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 Black Hawk (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 Black Hawk. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Black Hawk is located in Scott 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 Scott County: Cedar, Clinton, Muscatine & Rock Island (IL).
Below are the counties that are near Black Hawk. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Black Hawk:
- Scott County (The home county of Black Hawk)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Davenport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Bettendorf
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Blue Grass
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Buffalo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Panorama Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Panorama Park is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panorama Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
- Riverdale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Riverdale is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
- Eldridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Maysville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Maysville is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maysville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 181 people
- Hickory Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hickory Grove is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
- Walcott
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pleasant Valley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Donahue
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Cedar County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Sunbury
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Sunbury is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunbury
- Bennett
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bennett is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
- Lime City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Lime City is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lime City
- Former names for Lime City:
- Lime Kilns
- Munn
- Lowden
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Rochester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Rochester is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Tipton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Clinton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Grand Mound
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- De Witt
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Folletts
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Folletts is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folletts
- Calamus
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Calamus is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calamus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 397 people
- Shaffton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Shaffton is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaffton
- Wheatland
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Wheatland is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 724 people
- Low Moor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bliedorn ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Bliedorn is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bliedorn
- Welton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Welton is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
- Camanche
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- North Welton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- North Welton is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Welton
- Elvira
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elvira is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elvira
- Muscatine County
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Midway Beach
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Midway Beach is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway Beach
- Stockton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Stockton is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 189 people
- Pine Mills ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Pine Mills is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Mills
- Pleasant Prairie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Prairie is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Prairie
- Fairport
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Fairport is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairport
- South Towne Park
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- South Towne Park is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Towne Park
- Wilton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Muscatine
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Moscow
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Moscow is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moscow
- Fruitland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fruitland is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
- Atalissa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Henry County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Green Rock
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Green Rock is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Rock
- Briar Bluff
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Briar Bluff is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briar Bluff
- Colona
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Cleveland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Cleveland is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 178 people
- Dayton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Dayton is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dayton
- Orion
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Morristown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Morristown is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morristown
- Hickory Hills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Hickory Hills is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Hills
- Lynn Center
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ophiem
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ophiem is located in Henry County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophiem
- Osco
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Andover
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Knox County (IL)
- Rio
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mercer County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Preemption
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Sherrard
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Marston
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Marston is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marston
- Matherville
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Griffin
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Griffin is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffin
- Shale City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Shale City is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shale City
- Gilchrist
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Gilchrist is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilchrist
- Viola
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Aledo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Petersville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Petersville is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersville
- Eliza
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Eliza is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eliza
- New Windsor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- New Windsor is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Windsor
- Rock Island County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Rock Island
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Moline
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Moline is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moline
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41,065 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moline <1>
- Milan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Milan is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,945 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milan <1>
- Andalusia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Coyne Center
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Coyne Center is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coyne Center
- Oak Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 585 people
- East Moline
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- East Moline is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Moline
- Population from the 2020 Census: 20,473 people
- Taylor Ridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Coal Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Silvis
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Silvis is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silvis
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,473 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silvis <1>
- Edgington
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Edgington is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgington
- Carbon Cliff
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Whiteside County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Albany
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Erie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Erie is located in Whiteside County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,482 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Erie <1>
- Newton Corners
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Newton Corners is located in Whiteside County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton Corners
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Black Hawk, see our County-by-County Page for Black Hawk.
Cemeteries Near Black Hawk ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Black Hawk.
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 Black Hawk - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Black Hawk covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Fairmont Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Tri-City Jewish Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Friday Family Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for City Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the City Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Davenport.
- The City Cemetery has also been known as:
- Davenport City Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1180104 <2>
- Holy Family Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Asbury Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Dickson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Calvary Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Chippiannock Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (289 more) ...
- Oakdale Memorial Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Davenport Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Calvary Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
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 Black Hawk in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Black Hawk.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Black Hawk, with the one closest to Black Hawk listed first.
- Rock Island
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Davenport
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Jamestown
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Jamestown is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Milan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Milan is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,945 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milan <1>
- Moline
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Moline is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moline
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41,065 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moline <1>
- Blue Grass
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Buffalo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Andalusia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Joy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Joy is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Joy
- Montpelier
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Montpelier is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montpelier
- Taylor Ridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Eldridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Coal Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Walcott
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Edgington
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Edgington is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgington
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Black Hawk. See our List of 1890's Communities around Black Hawk.
Newspapers Published in Black Hawk ...
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 84 newspapers that have been published in the area around Black Hawk.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Black Hawk, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Black Hawk.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Black Hawk:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Scott County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cedar County
- Clinton County
- Muscatine County
- Henry County
- Knox County
- Mercer County
- Rock Island County
- Whiteside 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 Black Hawk, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Black Hawk) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |