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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 Clayton (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 Clayton. 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 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.

Clayton is located in Adams 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 Adams County: Brown, Hancock, Pike, Schuyler, Lewis (MO) & Marion (MO).

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

  • Adams County     (The home county of Clayton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Blacks
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Blacks is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blacks
    • Camp Point
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Golden
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Kellerville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Kellerville is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerville
    • La Prairie
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Coatsburg
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Columbus
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Columbus is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 96 people
    • Paloma
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Liberty
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Fowler
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Loraine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Beverly
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Beverly is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
    • Adams
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Adams is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
  • Brown County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Mound Station
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Mound Station is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Station
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Timewell
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Mount Sterling
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Hersman
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Hersman is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hersman
    • Gilbirds
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Gilbirds is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbirds
    • Ripley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Ripley is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ripley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
    • Versailles
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Cooperstown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Cooperstown is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooperstown
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Beardstown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Oak Grove
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Oak Grove is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
    • Hagener
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Hagener is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagener
  • Hancock County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Augusta
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Bowen
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Chili
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Chili is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chili
    • Plymouth
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • West Point
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • West Point is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
    • Bentley
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Bentley is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 32 people
    • Basco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Sutter
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Sutter is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutter
    • Carthage
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Joetta
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Joetta is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joetta
    • Elvaston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Fountain Green
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Fountain Green is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Green
  • McDonough County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Colmar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Colmar is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colmar
    • Doddsville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Doddsville is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doddsville
    • Tennessee
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • VIshnu Springs ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • VIshnu Springs is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for VIshnu Springs
    • Industry
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Colchester
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • Morgan County
    • Meredosia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Pike County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Perry
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Baylis
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Chambersburg
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Hadley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Hadley is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hadley
    • Barry
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • New Salem
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • New Salem is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Salem
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 131 people
    • Kinderhook
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Griggsville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Hull
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Valley City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Valley City is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 14 people
    • Spencer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Spencer is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer
    • El Dara
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • New Canton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • New Canton is located in Pike County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Canton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 338 people
  • Schuyler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Camden
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Huntsville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Wayland
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Wayland is located in Schuyler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayland
    • Rushville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Littleton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Frederick
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Scott County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Naples
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Bluffs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Oxville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Oxville is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxville
  • Lewis County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • La Grange
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Canton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Canton is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,314 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Canton <1>
  • Marion County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clayton, with the one closest to Clayton listed first.
    • Cave City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Cave City is located in Marion County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave City
    • Helton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Helton is located in Marion County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helton
    • Taylor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Clayton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Clayton.

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 Clayton - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • South Side Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • West Side Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Jefferson Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Howe Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Sargent Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Wallace Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Ausmus Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Orton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Mounds Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Pleasant View Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Dunkard Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (509 more) ...
    • Meints Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Lee Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Higley Family Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Clayton had a population of 1,033 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Clayton had a population of 668 people.

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

  • Blacks
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Blacks is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blacks
  • Mound Station
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Mound Station is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Station
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
  • Camp Point
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Fargo
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Fargo is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fargo
  • Golden
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Kellerville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Kellerville is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerville
  • La Prairie
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Buckhorn
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Buckhorn is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckhorn
  • Chatton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Chatton is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatton
  • Columbus
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Columbus is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 96 people
  • Siloam
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Siloam is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siloam
  • Mount Sterling
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Coatsburg
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Chestline
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Chestline is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestline
    • Benville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Benville is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benville

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Clayton ...

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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Clayton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Clayton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Clayton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Clayton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4> of Clayton.

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 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 Clayton:

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