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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 West Point (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 West Point. 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 West Point ...

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 West Point: W. Point

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 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.

West Point is located in Lee 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 Lee County: Des Moines, Henry, Van Buren, Hancock (IL), Henderson (IL) & Clark (MO).

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

  • Lee County     (The home county of West Point)
  • Des Moines County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Danville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Danville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
      • Danville is located in Des Moines County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
    • Middletown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Patterson
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Patterson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
      • Patterson is located in Des Moines County
    • West Burlington
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Burlington have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Burlington
      • West Burlington is located in Des Moines County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,875 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Burlington <1>
    • Burlington
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Kline
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kline. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kline
      • Kline is located in Des Moines County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Kline
      • From West Point to Kline
    • Dodgeville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Yarmouth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Sperry
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Mediapolis
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Kingston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Henry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Lowell
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Salem
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Salem have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
      • Salem is located in Henry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 380 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Salem <1>
    • New London
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New London have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New London
      • New London is located in Henry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,825 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New London <1>
    • Hillsboro
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillsboro have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsboro
      • Hillsboro is located in Henry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 173 people
    • Mount Pleasant
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Oakland Mills
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Westwood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
      • Westwood is located in Henry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
    • Rome
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rome have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rome
      • Rome is located in Henry County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 117 people
    • Mount Union
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Union have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
      • Mount Union is located in Henry County
      • Estimated population in 2017: 107 people
    • Swedesburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Winfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Olds
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Glasgow
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Glasgow. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glasgow
      • Glasgow is located in Jefferson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Glasgow
      • From West Point to Glasgow
    • Lockridge
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lockridge have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockridge
      • Lockridge is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lockridge <1>
  • Louisa County
    • Morning Sun
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morning Sun have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morning Sun
      • Morning Sun is located in Louisa County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 781 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Morning Sun <1>
  • Van Buren County
  • Hancock County (IL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Niota
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Niota have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Niota
      • Niota is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Niota <1>
    • Nauvoo
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Pontoosuc
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pontoosuc have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontoosuc
      • Pontoosuc is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
    • Dallas City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Colusa
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colusa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colusa
      • Colusa is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colusa <1>
    • Adrian
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Adrian have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adrian
      • Adrian is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Adrian <1>
    • Ferris
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ferris have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferris
      • Ferris is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 143 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ferris <1>
    • Disco
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Hamilton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamilton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamilton
      • Hamilton is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,673 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hamilton <1>
    • Burnside
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Elvaston
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elvaston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elvaston
      • Elvaston is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 152 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elvaston <1>
    • Warsaw
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warsaw have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warsaw
      • Warsaw is located in Hancock County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,456 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Warsaw <1>
    • Carthage
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Henderson County (IL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Lomax
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lomax have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
      • Lomax is located in Henderson County (IL)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 393 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lomax <1>
    • Carman
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carman
      • Carman is located in Henderson County (IL)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carman <1>
    • Gulf Port
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Iowa Junction
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iowa Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Junction
      • Iowa Junction is located in Henderson County (IL)
    • Terre Haute
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Gladstone
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Olena
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Stronghurst
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Oquawka
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Clark County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Point, with the one closest to West Point listed first.
    • Athens
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Dumas
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Francisville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Anson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Anson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anson
      • Anson is located in Clark County (MO)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Anson
      • From West Point to Anson
    • Peaksville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Revere
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Acasto
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Chambersburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Wayland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wayland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayland
      • Wayland is located in Clark County (MO)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 506 people
    • Clark City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clark City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark City
      • Clark City is located in Clark County (MO)
    • Alexandria
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Kahoka
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kahoka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kahoka
      • Kahoka is located in Clark County (MO)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,031 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kahoka <1>
    • Medill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near West Point ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Point.

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 West Point covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Calvary Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Calvary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Point Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Point Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Point Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Van Hyning Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Van Hyning Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Van Hyning Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pitman Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pitman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pitman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pitman Chapel Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pitman Chapel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pitman Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Creel Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Creel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Creel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Goldsmith Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Goldsmith Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Goldsmith Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Blacksmith Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Blacksmith Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Blacksmith Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hoover Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hoover Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hoover Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Whorton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Whorton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Whorton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Enslow Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Enslow Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Enslow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Franklin Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Franklin Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Franklin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (480 more) ...
    • St. Peters Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Peters Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Peters Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Graner Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Graner Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Graner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Friends Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Friends Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Friends Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that West Point had a population of 498 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, West Point had a population of 916 people.

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

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of West Point ...

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 96 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Point.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of West Point. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of West Point and those printed in the larger area surrounding West Point.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<5> of West Point.

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 West Point:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Point. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Lee County: www.leecounty.org/

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/

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 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.
<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>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 West Point, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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- West Point) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Point. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.7167, Longitude: -91.4524    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025