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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 Laurel (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 Laurel. 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 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 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.

Laurel is located in Marshall 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 Marshall County: Grundy, Hardin, Jasper, Poweshiek, Story & Tama.

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

  • Marshall County     (The home county of Laurel)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Ferguson
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Ferguson is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferguson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 122 people
    • Haverhill
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Gilman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Gilman is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 484 people
    • State Center Junction
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • State Center Junction is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Center Junction
    • Dillon
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Dillon is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillon
    • Dunbar
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Dunbar is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbar
    • Luray
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Luray is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
    • Melbourne
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Marshalltown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Le Grand
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • LaMoille
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • LaMoille is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for LaMoille
    • Malta
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Malta is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malta
    • Rhodes
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Rhodes is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 298 people
  • Grundy County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Beaman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Beaman is located in Grundy County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
    • Conrad
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Union
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Union is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
    • Whitten
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Whitten is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitten
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 140 people
    • Gifford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • New Providence
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • New Providence is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Providence
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
  • Jasper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Newburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Newburg is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
    • Kellogg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Oakland Acres
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Oakland Acres is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Acres
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 161 people
    • Baxter
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Lambs Grove
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Lambs Grove is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lambs Grove
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
    • Newton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Ira
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Ira is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ira
    • Clyde
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Clyde is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
    • Goddard
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Goddard is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goddard
    • Metz
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Metz is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Metz
    • Killduff
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Killduff is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Killduff
    • Green Castle
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Green Castle is located in Jasper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Castle
    • Mingo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Mahaska County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Taintor
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Taintor is located in Mahaska County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taintor
    • Peoria
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Peoria is located in Mahaska County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria
  • Marion County
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Santiago
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Santiago is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santiago
    • Loring
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Loring is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loring
    • Mitchellville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Bondurant
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Poweshiek County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Grinnell
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sheridan
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Sheridan is located in Poweshiek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
    • Malcom
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Searsboro
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Searsboro is located in Poweshiek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsboro
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
    • Brooklyn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Montezuma
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hartwick
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Hartwick is located in Poweshiek County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartwick
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
  • Story County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Collins
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Collins is located in Story County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 472 people
    • Colo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Maxwell
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Iowa Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Iowa Center is located in Story County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Center
    • Fernald
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Fernald is located in Story County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernald
    • Zearing
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Nevada
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • McCallsburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • McCallsburg is located in Story County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCallsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 320 people
    • Shipley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Shipley is located in Story County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shipley
  • Tama County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Montour
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Tama
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Garwin
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Garwin is located in Tama County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garwin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 490 people
    • Toledo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Gladstone
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Gladstone is located in Tama County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone
    • Long Point
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Long Point is located in Tama County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Point
    • Gladbrook
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Chelsea
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Vining
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Vining is located in Tama County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vining
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 49 people
    • Lincoln
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lincoln is located in Tama County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
    • Clutier
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Laurel ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Laurel.

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 Laurel - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Laurel covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Graceland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Methodist Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • St. John's UCC Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Immaculate Conception Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • German Society Methodist Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Timber Creek Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Hickory Grove Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Green Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Prairie View Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Logan Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Zoar Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (264 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.<2>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Laurel had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Laurel had a population of 234 people.

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

  • Haverhill
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Ferguson
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Ferguson is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferguson
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 122 people
  • Gilman
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Gilman is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilman
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 484 people
  • Pickering
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Pickering is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pickering
  • State Center Junction
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • State Center Junction is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Center Junction
  • Newburg
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Newburg is located in Jasper County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
  • Luray
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Luray is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
  • Dunbar
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Dunbar is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbar
  • Dillon
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Dillon is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillon
  • Quarry
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Quarry is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarry
  • Melbourne
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Kellogg
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • LaMoille
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • LaMoille is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for LaMoille
    • Le Grand
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Marshalltown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in Laurel ...

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 166 newspapers that have been published in the area around Laurel.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Laurel, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Laurel.

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 helpful 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 Laurel:

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 Laurel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>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- Laurel) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.