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 Birkner (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 Birkner. 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 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.
Birkner is located in Saint Clair 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 Saint Clair County: Clinton, Madison, Monroe, Randolph, Washington, Saint Louis City (MO) & Saint Louis (MO).
Below are the counties that are near Birkner. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Birkner:
- Saint Clair County (The home county of Birkner)
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Gartside
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Gartside is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gartside
- Summit
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Summit is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- Swansea
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- French Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- French Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Village
- Fairview Heights
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Belleville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Bunkum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Bunkum is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunkum
- Alorton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Caseyville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Centreville
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Centreville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centreville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,844 people
- O'Fallon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Petersburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Petersburg is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Imbs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Imbs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Imbs
- Bond County
- Pierron
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Clinton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- New Baden
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- New Memphis
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Trenton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Albers
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Aviston
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Damiansville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Damiansville is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Damiansville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 484 people
- Germantown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Saint Rose
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Saint Rose is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Rose
- Breese
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Bartelso
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Collinsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Madison
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Venice
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Maryville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Pontoon Beach
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Granite City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Newport
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Newport is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Nameoki
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Nameoki is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nameoki
- Glen Carbon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Troy
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Mitchell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Mitchell is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchell
- Brooks
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Brooks is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks
- Poag
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Poag is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poag
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Columbia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Waterloo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hecker
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Burksville Station
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Burksville Station is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burksville Station
- Foster Pond ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Foster Pond is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster Pond
- Wartburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wartburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wartburg
- Burksville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Burksville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burksville
- Valmeyer
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Madonnaville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Madonnaville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madonnaville
- Monroe City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Monroe City is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe City
- Maeystown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Chalfin Bridge
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Chalfin Bridge is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalfin Bridge
- Renault
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Randolph County
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Red Bud
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Baldwin
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Ruma
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Ruma is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 300 people
- Houston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Houston is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Tilden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Venedy
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Venedy is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Venedy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 130 people
- Caspars
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Caspars is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caspars
- Stone Church
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Stone Church is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone Church
- Okawville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Clarmin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Clarmin is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarmin
- Jefferson County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Arnold
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Arnold is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
- Population from the 2020 Census: 21,145 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Arnold <1>
- Flamm City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Flamm City is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flamm City
- Maxville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Maxville is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxville
- Kimmswick
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Imperial
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Barnhart
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Murphy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Murphy is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murphy
- Pevely
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Pevely is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pevely
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,001 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pevely <1>
- Parkdale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Parkdale is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 162 people
- Herculaneum
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Otto
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Otto is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otto
- High Ridge
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Peaceful Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Peaceful Village is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peaceful Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Saint Charles County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- West Alton
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Portage Des Sioux
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Louis City (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Saint Louis
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Carondelet
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Carondelet is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carondelet
- Tower Grove
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Tower Grove is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Grove
- Cheltenham
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Cheltenham is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheltenham
- Baden
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Baden is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baden
- University City
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- University City is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 34,049 people
- Saint Louis County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Bella Villa
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Bella Villa is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bella Villa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 721 people
- Ivory
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Ivory is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivory
- Lemay
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Lemay is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemay
- Riverview
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Riverview is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,821 people
- Mackenzie
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Mackenzie is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackenzie
- Estimated population in 2018: 131 people
- Saint George
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Saint George is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
- Estimated population in 2011: 1,336 people
- Wilbur Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Wilbur Park is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilbur Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 466 people
- Wydown Skinker
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Wydown Skinker is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wydown Skinker
- Bellefontaine Neighbors
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bellefontaine Neighbors is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellefontaine Neighbors
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,297 people
- Beverly Hills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Beverly Hills is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 551 people
- Flordell Hills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Flordell Hills is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flordell Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 800 people
- Glasgow Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Glasgow Village is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glasgow Village
- Affton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Affton is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Affton
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Birkner, see our County-by-County Page for Birkner.
Cemeteries Near Birkner ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Birkner.
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 Birkner - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Birkner covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- St. Clair Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Clair Memorial Park
- To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Clair Memorial Park is a large cemetery that is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<2> to the west of Fairview Heights.
- The St. Clair Memorial Park has also been known as:
- French Village Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #107853 <3>
- Old St. Clair County Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Badgley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Mt. Hope Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Greenwood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- St. Adalbert Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Holy Cross Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Valhalla Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Lakeview Memorial Gardens
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Messenger Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Kampmeyer Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (473 more) ...
- Booker T Washington Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- St. George Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Whiteside Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
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 Birkner had a population of 289 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Birkner, with the one closest to Birkner listed first.
- Ogles
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Ogles is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogles
- Gartside
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Gartside is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gartside
- Summit
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Summit is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- French Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- French Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Village
- Belleville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Furman
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Furman is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furman
- Caseyville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Centreville
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Centreville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centreville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,844 people
- Tillman
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Tillman is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tillman
- Imbs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Imbs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Imbs
- Shiloh
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Millstadt
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Wilderman
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Wilderman is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilderman
- Collinsville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- East Saint Louis
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Birkner. See our List of 1890's Communities around Birkner.
Newspapers Published in Birkner ...
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 627 newspapers that have been published in the area around Birkner.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Birkner, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Birkner.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Birkner:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Saint Clair County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bond County
- Clinton County
- Madison County
- Monroe County
- Randolph County
- Washington County
- Jefferson County
- Saint Charles County
- Saint Louis City
- Saint Louis County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Illinois
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> | 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 from Point A (ie- Birkner) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Birkner, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |