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The Commemorative Quarter for Iowa





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 Des Moines (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 Des Moines. 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 southwest 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 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 west 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.

Des Moines is primarily located in Polk County and is the County Seat. A portion of Des Moines extends into Warren 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 Polk County: Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Madison, Marion, Story & Warren.

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

  • Polk County     (The home county of Des Moines)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Country Estate Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Country Estate Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Estate Village
      • Country Estate Village is located in Polk County
    • Marquisville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marquisville
      • Marquisville is located in Polk County
    • Windsor Heights
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Windsor Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor Heights
      • Windsor Heights is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,735 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Windsor Heights <2>
    • Saylorville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saylorville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saylorville
      • Saylorville is located in Polk County
    • Pleasant Hill
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
      • Pleasant Hill is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,025 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasant Hill <2>
    • Rising Sun
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rising Sun have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rising Sun
      • Rising Sun is located in Polk County
    • Berwick
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berwick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwick
      • Berwick is located in Polk County
    • Johnston
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johnston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston
      • Johnston is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,092 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Johnston <2>
    • Ankeny
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ankeny have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Altoona
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
    • Commerce
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Commerce have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
      • Commerce is located in Polk County
    • Norwalk
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norwalk have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwalk
      • Norwalk is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,449 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwalk <2>
    • Urbandale
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Urbandale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
      • Urbandale is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 44,650 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Urbandale <2>
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Madrid
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Luther
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luther have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luther
      • Luther is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
  • Dallas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Waukee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Booneville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Granger
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Van Meter
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • High Bridge
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • 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
    • Dallas Center
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • DeSoto
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Adel
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Adel have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adel
      • Adel is located in Dallas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,607 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Adel <2>
    • Xenia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Xenia
      • Xenia is located in Dallas County
    • Minburn
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minburn have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minburn
      • Minburn is located in Dallas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 357 people
    • Woodward
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Bouton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bouton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bouton
      • Bouton is located in Dallas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 125 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bouton <2>
    • Perry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Vandalia
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandalia
      • Vandalia is located in Jasper County
    • Oswalt
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oswalt
      • Oswalt is located in Jasper County
    • Valeria
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Valeria have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Colfax
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Prairie City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Mingo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Green Castle
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Castle
      • Green Castle is located in Jasper County
    • Goddard
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goddard
      • Goddard is located in Jasper County
    • Clyde
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clyde have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
      • Clyde is located in Jasper County
    • Ira
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
      • Ira is located in Jasper County
    • Metz
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Metz
      • Metz is located in Jasper County
    • Monroe
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Baxter
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Patterson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Patterson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
      • Patterson is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 163 people
    • Saint Charles
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Charles have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Charles
      • Saint Charles is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 656 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Charles <2>
    • Winterset
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Earlham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Earlham have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earlham
      • Earlham is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,409 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Earlham <2>
    • Truro
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Truro have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truro
      • Truro is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 501 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Truro <2>
    • East Peru
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Peru have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Peru
      • East Peru is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Swan
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan
      • Swan is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 74 people
    • Pleasantville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
  • Story County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Slater
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Huxley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Huxley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huxley
      • Huxley is located in Story County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,270 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Huxley <2>
    • Cambridge
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cambridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge
      • Cambridge is located in Story County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 796 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cambridge <2>
    • Midvale
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midvale
      • Midvale is located in Story County
    • Maxwell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Kelley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Iowa Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Center
      • Iowa Center is located in Story County
    • Collins
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
      • Collins is located in Story County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 472 people
    • Shipley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shipley
      • Shipley is located in Story County
    • Ames
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ames
      • Ames is located in Story County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 67,033 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ames <2>
    • Nevada
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Ontario
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ontario have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ontario
      • Ontario is located in Story County
  • Warren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Des Moines, with the one closest to Des Moines listed first.
    • Lakewood
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
      • Lakewood is located in Warren County
    • Cumming
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cumming have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumming
      • Cumming is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 413 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cumming <2>
    • Spring Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Hill
      • Spring Hill is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
    • Hartford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
      • Hartford is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hartford <2>
    • Palmyra
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmyra
      • Palmyra is located in Warren County
    • Prole
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prole have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prole
      • Prole is located in Warren County
    • Churchville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churchville
      • Churchville is located in Warren County
    • Indianola
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Martensdale
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martensdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martensdale
      • Martensdale is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 470 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Martensdale <2>
    • Ackworth
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ackworth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ackworth
      • Ackworth is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 105 people
    • Bevington
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bevington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bevington
      • Bevington is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 69 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bevington <2>
    • Sandyville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandyville
      • Sandyville is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54 people
    • Saint Marys
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Marys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
      • Saint Marys is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 127 people

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Des Moines ...

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 195 newspapers that have been published in the area around Des Moines.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Des Moines. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Des Moines and those printed in the larger area surrounding Des Moines.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4> of Des Moines.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with 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 Des Moines:

Cemeteries Near Des Moines ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Des Moines.

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

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

  • Woodland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
  • St. Ambrose Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Ambrose Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Ambrose Cemetery
  • Emmanuel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Emmanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Emmanuel Cemetery
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
  • Laurel Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Laurel Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Laurel Hill Cemetery
  • Sims Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sims Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sims Cemetery
  • Glendale Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Oakwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakwood Cemetery
  • Pinehill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pinehill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pinehill Cemetery
  • Highland Memory Gardens
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Highland Memory Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Highland Memory Gardens
  • Sunset Memorial Gardens
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunset Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunset Memorial Gardens
  • Continue List   (293 more) ...
    • Ft. Des Moines Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ft. Des Moines Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ft. Des Moines Cemetery
    • Elm Grove Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elm Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elm Grove Cemetery
    • Harvey 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Des Moines had a population of 50,093 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Des Moines had a population of 212,312 people.

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

  • East Des Moines
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Des Moines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Des Moines
    • East Des Moines is located in Polk County
  • Saylor
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saylor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saylor
    • Saylor is located in Polk County
  • Valley Junction
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Valley Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Junction
    • Valley Junction is located in Polk County
  • Levey
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Levey have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levey
    • Levey is located in Polk County
  • Saylorville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saylorville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saylorville
    • Saylorville is located in Polk County
  • Avon
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Avon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon
    • Avon is located in Polk County
  • Hastie
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hastie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hastie
    • Hastie is located in Polk County
  • Rising Sun
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rising Sun have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rising Sun
    • Rising Sun is located in Polk County
  • Berwick
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berwick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwick
    • Berwick is located in Polk County
  • Ashawa
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ashawa have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashawa
    • Ashawa is located in Polk County
  • Oralabor
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oralabor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oralabor
    • Oralabor is located in Polk County
  • Commerce
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Commerce have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
    • Commerce is located in Polk County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Orillia
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orillia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orillia
      • Orillia is located in Warren County
    • Norwalk
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norwalk have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwalk
      • Norwalk is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,449 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwalk <2>
    • Altoona
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>

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

The official website for Des Moines: www.dmgov.org/

The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.ia.us/

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Des Moines) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Des Moines. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.5957, Longitude: -93.6170    
<5>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.
<6>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 Des Moines, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024