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 Laurens (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 Laurens. 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 doctors and 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.
Laurens is located in Pocahontas 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 Pocahontas County: Buena Vista, Calhoun, Clay, Humboldt, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Sac & Webster.
Below are the counties that are near Laurens. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Laurens:
- Pocahontas County (The home county of Laurens)
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Havelock
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Havelock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havelock
- Havelock is located in Pocahontas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Havelock <2>
- Plover
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Pocahontas
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pocahontas have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocahontas
- Pocahontas is located in Pocahontas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,630 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pocahontas <2>
- Varina
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Rolfe
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Fonda
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Palmer
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palmer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmer
- Palmer is located in Pocahontas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Palmer <2>
- Buena Vista County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Albert City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Marathon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Sioux Rapids
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Rembrandt
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Newell
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Newell have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newell
- Newell is located in Buena Vista County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 859 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newell <2>
- Truesdale
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Truesdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truesdale
- Truesdale is located in Buena Vista County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 77 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Truesdale <2>
- Linn Grove
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Lakeside
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeside have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside
- Lakeside is located in Buena Vista County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 690 people
- Storm Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Casino Beach
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Juniata
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Alta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alta have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
- Alta is located in Buena Vista County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,916 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alta <2>
- Elkton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elkton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkton
- Elkton is located in Buena Vista County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Elkton
- From Laurens to Elkton
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Pomeroy
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pomeroy have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pomeroy
- Pomeroy is located in Calhoun County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 599 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pomeroy <2>
- Jolley
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Manson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Manson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manson
- Manson is located in Calhoun County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,529 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manson <2>
- Twin Lakes
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lytton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lytton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lytton
- Lytton is located in Calhoun County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Webb
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Gillett Grove
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Cornell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Greenville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenville
- Greenville is located in Clay County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenville <2>
- Rossie
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossie
- Rossie is located in Clay County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Dickens
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Spencer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Peterson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Peterson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterson
- Peterson is located in Clay County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 304 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peterson <2>
- Royal
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Royal have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal
- Royal is located in Clay County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Royal <2>
- Langdon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Humboldt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Bradgate
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bradgate have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradgate
- Bradgate is located in Humboldt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 84 people
- Gilmore City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilmore City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore City
- Gilmore City is located in Humboldt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 465 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilmore City <2>
- Ottosen
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ottosen have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottosen
- Ottosen is located in Humboldt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 36 people
- Pioneer
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pioneer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pioneer
- Pioneer is located in Humboldt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 22 people
- Bode
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Rutland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Kossuth County
- Whittemore
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whittemore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whittemore
- Whittemore is located in Kossuth County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 469 people
- Palo Alto County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Curlew
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Mallard
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mallard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mallard
- Mallard is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 266 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mallard <2>
- Ayrshire
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ayrshire have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayrshire
- Ayrshire is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 138 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ayrshire <2>
- Ruthven
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Emmetsburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emmetsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmetsburg
- Emmetsburg is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,667 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emmetsburg <2>
- Rodman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- West Bend
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Bend have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bend
- West Bend is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 741 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Bend <2>
- Cylinder
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cylinder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cylinder
- Cylinder is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 84 people
- Graettinger
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Sac County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Nemaha
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nemaha have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nemaha
- Nemaha is located in Sac County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
- Sac City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Early
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Laurens, see our County-by-County Page for Laurens.
Cemeteries Near Laurens ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Laurens.
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 Laurens covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sacred Heart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Laurens Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Laurens Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Laurens Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Swan Lake Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Swan Lake Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Swan Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Garton Graveyard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Garton Graveyard
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Garton Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Marshall Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Marshall Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Marshall Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Smith Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smith Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smith Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Fairfield Twp. Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Havelock Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Havelock Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Havelock Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Poland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Poland Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Poland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Garfield Twp. Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Garfield Twp. Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Garfield Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Rush Lake Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elfsborg - Dover Twp. Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elfsborg - Dover Twp. Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elfsborg - Dover Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Continue List (128 more) ...
- St. Marys Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
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 Laurens had a population of 318 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Laurens had a population of 1,126 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Laurens, with the one closest to Laurens listed first.
- Marathon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Havelock
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Havelock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havelock
- Havelock is located in Pocahontas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Havelock <2>
- Mallard
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mallard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mallard
- Mallard is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 266 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mallard <2>
- Curlew
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Pocahontas
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pocahontas have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocahontas
- Pocahontas is located in Pocahontas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,630 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pocahontas <2>
- Plover
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Ayrshire
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ayrshire have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayrshire
- Ayrshire is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 138 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ayrshire <2>
- Sioux Rapids
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Rolfe
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Newell
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Newell have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newell
- Newell is located in Buena Vista County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 859 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newell <2>
- Fonda
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Sulphur Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sulphur Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
- Sulphur Springs is located in Buena Vista County
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Greenville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenville
- Greenville is located in Clay County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenville <2>
- Rodman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Emmetsburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emmetsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmetsburg
- Emmetsburg is located in Palo Alto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,667 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emmetsburg <2>
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Laurens. See our List of 1890's Communities around Laurens.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Laurens ...
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 107 newspapers that have been published in the area around Laurens.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Laurens. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Laurens and those printed in the larger area surrounding Laurens.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<5> of Laurens.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites 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 Laurens:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Pocahontas County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Buena Vista County
- Calhoun County
- Clay County
- Humboldt County
- Kossuth County
- Palo Alto County
- Sac County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Iowa
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Laurens. 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Laurens) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Laurens. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.8466, Longitude: -94.8487 |
<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 Laurens, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |