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 Elizabeth (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 Elizabeth. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Elizabeth is located in Jo Daviess 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 Jo Daviess County: Dubuque (IA), Jackson (IA), Carroll, Stephenson, Grant (WI) & Lafayette (WI).
Below are the counties that are near Elizabeth. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Elizabeth:
- Jo Daviess County (The home county of Elizabeth)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Hanover
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Aiken
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Aiken is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aiken
- Stockton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Scales Mound
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Bremen
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bremen is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bremen
- Pleasant Valley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Valley is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
- Galena Junction
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Galena Junction is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena Junction
- Galena
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Apple River
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Nora
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Warren
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Menominee
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Menominee is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menominee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 241 people
- East Dubuque
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Blackhawk
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Blackhawk is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackhawk
- Arnold
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Arnold is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
- Marcus
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Marcus is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Polsgrove
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Polsgrove is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polsgrove
- Savanna
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Ayers
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Ayers is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers
- Center Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Center Hill is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Hill
- Hickory Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Grove is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
- Mount Carroll
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wacker
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Wacker is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wacker
- Daggett ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Daggett is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daggett
- Georgetown
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Georgetown is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Zier Cors
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Zier Cors is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zier Cors
- Stephenson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Kent
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Loran
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Loran is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loran
- Yellow Creek
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Yellow Creek is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Creek
- Pearl City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Lena
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Lena is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lena
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,680 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lena <1>
- Salem
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Salem is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Eleroy
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Winslow
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bolton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Bolton is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolton
- McConnell
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Red Oak
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Red Oak is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Oak
- Florence
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Florence is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Whiteside County
- Spring Valley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Spring Valley is located in Whiteside County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
- Clinton County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Teeds Grove
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Teeds Grove is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teeds Grove
- Andover
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Andover is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
- Elk River Junction
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Elk River Junction is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk River Junction
- Bryant
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Bryant is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant
- Goose Lake
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Goose Lake is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goose Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Tenmile
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Tenmile is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tenmile
- Charlotte
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sixmile
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Sixmile is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixmile
- Delmar
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Dubuque County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Wilkins
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Wilkins is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkins
- Massey
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Massey is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massey
- Cattese
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cattese is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cattese
- Zwingle
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Zwingle is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zwingle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Dubuque
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rockdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rockdale is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale
- Key West
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Key West is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Key West
- Washington Mills
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Washington Mills is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington Mills
- Sageville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Sageville is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sageville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
- Asbury
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Asbury is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,841 people
- Bernard
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Jackson County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- North Bellevue
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- North Bellevue is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bellevue
- Smiths
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Smiths is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smiths
- Bellevue
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Green Island
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Green Island is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Island
- Springbrook
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Donatus
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Sabula
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Van Buren
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Van Buren is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Buren
- Miles
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Spragueville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cottonville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Cottonville is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonville
- Preston
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- La Motte
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Grant County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Hazel Green
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Hazel Green is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazel Green
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,219 people
- Cuba City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cuba City is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,047 people
- Jamestown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Jamestown is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Rutledge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Rutledge is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutledge
- Dickeyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dickeyville is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickeyville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,020 people
- Sinnipee ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sinnipee is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinnipee
- Green County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Cadiz
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cadiz is located in Green County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cadiz
- Browntown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Browntown is located in Green County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browntown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
- Lafayette County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- White Oak
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- White Oak is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak
- Fort Gratiot ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Fort Gratiot is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Gratiot
- Former name for Fort Gratiot:
- Gratiot Grove
- New Diggings
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- New Diggings is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Diggings
- Etna
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Etna is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
- Shullsburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Shullsburg is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shullsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,192 people
- Benton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Benton is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
- Gratiot
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Gratiot is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gratiot
- Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
- South Wayne
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- South Wayne is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Wayne
- Population from the 2020 Census: 472 people
- Darlington
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Darlington is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,317 people
- Elk Grove
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Elk Grove is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Grove
- Wiota
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Wiota is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wiota
- Belmont
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Belmont is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 974 people
- Calamine
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Calamine is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calamine
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Elizabeth, see our County-by-County Page for Elizabeth.
Cemeteries Near Elizabeth ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elizabeth.
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 Elizabeth - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Elizabeth covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Elizabeth Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Weston Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Woodbine Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Log Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Evergreen Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Hanover.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1156087 <2>
- Morrison Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lost Mound Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Albright Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Massbach Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Thompson Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Prospect Hill Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect Hill Cemetery
- The Prospect Hill Cemetery has also been known as:
- Prospect Hill Methodist Episcopalian Cemetery
- Continue List (315 more) ...
- Singers Catholic Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Plum River Catholic Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Old City Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
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 Elizabeth had a population of 495 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Elizabeth had a population of 722 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Elizabeth, with the one closest to Elizabeth listed first.
- Rodden
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Rodden is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodden
- Schapville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Schapville is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schapville
- Massbach
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Massbach is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massbach
- Blanding
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Blanding is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanding
- Aiken
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Aiken is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aiken
- North Bellevue
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- North Bellevue is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bellevue
- Smiths
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Smiths is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smiths
- Bellevue
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Creek is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Creek
- Marcus
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Marcus is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Pleasant Valley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Valley is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
- Stockton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Scales Mound
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Galena Junction
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Galena Junction is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena Junction
- Green Island
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Green Island is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Island
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Elizabeth. See our List of 1890's Communities around Elizabeth.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Elizabeth ...
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 119 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elizabeth.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Elizabeth. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Elizabeth and those printed in the larger area surrounding Elizabeth.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4> of Elizabeth.
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 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 Elizabeth:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Jo Daviess County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Carroll County
- Stephenson County
- Whiteside County
- Clinton County
- Dubuque County
- Jackson County
- Grant County
- Green County
- Lafayette 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> | 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 Elizabeth, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Elizabeth) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |