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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 Westside (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 Westside. 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 Westside ...

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.

Another variation: West Side.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Westside. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Westside.

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 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.

Westside is located in Crawford 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 Crawford County: Audubon, Carroll, Harrison, Ida, Monona, Sac, Shelby & Woodbury.

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

  • Crawford County     (The home county of Westside)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Vail
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Vail is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vail
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 413 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vail <1>
    • Boyer
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Boyer is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyer
    • Aspinwall
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Aspinwall is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspinwall
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 40 people
    • Deloit
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Deloit is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deloit
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
    • Manilla
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Denison
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Sunset Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Sunset Village is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
    • Kiron
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Astor
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Astor is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Astor
    • Buck Grove
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Buck Grove is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buck Grove
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 43 people
    • Schleswig
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Arion
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Arion is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arion
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
  • Audubon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Gray
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Ross
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Ross is located in Audubon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross
    • Fiscus
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Fiscus is located in Audubon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fiscus
    • Audubon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Hamlin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Hamlin is located in Audubon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamlin
    • Kimballton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Yetter
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Yetter is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yetter
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 31 people
    • Lake City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Lytton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Lytton is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lytton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
    • Sherwood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Sherwood is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood
    • Wightman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Wightman is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wightman
  • Carroll County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Arcadia
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Arcadia is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
    • Halbur
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Halbur is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halbur
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 252 people
    • Breda
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Breda is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breda
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 471 people
    • Manning
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Roselle
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Roselle is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roselle
    • Carroll
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Carroll Community Estates
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Templeton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Willey
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Willey is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willey
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 97 people
    • Lidderdale
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Lidderdale is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lidderdale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 167 people
    • Dedham
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Glidden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Greene County
    • Scranton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Harrison County
    • Dunlap
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Ida County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Arthur
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Arthur is located in Ida County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arthur
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 194 people
    • Ida Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Sac County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Herring ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Herring is located in Sac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herring
    • Sac City Junction ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Sac City Junction is located in Sac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sac City Junction
    • Wall Lake
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Wall Lake is located in Sac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wall Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 753 people
    • Lake View
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Auburn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Grant City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Grant City is located in Sac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant City
    • Odebolt
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Odebolt is located in Sac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odebolt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 933 people
    • Sac City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Early
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Westside, with the one closest to Westside listed first.
    • Botna
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Botna is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Botna
    • Irwin
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Defiance
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Defiance is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Defiance
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
    • Kirkman
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Kirkman is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 61 people
    • Earling
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Earling is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earling
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 403 people
    • Westphalia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Westphalia is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westphalia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 117 people
    • Harlan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Panama
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Westside ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Westside.

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

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

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

  • Westside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Hayes Twp. Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Hayes Twp. Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Anns Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Arcadia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Vail Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • St. Augustine Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • King Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • St. Francis Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Wheatland Presbytrian Church Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland Presbytrian Church Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Wheatland Presbytrian Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the west of Breda.
    • The Wheatland Presbytrian Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Wheatland Cemetery
    • Wheatland Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #96658 <2>
  • Iowa Twp. Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (139 more) ...

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Westside had a population of 448 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Westside had a population of 288 people.

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

  • Arcadia
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Arcadia is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcadia
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
  • Vail
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Vail is located in Crawford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vail
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 413 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vail <1>
  • Halbur
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Halbur is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halbur
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 252 people
  • Maple River
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Maple River is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple River
  • Aspinwall
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Aspinwall is located in Crawford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspinwall
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 40 people
  • Manning
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Roselle
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Roselle is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roselle
  • Breda
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Breda is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breda
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 471 people
  • Carroll
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Mount Carmel
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Mount Carmel is located in Carroll County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel
  • Deloit
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Deloit is located in Crawford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deloit
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
  • Templeton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Denison
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Manilla
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Carnarvon
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in Westside ...

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 92 newspapers that have been published in the area around Westside.

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

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 professional and volunteer 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 Westside:

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