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 Roelyn (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 Roelyn. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.
Roelyn is located in Webster 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 Webster County: Boone, Calhoun, Greene, Hamilton, Humboldt, Pocahontas & Wright.
Below are the counties that are near Roelyn. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Roelyn:
- Webster County (The home county of Roelyn)
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Moorland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Callender
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Callender is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callender
- Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
- Slifer
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Slifer is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slifer
- Barnum
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Barnum is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 181 people
- Tara
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Tara is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tara
- Gowrie
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Otho
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Kalo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Kalo is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kalo
- Fort Dodge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Palm Grove
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Palm Grove is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palm Grove
- Coalville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Coalville is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
- Cypsum City ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Cypsum City is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypsum City
- Clare
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Clare is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clare
- Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
- Boone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Boxholm
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pilot Mound
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Pilot Mound is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Mound
- Population from the 2020 Census: 170 people
- Fraser
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Fraser is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fraser
- Population from the 2020 Census: 103 people
- Beaver
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Beaver is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
- Centerville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Centerville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Ogden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Somers
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Somers is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somers
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Knierim
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Knierim is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knierim
- Population from the 2020 Census: 57 people
- Rinard
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Rinard is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rinard
- Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
- Farnhamville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Farnhamville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnhamville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
- Manson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rands
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Rands is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rands
- Lohrville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Rockwell City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Twin Lakes
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Twin Lakes is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Wightman
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Wightman is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wightman
- Pomeroy
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Jolley
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Jolley is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jolley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 37 people
- Sherwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Sherwood is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Lanesboro
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Lanesboro is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanesboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 108 people
- Lidderdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lidderdale is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lidderdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
- Ralston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ralston is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ralston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
- Glidden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Paton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Churdan
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Churdan is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churdan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 363 people
- Dana
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Dana is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Farlin
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Farlin is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farlin
- Grand Junction
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Jefferson
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Scranton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Stratford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Webster City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Stanhope
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Stanhope is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanhope
- Population from the 2020 Census: 394 people
- Humboldt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Pioneer
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Pioneer is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pioneer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 22 people
- Dakota City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Gilmore City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Humboldt
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Rutland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Rutland is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 121 people
- Thor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bradgate
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Bradgate is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradgate
- Population from the 2020 Census: 84 people
- Arnold
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Arnold is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
- Pocahontas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Palmer
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Fonda
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Pocahontas
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Rolfe
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Sac County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Auburn
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Grant City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Grant City is located in Sac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant City
- Wright County
- The following are listed by their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Eagle Grove
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Woolstock
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Woolstock is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woolstock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 159 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Roelyn, see our County-by-County Page for Roelyn.
Cemeteries Near Roelyn ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Roelyn.
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 Roelyn - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Roelyn covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Fulton Lutheran Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Mizpah Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mizpah Cemetery
- The Mizpah Cemetery has also been known as:
- Fulton Twp. Mizpah Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #95484 <2>
- Fulton Twp. Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Danish Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Our Lady of Good Council Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Calvary United Presbyterian Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Our Saviour Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Callender Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Elkhorn Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn Cemetery
- The Elkhorn Cemetery has also been known as:
- Elkhorn Twp. Cemetery
- Trinity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cedar Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Graceland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Continue List (175 more) ...
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Burns Family Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Old Lizzard Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
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.<3>
While we didn't find Roelyn in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Roelyn.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Roelyn, with the one closest to Roelyn listed first.
- Moorland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Callender
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Callender is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callender
- Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
- Barnum
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Barnum is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 181 people
- Tara
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Tara is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tara
- Farnhamville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Farnhamville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnhamville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
- Gowrie
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Otho
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Kalo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Kalo is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kalo
- Fort Dodge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rands
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Rands is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rands
- Coalville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Coalville is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
- Clare
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Clare is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clare
- Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Manson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lohrville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Lena
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Lena is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lena
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Roelyn. See our List of 1890's Communities around Roelyn.
Newspapers Published in Roelyn ...
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 149 newspapers that have been published in the area around Roelyn.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Roelyn, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Roelyn.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Roelyn:
- Websites specific to Iowa
- Pages specific to Webster County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Calhoun County
- Carroll County
- Greene County
- Hamilton County
- Humboldt County
- Pocahontas County
- Sac County
- Wright 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> | 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. |
| <3> | 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 Roelyn, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Roelyn) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |