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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 Collins (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 Collins. 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 northeast 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 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 east 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.

Collins is located in Story 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 Story County: Boone, Hamilton, Hardin, Jasper, Marshall & Polk.

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

  • Story County     (The home county of Collins)
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
    • Jordan
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Luther
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Luther. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luther
      • Luther is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Luther
      • From Collins to Luther
    • Madrid
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Mackey
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mackey. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackey
      • Mackey is located in Boone County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mackey
      • From Collins to Mackey
  • Dallas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
    • High Bridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for High Bridge. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Bridge
      • High Bridge is located in Dallas County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to High Bridge
      • From Collins to High Bridge
    • Granger
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Xenia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Hamilton County
    • Randall
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
    • Garden City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garden City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
      • Garden City is located in Hardin County
    • Union
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Union have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
      • Union is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
    • Hubbard
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hubbard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard
      • Hubbard is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 793 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hubbard <1>
    • New Providence
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Providence. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Providence
      • New Providence is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Providence
      • From Collins to New Providence
    • Gifford
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Radcliffe
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Whitten
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Jasper County
  • Marion County
    • Swan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Marshall County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
    • Rhodes
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rhodes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
      • Rhodes is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 298 people
    • Melbourne
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Malta
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Malta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malta
      • Malta is located in Marshall County
    • State Center
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for State Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Center
      • State Center is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,432 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for State Center <1>
    • State Center Junction
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for State Center Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Center Junction
      • State Center Junction is located in Marshall County
    • Luray
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Luray. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
      • Luray is located in Marshall County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Luray
      • From Collins to Luray
    • Saint Anthony
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Anthony have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Anthony
      • Saint Anthony is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 101 people
    • Clemons
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clemons have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clemons
      • Clemons is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 141 people
    • LaMoille
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Haverhill
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Haverhill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haverhill
      • Haverhill is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Haverhill <1>
    • Laurel
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laurel have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
      • Laurel is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 234 people
    • Marietta
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Albion
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Albion have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
      • Albion is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 493 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Albion <1>
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Collins, with the one closest to Collins listed first.
    • Loring
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Santiago
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Santiago. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santiago
      • Santiago is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Santiago
      • From Collins to Santiago
    • Elkhart
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Mitchellville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mitchellville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellville
      • Mitchellville is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,273 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mitchellville <1>
    • Bondurant
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bondurant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bondurant
      • Bondurant is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,293 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bondurant <1>
    • Alleman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Altoona
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
      • Altoona is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 19,503 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altoona <1>
    • Ankeny
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ankeny have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ankeny
      • Ankeny is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 70,068 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ankeny <1>
    • Berwick
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Berwick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwick
      • Berwick is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Berwick
      • From Collins to Berwick
    • Sheldahl
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Carney
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carney
      • Carney is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Carney
      • From Collins to Carney
    • Polk City Junction
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Marquisville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Tama County
    • Montour
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montour have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montour
      • Montour is located in Tama County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 242 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montour <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Collins ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Collins.

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

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

  • Collins Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Collins Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Collins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Deeter Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Brubaker Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brubaker Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brubaker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Peoria Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Peoria Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Peoria Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Day Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Day Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Day Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Maxwell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Maxwell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Maxwell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Woodland Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodland Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Church of the Brethren Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Ashton Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Kintz Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kintz Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kintz Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Barbee Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Barbee Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Barbee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Eden Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eden Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Eden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (284 more) ...
    • Mound Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mound Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mound Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Nicholls Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nicholls Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nicholls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Colo Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Colo Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Colo 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Collins had a population of 58 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Collins had a population of 472 people.

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

  • Clyde
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Clyde. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
    • Clyde is located in Jasper County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Clyde
    • From Collins to Clyde
  • Maxwell
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Iowa Center
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Rhodes
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rhodes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
    • Rhodes is located in Marshall County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 298 people
  • Colo
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Mingo
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Baxter
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Ira
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Melbourne
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Malta
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Malta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malta
    • Malta is located in Marshall County
  • State Center
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for State Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Center
    • State Center is located in Marshall County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,432 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for State Center <1>
  • Valeria
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Valeria have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valeria
    • Valeria is located in Jasper County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 58 people
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Collins ...

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 193 newspapers that have been published in the area around Collins.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Collins. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Collins and those printed in the larger area surrounding Collins.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6> of Collins.

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 Collins:

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

The official website for Story County: www.storycounty.com/

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>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.
<5>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 Collins, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Collins) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Collins. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.9029, Longitude: -93.3057    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025