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 Kemper (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 Kemper. 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 doctors and 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.
Kemper is located in Des Moines 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 Des Moines County: Henry, Lee, Louisa, Hancock (IL) & Henderson (IL).
Below are the counties that are near Kemper. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Kemper:
- Des Moines County (The home county of Kemper)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Patterson
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Patterson is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
- Burlington
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- West Burlington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Middletown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Middletown is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
- Danville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Danville is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
- Kline
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Kline is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kline
- Dodgeville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Dodgeville is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodgeville
- Sperry
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Sperry is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sperry
- Kingston
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Kingston is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Mediapolis
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Yarmouth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Henry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Lowell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Lowell is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell
- New London
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Union
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Union is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
- Estimated population in 2017: 107 people
- Mount Pleasant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Salem
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Oakland Mills
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Oakland Mills is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Mills
- Westwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Westwood is located in Henry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Lee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Wever
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- South Augusta
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- South Augusta is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Augusta
- Denmark
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Sawyer
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Sawyer is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawyer
- Former names for Sawyer:
- Atlee
- Edwards
- Fort Madison
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- West Point
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Jeffersonville ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Jeffersonville is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeffersonville
- Saint Paul
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Saint Paul is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Population from the 2020 Census: 123 people
- Galland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Galland is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galland
- Montrose
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Franklin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Franklin is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
- Pilot Grove
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Pilot Grove is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Grove
- Charleston
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Charleston is located in Lee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charleston
- Louisa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Elrick Junction
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Elrick Junction is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elrick Junction
- Oakville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Morning Sun
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Wapello
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Wapello is located in Louisa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapello
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,999 people
- Hancock County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Dallas City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Pontoosuc
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Pontoosuc is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontoosuc
- Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
- Disco
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Disco is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Disco
- Colusa
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Niota
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- La Harpe
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- La Harpe is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Harpe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,123 people
- Adrian
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Burnside
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Burnside is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnside
- Powellton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Powellton is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellton
- Ferris
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Nauvoo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fountain Green
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Fountain Green is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Green
- Carthage
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Henderson County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Carman
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Gulf Port
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Gulf Port is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Port
- Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
- Iowa Junction
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Iowa Junction is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Junction
- Lomax
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lomax is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
- Population from the 2020 Census: 393 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lomax <1>
- Terre Haute
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Terre Haute is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terre Haute
- Olena
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Olena is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
- Stronghurst
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Gladstone
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Media
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Media is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Media
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Raritan
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Raritan is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raritan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
- Biggsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Biggsville is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biggsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Oquawka
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rozetta
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Rozetta is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rozetta
- McDonough County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Blandinsville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Sciota
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- VIshnu Springs ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- VIshnu Springs is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for VIshnu Springs
- Good Hope
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Colchester
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Tennessee
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lamone Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lamone Village is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamone Village
- Macomb
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Macomb is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macomb
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,206 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Macomb <1>
- Colmar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Colmar is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colmar
- East Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- East Village is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- University Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- University Village is located in McDonough County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Village
- Mercer County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Keithsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Seaton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- New Boston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Warren County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Smithshire
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Kirkwood
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Roseville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Little York
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Youngstown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Youngstown is located in Warren County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngstown
- Eleanor
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Eleanor is located in Warren County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eleanor
- Monmouth
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Berwick
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Clark County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Dumas
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Dumas is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dumas
- Saint Francisville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Francisville is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Francisville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Kemper, see our County-by-County Page for Kemper.
Cemeteries Near Kemper ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Kemper.
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 Kemper - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Kemper covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Talbert Family Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Sourwine Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Cowles Farm Plot
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Prugh Farm Plot
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Chandler Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Spring Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Clover Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Carman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Porter Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Rock Spring Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Miller Family Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (404 more) ...
- South Walker Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Swede Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Shiloh Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
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>
While we didn't find Kemper in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Kemper.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Kemper, with the one closest to Kemper listed first.
- Patterson
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Patterson is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
- Carman
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Burlington
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lomax
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lomax is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
- Population from the 2020 Census: 393 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lomax <1>
- Iowa Junction
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Iowa Junction is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Junction
- Wever
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Burlington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dallas City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Decorra
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Decorra is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decorra
- Augusta
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Augusta is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Augusta
- Pontoosuc
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Pontoosuc is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontoosuc
- Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
- Terre Haute
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Terre Haute is located in Henderson County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terre Haute
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Middletown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Middletown is located in Des Moines County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
- Durham
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Durham is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
- Disco
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Disco is located in Hancock County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Disco
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Kemper. See our List of 1890's Communities around Kemper.
Newspapers Published in Kemper ...
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 119 newspapers that have been published in the area around Kemper.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Kemper, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Kemper.
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 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 Kemper:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Des Moines County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Henry County
- Lee County
- Louisa County
- Hancock County
- Henderson County
- McDonough County
- Mercer County
- Warren County
- Clark 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 Kemper, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Kemper) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |