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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 Jamaica (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 Jamaica. 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.

Jamaica is located in Guthrie 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 Guthrie County: Adair, Audubon, Carroll, Cass, Dallas, Greene & Madison.

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

  • Guthrie County     (The home county of Jamaica)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Herndon
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Yale
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bagley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bagley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagley
      • Bagley is located in Guthrie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
    • Panora
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Bayard
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Guthrie Center
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Guthrie Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guthrie Center
      • Guthrie Center is located in Guthrie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,487 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Guthrie Center <2>
    • Dale
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Glendon
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Glendon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendon
      • Glendon is located in Guthrie County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Glendon
      • From Jamaica to Glendon
    • Menlo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Stuart
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stuart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stuart
      • Stuart is located in Guthrie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,756 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stuart <2>
    • Casey
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Casey have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casey
      • Casey is located in Guthrie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 402 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Casey <2>
    • North Branch
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Berkley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Berkley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkley
      • Berkley is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 33 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Berkley
      • From Jamaica to Berkley
    • Beaver
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beaver have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver
      • Beaver is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
    • Ogden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ogden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden
      • Ogden is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,985 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ogden <2>
    • Moingona
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Boxholm
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boxholm have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxholm
      • Boxholm is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boxholm <2>
    • Madrid
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Centerville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Centerville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
      • Centerville is located in Boone County
    • Fraser
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fraser have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fraser
      • Fraser is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 103 people
    • Luther
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • 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 Jamaica to Luther
    • Boone
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Pilot Mound
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jordan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Farnhamville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farnhamville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnhamville
      • Farnhamville is located in Calhoun County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
    • Wightman
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wightman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wightman
      • Wightman is located in Calhoun County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wightman
      • From Jamaica to Wightman
  • Carroll County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Coon Rapids
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coon Rapids have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coon Rapids
      • Coon Rapids is located in Carroll County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,221 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coon Rapids <2>
    • Ralston
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ralston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ralston
      • Ralston is located in Carroll County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
    • Glidden
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glidden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glidden
      • Glidden is located in Carroll County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,090 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glidden <2>
    • Dedham
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Willey
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Lanesboro
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lanesboro have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanesboro
      • Lanesboro is located in Carroll County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 108 people
  • Dallas County
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Cooper
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cooper. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
      • Cooper is located in Greene County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cooper
      • From Jamaica to Cooper
    • Rippey
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jefferson
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jefferson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
      • Jefferson is located in Greene County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,075 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jefferson <2>
    • Grand Junction
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Junction
      • Grand Junction is located in Greene County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 757 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Junction <2>
    • Farlin
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Farlin. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farlin
      • Farlin is located in Greene County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Farlin
      • From Jamaica to Farlin
    • Scranton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scranton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scranton
      • Scranton is located in Greene County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 514 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Scranton <2>
    • Dana
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Dana. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
      • Dana is located in Greene County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Dana
      • From Jamaica to Dana
    • Paton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Churdan
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Madison County
    • Earlham
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • 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>
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Grimes
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Andrews
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Herrold
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Polk City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Clive
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clive have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clive
      • Clive is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,444 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clive <2>
    • Urbandale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • 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>
  • Webster County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jamaica, with the one closest to Jamaica listed first.
    • Lanyon
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Gowrie
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gowrie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gowrie
      • Gowrie is located in Webster County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 954 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gowrie <2>
    • Harcourt
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harcourt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harcourt
      • Harcourt is located in Webster County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 278 people

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

Cemeteries Near Jamaica ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Jamaica.

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

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

  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Richland Memorial Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Dallas Twp. Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Van Horn Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Van Horn Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Van Horn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Franklin Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Franklin Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Franklin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Rippey Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Rippey Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Rippey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • German Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the German Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the German Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Yale Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Yale Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Yale Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Messenger Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Messenger Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Messenger Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Angus Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Angus Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Angus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bower Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bower Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bower Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • PLeasant Hill Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the PLeasant Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the PLeasant Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (198 more) ...

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 in 1895, Jamaica had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Jamaica had a population of 218 people.

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

  • Herndon
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Dawson
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Yale
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Cooper
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cooper. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
    • Cooper is located in Greene County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Cooper
    • From Jamaica to Cooper
  • Bagley
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bagley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagley
    • Bagley is located in Guthrie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
  • Angus
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Angus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
    • Angus is located in Boone County
  • Rippey
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Fanslers
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fanslers have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fanslers
    • Fanslers is located in Guthrie County
  • Perry
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Panora
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Jefferson
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jefferson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
    • Jefferson is located in Greene County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,075 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jefferson <2>
  • Berkley
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Berkley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkley
    • Berkley is located in Boone County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 33 people
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Berkley
    • From Jamaica to Berkley
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Bayard
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Grand Junction
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Junction
      • Grand Junction is located in Greene County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 757 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Junction <2>
    • Linden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Jamaica ...

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 127 newspapers that have been published in the area around Jamaica.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Jamaica, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Jamaica.

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 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 Jamaica:

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

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>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 Jamaica, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Jamaica) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Jamaica. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.8470, Longitude: -94.3066    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025