County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCallsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 320 people
- Roland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Roland is located in Story County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,252 people
- Fernald
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Fernald is located in Story County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernald
- Story City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Colo
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Tama County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Lincoln
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lincoln is located in Tama County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
- Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
- Gladbrook
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wright County
- The following are listed by their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Dows
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Galt
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Rowan
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Berlin, see our County-by-County Page for Berlin.
Cemeteries Near Berlin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Berlin.
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 Berlin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Berlin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Jackson Twp. Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Hardin City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Hardin County Home Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Oakwood Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Kidwiler Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Rough Woods Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Eldora Training School Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Lincoln Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Jackson Heights Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Ellsworth Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Eldora Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (218 more) ...
- Steamboat Rock Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Clay Center Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Leverton Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
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 Berlin in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Berlin.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Berlin, with the one closest to Berlin listed first.
- Hughs
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Hughs is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hughs
- Owasa
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Owasa is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owasa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41 people
- Steamboat Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Eldora
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Cleves
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cleves is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleves
- Abbott
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Abbott is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott
- Abbott Crossing ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Abbott Crossing is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbott Crossing
- Robertson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Robertson is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robertson
- Lawn Hill
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Lawn Hill is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawn Hill
- Secor ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Secor is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Secor
- Iowa Falls
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- New Providence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- New Providence is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Providence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Gifford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hubbard
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ackley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Berlin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Berlin.
Newspapers Published in Berlin ...
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 137 newspapers that have been published in the area around Berlin.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Berlin, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Berlin.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Berlin:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Hardin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Butler County
- Franklin County
- Grundy County
- Hamilton County
- Marshall County
- Story County
- Tama County
- Wright County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Iowa
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 Berlin, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Berlin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |