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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 Lime Springs (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 Lime Springs. 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.

Name Variations for Lime Springs ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Lime Springs: Lime Spgs. (or less commonly used: Lime Spngs. or Lime Sprngs.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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.

Lime Springs is located in Howard 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 Howard County: Chickasaw, Floyd, Mitchell, Winneshiek, Fillmore (MN) & Mower (MN).

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

  • Howard County     (The home county of Lime Springs)
  • Chickasaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lime Springs, with the one closest to Lime Springs listed first.
    • Alta Vista
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alta Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta Vista
      • Alta Vista is located in Chickasaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 248 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alta Vista <2>
    • Jerico
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Jerico. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerico
      • Jerico is located in Chickasaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Jerico
      • From Lime Springs to Jerico
    • Deerfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Deerfield. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerfield
      • Deerfield is located in Chickasaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Deerfield
      • From Lime Springs to Deerfield
    • North Washington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Lawler
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lawler have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawler
      • Lawler is located in Chickasaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 422 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lawler <2>
    • New Hampton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Ionia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Bassett
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Chickasaw
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Fayette County
  • Floyd County
    • Colwell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colwell have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colwell
      • Colwell is located in Floyd County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colwell <2>
  • Mitchell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lime Springs, with the one closest to Lime Springs listed first.
    • McIntire
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Meyer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • New Haven
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Haven. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Haven
      • New Haven is located in Mitchell County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Haven
      • From Lime Springs to New Haven
    • Little Cedar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Cedar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Cedar
      • Little Cedar is located in Mitchell County
    • Stacyville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Osage
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Orchard
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard
      • Orchard is located in Mitchell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 71 people
    • Mitchell
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
    • Toeterville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toeterville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toeterville
      • Toeterville is located in Mitchell County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Toeterville <2>
  • Winneshiek County
  • Fillmore County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lime Springs, with the one closest to Lime Springs listed first.
    • York
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for York. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
      • York is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to York
      • From Lime Springs to York
    • Granger
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Granger. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granger
      • Granger is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Granger
      • From Lime Springs to Granger
    • Etna
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Ostrander
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Carimona
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carimona. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carimona
      • Carimona is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Carimona
      • From Lime Springs to Carimona
    • Harmony
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Spring Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
      • Spring Valley is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,424 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spring Valley <2>
    • Wykoff
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wykoff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wykoff
      • Wykoff is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wykoff <2>
    • Canton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
      • Canton is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 342 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Canton <2>
    • Preston
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Fillmore
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Fountain
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fountain have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain
      • Fountain is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fountain <2>
    • Lanesboro
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
  • Houston County (MN)
  • Mower County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lime Springs, with the one closest to Lime Springs listed first.
    • Le Roy
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Taopi
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taopi have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taopi
      • Taopi is located in Mower County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
    • Grand Meadow
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Meadow have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Meadow
      • Grand Meadow is located in Mower County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,194 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Meadow <2>
    • Adams
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Racine
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Johnsburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Johnsburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsburg
      • Johnsburg is located in Mower County (MN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Johnsburg
      • From Lime Springs to Johnsburg
    • Elkton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Dexter
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dexter have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dexter
      • Dexter is located in Mower County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 344 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dexter <2>
    • Rose Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rose Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Creek
      • Rose Creek is located in Mower County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 423 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rose Creek <2>
  • Olmsted County (MN)
    • Stewartville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stewartville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartville
      • Stewartville is located in Olmsted County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,095 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stewartville <2>

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

Cemeteries Near Lime Springs ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Lime Springs.

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

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

  • Pleasant Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • 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.
  • Foreston Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Foreston Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Foreston Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Howard Center Twp. Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Howard Center Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Howard Center Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Phillips Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Phillips Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Phillips Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Canfield Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Canfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Canfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cedar Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cedar Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cedar Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethlehem Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethlehem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Saetersdal Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Saetersdal Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Saetersdal Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Chester Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chester Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chester Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Albion Twp. Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Albion Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Albion Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Albion Twp. Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Albion Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Albion Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bristol Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bristol Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bristol Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (250 more) ...
    • Love Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Saratoga Twp. Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Saratoga Twp. Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Saratoga Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Saratoga Twp. Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Saratoga Twp. Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Saratoga Twp. 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Lime Springs had a population of 550 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Lime Springs had a population of 476 people.

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

  • Bonair
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonair have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonair
    • Bonair is located in Howard County
  • Chester
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Davis Corners
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • York
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for York. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
    • York is located in Fillmore County (MN)
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to York
    • From Lime Springs to York
  • Saratoga
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saratoga have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saratoga
    • Saratoga is located in Howard County
  • Florenceville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Granger
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Granger. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granger
    • Granger is located in Fillmore County (MN)
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Granger
    • From Lime Springs to Granger
  • Bristol
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bristol have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
    • Bristol is located in Fillmore County (MN)
  • Cherry Grove
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherry Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Grove
    • Cherry Grove is located in Fillmore County (MN)
  • Cresco
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Greenleafton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenleafton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenleafton
    • Greenleafton is located in Fillmore County (MN)
  • Etna
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Lime Springs ...

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 115 newspapers that have been published in the area around Lime Springs.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Lime Springs. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Lime Springs and those printed in the larger area surrounding Lime Springs.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6> of Lime Springs.

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 either 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 Lime Springs:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Lime Springs. 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 Lime Springs, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Lime Springs) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Lime Springs. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.4496, Longitude: -92.2823    









 

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In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025