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 Bridgeport (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 Bridgeport. 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 doctors 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.
Bridgeport is located in Monroe 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 Monroe County: Appanoose, Davis, Lucas, Mahaska, Marion, Wapello & Wayne.
Below are the counties that are near Bridgeport. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bridgeport:
- Monroe County (The home county of Bridgeport)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Avery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Avery is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery
- Bluff Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bluff Creek is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Creek
- Albia
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lovilia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Selection
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Selection is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selection
- Georgetown
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Georgetown is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Melrose
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Appanoose County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Moravia
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Unionville
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Iconium
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Iconium is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iconium
- Darbyville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Darbyville is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darbyville
- Udell
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Udell is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Udell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
- Rathbun
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Rathbun is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rathbun
- Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
- Clarkdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Clarkdale is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarkdale
- Walnut City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Walnut City is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut City
- Orleans
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Orleans is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
- Mystic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mystic is located in Appanoose County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mystic
- Population from the 2020 Census: 410 people
- Davis County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Carbon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Carbon is located in Davis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon
- Paris
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Paris is located in Davis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paris
- Drakesville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Floris
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Floris is located in Davis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floris
- Population from the 2020 Census: 143 people
- West Grove
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- West Grove is located in Davis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Grove
- Bloomfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Chequest
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Chequest is located in Davis County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chequest
- Jasper County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Lynnville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Sully
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Pekin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Pekin is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pekin
- Linby
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Linby is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linby
- Abingdon
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Abingdon is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abingdon
- Batavia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Packwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Packwood is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
- Keokuk County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Hedrick
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Hedrick is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hedrick
- Population from the 2020 Census: 743 people
- Delta
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Delta is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 313 people
- Martinsburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Martinsburg is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Hayesville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Hayesville is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
- Coal Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Coal Creek is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Creek
- What Cheer
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Nugent
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Nugent is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nugent
- Gibson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Gibson is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 59 people
- Sigourney
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Thornburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Thornburg is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Ollie
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Ollie is located in Keokuk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ollie
- Population from the 2020 Census: 207 people
- Keswick
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lucas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Zero
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Zero is located in Lucas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zero
- Olmitz
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Olmitz is located in Lucas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olmitz
- Russell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mahaska County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Givin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Givin is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Givin
- Lakonta
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lakonta is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakonta
- Cedar
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar
- Beacon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Beacon is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beacon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 488 people
- Oskaloosa
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- University Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- University Park is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 468 people
- Wright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wright is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wright
- Exeelsior
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Exeelsior is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exeelsior
- Evans
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Evans is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans
- Keomah Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Keomah Village is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keomah Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
- Fremont
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Fishville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fishville is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishville
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Bussey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Bussey is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bussey
- Population from the 2020 Census: 406 people
- Hamilton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Hamilton is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamilton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
- Tracy
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Tracy is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tracy
- Marysville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Marysville is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marysville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 68 people
- Harvey
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Harvey is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
- Population from the 2020 Census: 243 people
- Pershing
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Pershing is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pershing
- Attica
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Attica is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attica
- Indiana
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Indiana is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indiana
- Howell ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Howell is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
- Pella
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Knoxville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Columbia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Columbia is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia
- Poweshiek County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Searsboro
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Searsboro is located in Poweshiek County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
- Tilton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Tilton is located in Poweshiek County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilton
- Montezuma
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Wapello County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Eddyville
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Dudley
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Dudley is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudley
- Kirkville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Kirkville is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 177 people
- Chillicothe
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Chillicothe is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chillicothe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
- Bidwell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bidwell is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bidwell
- Keb ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Keb is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keb
- Blakesburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Highland Center
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Highland Center is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Center
- Ottumwa
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Dahlonega
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Dahlonega is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dahlonega
- East Ottumwa
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- East Ottumwa is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Ottumwa
- Agency
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bridgeport, see our County-by-County Page for Bridgeport.
Cemeteries Near Bridgeport ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bridgeport.
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 Bridgeport - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bridgeport covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Bridgeport Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Highland Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Cemetery
- The Highland Cemetery has also been known as:
- Eddyville Cemetery
- St. Marys Catholic Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Pleasant Corners Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fall Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Anderson Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Wilcox Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Crane Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Muchakinock Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Bluff Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hayden Chapel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dave Roberts Farm Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Continue List (447 more) ...
- Columbia Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Stump 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.<2>
While we didn't find Bridgeport in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bridgeport.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bridgeport, with the one closest to Bridgeport listed first.
- Eddyville
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Frederic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Frederic is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frederic
- Givin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Givin is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Givin
- Dudley
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Dudley is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudley
- Avery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Avery is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery
- Chillicothe
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Chillicothe is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chillicothe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
- Kirkville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Kirkville is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 177 people
- Cedar
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar
- Eveland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Eveland is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eveland
- Munterville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Munterville is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Munterville
- Beacon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Beacon is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beacon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 488 people
- Wright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wright is located in Mahaska County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wright
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Oskaloosa
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Maxon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Maxon is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxon
- Willard
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Willard is located in Wapello County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willard
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bridgeport. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bridgeport.
Newspapers Published in Bridgeport ...
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 70 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bridgeport.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bridgeport, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bridgeport.
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 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 Bridgeport:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Monroe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Appanoose County
- Davis County
- Jasper County
- Jefferson County
- Keokuk County
- Lucas County
- Mahaska County
- Marion County
- Poweshiek County
- Wapello 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> | 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 Bridgeport, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Bridgeport) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |