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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 Woolstock (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 Woolstock. 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.

Woolstock is located in Wright 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 Wright County: Cerro Gordo, Franklin, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin, Humboldt, Kossuth & Webster.

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

  • Wright County     (The home county of Woolstock)
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Mackey
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mackey. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackey
      • Mackey is located in Boone County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mackey
      • From Woolstock to Mackey
    • Pilot Mound
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Boxholm
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boxholm have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxholm
      • Boxholm is located in Boone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boxholm <1>
  • Cerro Gordo County
    • Meservey
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meservey have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meservey
      • Meservey is located in Cerro Gordo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 237 people
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Oakland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Popejoy
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Popejoy have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popejoy
      • Popejoy is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 74 people
    • Alexander
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Coulter
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Latimer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Latimer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latimer
      • Latimer is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 463 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Latimer <1>
    • Bradford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bradford have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
      • Bradford is located in Franklin County
    • Reeve
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Reeve. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeve
      • Reeve is located in Franklin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Reeve
      • From Woolstock to Reeve
  • Hamilton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Webster City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Webster City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster City
      • Webster City is located in Hamilton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,647 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Webster City <1>
    • Blairsburg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blairsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairsburg
      • Blairsburg is located in Hamilton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
    • Kamrar
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Williams
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Stanhope
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stanhope have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanhope
      • Stanhope is located in Hamilton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 394 people
    • Stratford
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stratford have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stratford
      • Stratford is located in Hamilton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 692 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stratford <1>
    • Jewell
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ellsworth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Randall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Hancock County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Kanawha
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Goodell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Corwith
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corwith have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corwith
      • Corwith is located in Hancock County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 245 people
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Alden
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Buckeye
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buckeye have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckeye
      • Buckeye is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
    • Radcliffe
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Iowa Falls
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iowa Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Falls
      • Iowa Falls is located in Hardin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,940 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Iowa Falls <1>
  • Humboldt County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Woolstock, with the one closest to Woolstock listed first.
    • Thor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Renwick
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Hardy
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Dakota City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Humboldt
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Arnold
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Arnold. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
      • Arnold is located in Humboldt County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Arnold
      • From Woolstock to Arnold
    • Rutland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Livermore
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Livermore have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore
      • Livermore is located in Humboldt County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
    • Pioneer
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pioneer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> 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
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Kossuth County
    • Lu Verne
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lu Verne have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lu Verne
      • Lu Verne is located in Kossuth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 246 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lu Verne <1>
  • Story County
  • Webster County

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

Cemeteries Near Woolstock ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Woolstock.

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

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

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 in 1895, Woolstock had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Woolstock had a population of 159 people.

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

  • Webster City
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Webster City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Webster City
    • Webster City is located in Hamilton County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,647 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Webster City <1>
  • Flugstad ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flugstad have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flugstad
    • Flugstad is located in Webster County
  • Vincent
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vincent have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vincent
    • Vincent is located in Webster County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
  • Duncombe
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Blairsburg
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blairsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairsburg
    • Blairsburg is located in Hamilton County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
  • Judd
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Judd have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judd
    • Judd is located in Webster County
  • Brushy
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Goldfield
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Clarion
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Holmes
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Homer
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
    • Homer is located in Hamilton County
  • Kamrar
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Woolstock ...

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 Woolstock.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Woolstock, 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 Woolstock.

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 Woolstock:

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

The official website for Wright County: www.wrightcounty.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>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.
<3>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.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Woolstock) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Woolstock. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.5665, Longitude: -93.8441    
<5>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.
<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 Woolstock, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025