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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 Chicago Lawn (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 Chicago Lawn. 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 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.

Chicago Lawn is located in Cook County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Cook County: DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, Lake (IN) & Berrien (MI).

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

  • Cook County     (The home county of Chicago Lawn)
  • DuPage County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chicago Lawn, with the one closest to Chicago Lawn listed first.
    • Hinsdale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Willowbrook
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willowbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willowbrook
      • Willowbrook is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,507 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Willowbrook <2>
    • Clarendon Hills
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarendon Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarendon Hills
      • Clarendon Hills is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,718 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clarendon Hills <2>
    • South Elmhurst
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Oak Brook
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Brook
      • Oak Brook is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,046 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oak Brook <2>
    • Westmont
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Elmhurst
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elmhurst have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmhurst
      • Elmhurst is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 46,532 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elmhurst <2>
    • Darien
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Darien have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darien
      • Darien is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,531 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Darien <2>
    • Oak Brook Terrace
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Brook Terrace have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Brook Terrace
      • Oak Brook Terrace is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,094 people
    • Utopia
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Villa Park
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Villa Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Park
      • Villa Park is located in DuPage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,291 people
    • Downers Grove
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Lake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chicago Lawn, with the one closest to Chicago Lawn listed first.
    • Braeside
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Braeside have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braeside
      • Braeside is located in Lake County
    • Ravinia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ravinia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravinia
      • Ravinia is located in Lake County
    • Deerfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deerfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerfield
      • Deerfield is located in Lake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,532 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deerfield <2>
    • Highland Park
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Riverwoods
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverwoods have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverwoods
      • Riverwoods is located in Lake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,534 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Riverwoods <2>
    • Buffalo Grove
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buffalo Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Grove
      • Buffalo Grove is located in Lake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 40,161 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buffalo Grove <2>
    • Bannockburn
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bannockburn have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bannockburn
      • Bannockburn is located in Lake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,596 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bannockburn <2>
    • Highwood
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highwood
      • Highwood is located in Lake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,301 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Highwood <2>
  • Will County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chicago Lawn, with the one closest to Chicago Lawn listed first.
    • Goodings Grove
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goodings Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodings Grove
      • Goodings Grove is located in Will County
    • Homer Glen
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homer Glen have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer Glen
      • Homer Glen is located in Will County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24,281 people
      • Homer Glen has also been known as:
      • Homer Glen village
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer Glen <2>
    • Frankfort Square
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frankfort Square have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort Square
      • Frankfort Square is located in Will County
    • Mokena
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mokena have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mokena
      • Mokena is located in Will County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 20,050 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mokena <2>
    • Colonial Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colonial Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
      • Colonial Village is located in Will County
    • Winston Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winston Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winston Village
      • Winston Village is located in Will County
    • Frankfort
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frankfort have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort
      • Frankfort is located in Will County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 19,411 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frankfort <2>
    • Bloomfield Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bloomfield Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield Village
      • Bloomfield Village is located in Will County
    • Steger
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Gilletts ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gilletts. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilletts
      • Gilletts is located in Will County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Gilletts
      • From Chicago Lawn to Gilletts
    • Bolingbrook
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bolingbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolingbrook
      • Bolingbrook is located in Will County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 74,025 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bolingbrook <2>
    • Crete
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crete have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crete
      • Crete is located in Will County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,938 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Crete <2>
  • Lake County (IN)
  • Porter County (IN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chicago Lawn, with the one closest to Chicago Lawn listed first.
    • Ogden Dunes
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ogden Dunes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden Dunes
      • Ogden Dunes is located in Porter County (IN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,083 people
    • Woodland Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodland Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
      • Woodland Village is located in Porter County (IN)
    • Portage
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Willow Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Chicago Lawn ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chicago Lawn.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chicago Lawn, with the one closest to Chicago Lawn 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Chicago Lawn had a post office and railroad service.

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

  • South Lynn
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Lynn have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Lynn
    • South Lynn is located in Cook County
  • Forest Hill
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forest Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hill
    • Forest Hill is located in Cook County
  • South Englewood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Englewood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Englewood
    • South Englewood is located in Cook County
  • Glendale
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glendale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
    • Glendale is located in Cook County
  • Englewood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Englewood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Englewood
    • Englewood is located in Cook County
  • Elsdon
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elsdon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elsdon
    • Elsdon is located in Cook County
  • Corwith
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corwith have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corwith
    • Corwith is located in Cook County
  • Evergreen Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Brainerd
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brainerd have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brainerd
    • Brainerd is located in Cook County
  • Auburn Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Auburn Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auburn Park
    • Auburn Park is located in Cook County
  • Park Manor
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park Manor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Manor
    • Park Manor is located in Cook County
  • Brighton Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brighton Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton Park
    • Brighton Park is located in Cook County
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Beverly Hills
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beverly Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly Hills
      • Beverly Hills is located in Cook County
    • Washington Heights
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Washington Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington Heights
      • Washington Heights is located in Cook County
    • Grand Crossing
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Crossing
      • Grand Crossing is located in Cook County

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

Newspapers Published in Chicago Lawn ...

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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chicago Lawn.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chicago Lawn, there are papers which were published within 7 miles [11.3 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chicago Lawn.

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 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 Chicago Lawn:

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

The official website for Cook County: www.co.cook.il.us/

The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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 Chicago Lawn, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 from Point A (ie- Chicago Lawn) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Chicago Lawn. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.7718, Longitude: -87.6932    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025