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 Columbus Junction (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 Columbus Junction. 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.
Name Variations for Columbus Junction ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Columbus Junction: Columbus Jct. (or less commonly used: Columbus Jctn.)
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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.
Columbus Junction is located in Louisa 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 Louisa County: Des Moines, Henry, Johnson, Muscatine, Washington, Mercer (IL) & Rock Island (IL).
Below are the counties that are near Columbus Junction. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Columbus Junction:
- Louisa County (The home county of Columbus Junction)
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Fredonia
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Fredonia is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Columbus City
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Columbus City is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 371 people
- Cotter
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Cotter is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotter
- Population from the 2020 Census: 42 people
- Letts
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Gladwin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Gladwin is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladwin
- Wyman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wyman is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyman
- Grandview
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Grandview is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 519 people
- Wapello
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wapello is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapello
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,999 people
- Morning Sun
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Elrick Junction
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Elrick Junction is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elrick Junction
- Oakville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Downey
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Downey is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
- Centerdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Centerdale is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerdale
- Springdale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Springdale is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
- West Branch
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Rochester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Rochester is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Lime City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lime City is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lime City
- Former names for Lime City:
- Lime Kilns
- Munn
- Des Moines County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Yarmouth
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Mediapolis
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Sperry
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Sperry is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sperry
- Kline
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Kline is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kline
- Dodgeville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Dodgeville is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodgeville
- Kingston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Kingston is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Danville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Danville is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
- Henry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Winfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Olds
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Olds is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olds
- Population from the 2020 Census: 222 people
- Mount Union
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Mount Union is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
- Estimated population in 2017: 107 people
- Swedesburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Swedesburg is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swedesburg
- Wayland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Pleasant
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- New London
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Westwood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Westwood is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Oakland Mills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Oakland Mills is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Mills
- Rome
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rome is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rome
- Population from the 2020 Census: 117 people
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Lockridge
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Plain
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Plain is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Plain
- Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Lone Tree
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- River Junction
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- River Junction is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Junction
- Hills
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Midway ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Midway is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Iowa City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- University Heights
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- University Heights is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,025 people
- Frytown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Frytown is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frytown
- Williamstown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Williamstown is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamstown
- Amish
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Amish is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amish
- Oasis
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Oasis is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oasis
- Elmira
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Elmira is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmira
- Windham
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Windham is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windham
- Muscatine County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Conesville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Conesville is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
- Fruitland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Fruitland is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
- Nichols
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Nichols is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nichols
- Population from the 2020 Census: 358 people
- Muscatine
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- West Liberty
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Atalissa
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Moscow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Moscow is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moscow
- Fairport
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Fairport is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairport
- Pine Mills ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Pine Mills is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Mills
- South Towne Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- South Towne Park is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Towne Park
- Wilton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Midway Beach
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Midway Beach is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway Beach
- Pleasant Prairie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Prairie is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Prairie
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Crawfordsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Ainsworth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Havre
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Havre is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havre
- Washington
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Riverside
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Coppock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Coppock is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coppock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
- Kalona
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- West Chester
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- West Chester is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 147 people
- Brighton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Wellman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Rubio
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Rubio is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rubio
- Henderson County (IL)
- Milroy
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Milroy is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milroy
- Mercer County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Eliza
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Eliza is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eliza
- New Boston
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Mannon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mannon is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mannon
- Petersville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Petersville is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersville
- Joy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Joy is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Joy <1>
- Keithsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Marston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Marston is located in Mercer County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marston
- Rock Island County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Illinois City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Illinois City is located in Rock Island County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinois City
- Buffalo Prairie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Columbus Junction, see our County-by-County Page for Columbus Junction.
Cemeteries Near Columbus Junction ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Columbus Junction.
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 Columbus Junction - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Columbus Junction covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Tennessee Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Columbus City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Fredonia Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Hayes Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Bretz Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Cedar - Bethel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar - Bethel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cambrian Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Buffington Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- May Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Grim Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Estle Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (399 more) ...
- Oakland Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Orono Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Spring Run Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Columbus Junction had a population of 953 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Columbus Junction had a population of 1,810 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Columbus Junction, with the one closest to Columbus Junction listed first.
- Columbus City
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Columbus City is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 371 people
- Fredonia
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Fredonia is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Bard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bard is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bard
- Port Allen ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Port Allen is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Allen
- Cotter
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Cotter is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotter
- Population from the 2020 Census: 42 people
- Cairo
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Cairo is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo
- Letts
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Conesville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Conesville is located in Muscatine County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 427 people
- Wyman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wyman is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyman
- Crawfordsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Grandview
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Grandview is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 519 people
- Ainsworth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Winfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Wapello
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wapello is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapello
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,999 people
- Marsh
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Marsh is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Columbus Junction. See our List of 1890's Communities around Columbus Junction.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Columbus Junction ...
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 105 newspapers that have been published in the area around Columbus Junction.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Columbus Junction. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Columbus Junction and those printed in the larger area surrounding Columbus Junction.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Columbus Junction.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Columbus Junction:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Louisa County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cedar County
- Des Moines County
- Henry County
- Jefferson County
- Johnson County
- Muscatine County
- Washington County
- Henderson County
- Mercer County
- Rock Island 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 Columbus Junction, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Columbus Junction) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |