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 Brucewell (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 Brucewell. 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.
Brucewell is located in Decatur 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 Decatur County: Clarke, Ringgold, Wayne, Harrison (MO) & Mercer (MO).
Below are the counties that are near Brucewell. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Brucewell:
- Decatur County (The home county of Brucewell)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Morgan
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Morgan is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan
- Woodland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Woodland is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland
- Pleasanton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasanton is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasanton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
- Leon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Davis City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Davis City is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 187 people
- Garden Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Garden Grove is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Decatur City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Decatur City is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 181 people
- Lamoni
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Le Roy
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Le Roy is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Le Roy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14 people
- Van Wert
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Van Wert is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Wert
- Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
- Grand River
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Grand River is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand River
- Population from the 2020 Census: 215 people
- Clarke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Weldon
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Weldon is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weldon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 104 people
- Green Bay ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Green Bay is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Bay
- Lacelle
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lacelle is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacelle
- Woodburn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Osceola
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Hopeville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Hopeville is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopeville
- Lucas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Derby
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Derby is located in Lucas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 111 people
- Lucas
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Lucas is located in Lucas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 207 people
- Chariton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ringgold County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Kellerton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Beaconsfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Beaconsfield is located in Ringgold County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaconsfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15 people
- Ellston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Ellston is located in Ringgold County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 38 people
- Wayne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Lineville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lineville is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lineville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Clio
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Clio is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
- Population from the 2020 Census: 73 people
- Hodge
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Hodge is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hodge
- Allerton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Humeston
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Corydon
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Millerton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Millerton is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 42 people
- Promise City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Promise City is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Promise City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 110 people
- Genoa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Genoa is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa
- Seymour
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Confidence
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Confidence is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Confidence
- Grundy County (MO)
- Spickard
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Harrison County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Akron
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Akron is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akron
- Cainsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cainsville is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cainsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
- Blythedale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Blythedale is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blythedale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
- Eagleville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Moriah
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Mount Moriah is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Moriah
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
- Ridgeway
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hatfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hatfield is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatfield
- Gardner
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gardner is located in Harrison County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardner
- Mercer County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- South Lineville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- South Lineville is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Lineville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 27 people
- Mercer
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Burrows
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Burrows is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrows
- Ravanna
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ravanna is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravanna
- Princeton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Modena
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Modena is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Modena
- Putnam County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Powersville
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Powersville is located in Putnam County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powersville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54 people
- Lucerne
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lucerne is located in Putnam County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucerne
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
- Saint John
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Saint John is located in Putnam County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint John
- Sullivan County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Newtown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Harris
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Brucewell, see our County-by-County Page for Brucewell.
Cemeteries Near Brucewell ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Brucewell.
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 Brucewell - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Brucewell covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Union Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Shields Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Dale Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Gammill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- White Oak Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lentz Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- New Salem Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Cowles Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fugate Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Elm Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Logan Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (267 more) ...
- Corder Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Beaver Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Baker Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
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 Brucewell in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Brucewell.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Brucewell, with the one closest to Brucewell listed first.
- Morgan
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Morgan is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan
- Woodland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Woodland is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland
- Wataga
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Wataga is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wataga
- Big Spring ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Big Spring is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
- Blockly
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Blockly is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blockly
- Pleasanton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasanton is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasanton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
- Lineville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lineville is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lineville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Adel
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Adel is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adel
- High Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- High Point is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point
- Leon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Saline
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Saline is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saline
- Clio
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Clio is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clio
- Population from the 2020 Census: 73 people
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Davis City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Davis City is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 187 people
- Burrows
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Burrows is located in Mercer County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrows
- Mercer
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Brucewell. See our List of 1890's Communities around Brucewell.
Newspapers Published in Brucewell ...
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 100 newspapers that have been published in the area around Brucewell.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Brucewell, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Brucewell.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.
To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Brucewell:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Decatur County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clarke County
- Lucas County
- Ringgold County
- Wayne County
- Grundy County
- Harrison County
- Mercer County
- Putnam County
- Sullivan 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 Brucewell, 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- Brucewell) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |