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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 Bald Bluff (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 Bald Bluff. 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 Bald Bluff ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Bald Bluff: Bald Blf. (or less commonly used: Bald Bluf.)

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Bald Bluff is located in Henderson County.

To see how the shape of Illinois' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Henderson County: Des Moines (IA), Lee (IA), Hancock, McDonough, Mercer & Warren.

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

  • Henderson County     (The home county of Bald Bluff)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Milroy
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Milroy is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milroy
    • Rozetta
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Rozetta is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rozetta
    • Oquawka
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Biggsville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Biggsville is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biggsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
    • Gladstone
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Media
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Media is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Media
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
    • Olena
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Olena is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
    • Gulf Port
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Gulf Port is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Port
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
    • Stronghurst
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Raritan
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Raritan is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raritan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
    • Carman
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Iowa Junction
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Iowa Junction is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Junction
  • Hancock County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Disco
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Disco is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Disco
    • La Harpe
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • La Harpe is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Harpe
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,123 people
  • Henry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Alpha
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Woodhull
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Ophiem
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Ophiem is located in Henry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophiem
  • Knox County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Henderson Grove
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Henderson Grove is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson Grove
    • Rio
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Galesburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Henderson
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Abingdon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • East Galesburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • East Galesburg is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Galesburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 761 people
    • Knoxville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Wataga
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Mercer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Seaton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Keithsburg
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Sunbeam
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Sunbeam is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunbeam
    • Joy
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Joy is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Joy <1>
    • Norwood
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Norwood is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood
    • New Boston
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Aledo
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Burgess
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Burgess is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgess
    • Alexis
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Mannon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Mannon is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mannon
    • Gilchrist
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Gilchrist is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilchrist
    • Shale City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Shale City is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shale City
  • Rock Island County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Buffalo Prairie
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Reynolds
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Edgington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Edgington is located in Rock Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgington
    • Illinois City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Illinois City is located in Rock Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinois City
    • Taylor Ridge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Andalusia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Coyne Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Coyne Center is located in Rock Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coyne Center
    • Oak Grove
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Oak Grove is located in Rock Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 585 people
  • Warren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Little York
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Eleanor
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Eleanor is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eleanor
    • Kirkwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Gerlaw
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Monmouth
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Smithshire
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Shanghai City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Shanghai City is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanghai City
    • Utah
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Utah is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Utah
    • Cameron
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Surrey
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Surrey is located in Warren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surrey
    • Berwick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Roseville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Des Moines County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Kingston
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Kingston is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
    • Mediapolis
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Sperry
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Sperry is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sperry
    • Dodgeville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Dodgeville is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodgeville
    • Burlington
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Burlington is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24,516 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burlington <1>
    • Kline
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Kline is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kline
    • West Burlington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Patterson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Patterson is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson
    • Yarmouth
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Middletown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Middletown is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 335 people
    • Danville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Danville is located in Des Moines County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 896 people
  • Henry County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Mount Union
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Mount Union is located in Henry County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Union
      • Estimated population in 2017: 107 people
    • New London
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Lee County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • South Augusta
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • South Augusta is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Augusta
    • Wever
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Louisa County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Oakville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Elrick Junction
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Elrick Junction is located in Louisa County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elrick Junction
    • Wapello
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Wapello is located in Louisa County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapello
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,999 people
    • Morning Sun
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Grandview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Grandview is located in Louisa County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 519 people
    • Letts
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Letts is located in Louisa County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Letts
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Letts <1>
  • Muscatine County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bald Bluff, with the one closest to Bald Bluff listed first.
    • Fruitland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Fruitland is located in Muscatine County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
    • Fairport
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Fairport is located in Muscatine County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairport
    • Muscatine
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Muscatine is located in Muscatine County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muscatine
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,523 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Muscatine <1>
    • Midway Beach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Midway Beach is located in Muscatine County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway Beach
  • Scott County (IA)
    • Buffalo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Buffalo is located in Scott County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,257 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buffalo <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Bald Bluff ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bald Bluff.

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 Bald Bluff - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Coghill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Fall Creek Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Belmont Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Hawkins Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Stockton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Pleasant Green Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Rozetta Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Little York Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • McClure Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Huron Island Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Reed Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Cedar Creek Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (327 more) ...
    • Keithsburg Greenmound Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • St. Mary's Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Oquawka Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)

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 Bald Bluff in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bald Bluff.

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

  • Milroy
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Milroy is located in Henderson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milroy
  • Rozetta
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Rozetta is located in Henderson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rozetta
  • Little York
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Ogle
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Ogle is located in Mercer County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogle
  • Seaton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Oquawka
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Keithsburg
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Eleanor
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Eleanor is located in Warren County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eleanor
  • Sunbeam
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Sunbeam is located in Mercer County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunbeam
  • Huron
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Huron is located in Des Moines County (IA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huron
  • Kingston
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Kingston is located in Des Moines County (IA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
  • Gladstone
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Kirkwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Oakville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Norwood
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Norwood is located in Mercer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood

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

Newspapers Published in Bald Bluff ...

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 61 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bald Bluff.

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

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 Bald Bluff:

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 Bald Bluff, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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- Bald Bluff) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.