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 Centerville (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 Centerville. 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 northeast 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 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.
Centerville is located in Calhoun 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 Calhoun County: Greene, Jersey, Pike, Lincoln (MO), Pike (MO) & Saint Charles (MO).
Below are the counties that are near Centerville. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Centerville:
- Calhoun County (The home county of Centerville)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Brussels
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Deer Plain
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Deer Plain is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Plain
- Golden Eagle
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Batchtown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Gilead
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Gilead is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilead
- Star City
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Star City is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star City
- Hardin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Michael
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Hamburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Kampsville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Mozier
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Cliffdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Cliffdale is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffdale
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- East Hardin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- East Hardin is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Hardin
- Kane
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Mid City ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mid City is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mid City
- Woody
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Woody is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woody
- Eldred
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Carrollton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Rockbridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Jersey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Grafton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Chautauqua
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Chautauqua is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chautauqua
- Nutwood
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Nutwood is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nutwood
- Elsah
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Fieldon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Otterville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Otterville is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otterville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Dow
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- McClusky
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- McClusky is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McClusky
- Spankey
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Spankey is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spankey
- Delhi
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Delhi is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delhi
- Jerseyville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Fidelity
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Macoupin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Brighton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Miles Station
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Miles Station is located in Macoupin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miles Station
- Piasa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Medora
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Summerville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Summerville is located in Macoupin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerville
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Melville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Melville is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melville
- Altamont
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Godfrey
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Belmont Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Belmont Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont Village
- Alton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- East Alton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- East Alton is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Alton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,922 people
- Hartford
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Rosewood Heights
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Rosewood Heights is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosewood Heights
- Wood River
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Cottage Hills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Cottage Hills is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Hills
- Granite City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Nameoki
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Nameoki is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nameoki
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Brooklyn
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Brooklyn is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
- Population from the 2020 Census: 687 people
- National City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Franklin County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Port Royal ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Port Royal is located in Franklin County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Royal
- Saint Albans
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jefferson County (MO)
- Murphy
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Murphy is located in Jefferson County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murphy
- Lincoln County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Cap au Gris
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Cap au Gris is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cap au Gris
- Old Monroe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Winfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Foley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chain-of-Rocks
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Chain-of-Rocks is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chain-of-Rocks
- Population from the 2020 Census: 105 people
- Argentville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Argentville is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argentville
- Fountain N' Lakes
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Fountain N' Lakes is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain N' Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
- Fountain N' Lakes has also been known as:
- Fountain N' Lakes village
- Moscow Mills
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Elsberry
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- New Hope
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- New Hope is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Troy
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Troy is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,341 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <1>
- Auburn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Auburn is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburn
- Pike County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Annada
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Annada is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annada
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28 people
- Sledd
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sledd is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sledd
- Paynesville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Paynesville is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paynesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 74 people
- Saint Charles County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Gardnerville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Gardnerville is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardnerville
- Saint Charles
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Saint Peters
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- O'Fallon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- O'Fallon is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Fallon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 89,769 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for O'Fallon <1>
- Saint Paul
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Paul is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,796 people
- Portage Des Sioux
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- All Saints Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- All Saints Village is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for All Saints Village
- Harvester
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Cottleville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Josephville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Josephville is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josephville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 485 people
- Dardenne Prairie
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Saint Louis
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Louis City (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- University City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- 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
- Baden
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Baden is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baden
- Cheltenham
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cheltenham is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheltenham
- Tower Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Tower Grove is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Grove
- Saint Louis
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Carondelet
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Carondelet is located in Saint Louis City (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carondelet
- Saint Louis County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Earth City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bridgeton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Bridgeton is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,498 people
- Champ
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Champ is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Champ
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13 people
- Vigus
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Vigus is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vigus
- Maryland Heights
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Maryland Heights is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maryland Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,895 people
- Hazelwood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Florissant
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Florissant is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florissant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50,795 people
- Fernridge
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Fernridge is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernridge
- Lake
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Lake is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
- Berkeley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Berkeley is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkeley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,892 people
- Edmundson
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Edmundson is located in Saint Louis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmundson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 828 people
- Saint Ann
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Warren County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Wright City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Innsbrook
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Innsbrook is located in Warren County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Innsbrook
- Population from the 2020 Census: 597 people
- Innsbrook has also been known as:
- Innsbrook village
- Truesdale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Truesdale is located in Warren County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truesdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 922 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Centerville, see our County-by-County Page for Centerville.
Cemeteries Near Centerville ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Centerville.
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 Centerville - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Centerville covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Christville Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Cresswell Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Hetzer Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Macker Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Hartford Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Minesinger Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Ingle Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Meadow Branch Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Barweis Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Edsall Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- St. Barbara Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (350 more) ...
- Rosedale Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Borromeo Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Emmaus Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
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>
While we didn't find Centerville in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Centerville.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Centerville, with the one closest to Centerville listed first.
- Brussels
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Golden Eagle
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Deer Plain
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Deer Plain is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Plain
- Conrad
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Conrad is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conrad
- Meppen
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Meppen is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meppen
- Beechville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Beechville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechville
- Grafton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Rosedale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Rosedale is located in Jersey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale
- Gardnerville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Gardnerville is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardnerville
- Elm Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Elm Point is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Point
- Batchtown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Brevator
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Brevator is located in Lincoln County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brevator
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Old Monroe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Saint Paul
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Paul is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,796 people
- O'Fallon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- O'Fallon is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Fallon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 89,769 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for O'Fallon <1>
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Centerville. See our List of 1890's Communities around Centerville.
Newspapers Published in Centerville ...
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 90 newspapers that have been published in the area around Centerville.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Centerville, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Centerville.
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 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 Centerville:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Calhoun County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Greene County
- Jersey County
- Macoupin County
- Madison County
- Saint Clair County
- Franklin County
- Jefferson County
- Lincoln County
- Pike County
- Saint Charles County
- Saint Louis City
- Saint Louis County
- Warren 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' (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- Centerville) 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 Centerville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |