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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 Gridley (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 Gridley. 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 hospitals 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.

Gridley is located in McLean 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 McLean County: Champaign, De Witt, Ford, Livingston, Logan, Piatt, Tazewell & Woodford.

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

  • McLean County     (The home county of Gridley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Meadows
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Meadows is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadows
    • Chenoa
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Lexington
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Hudson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Towanda
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Weston
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Weston is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
    • Merna
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Normal
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Cooksville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Carlock
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Yuton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Yuton is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yuton
    • Colfax
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Bloomington
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
  • Ford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Sibley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Garber
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Garber is located in Ford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garber
  • La Salle County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Dana
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Dana is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dana <1>
    • Rutland
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Leeds
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Leeds is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
    • Streator
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Kangley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Kangley is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kangley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
    • Kernan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Kernan is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kernan
    • Lostant
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Lostant is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lostant
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 477 people
      • Lostant has also been known as:
      • Lost Ant
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lostant <1>
    • Ransom
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Priscilla ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Priscilla is located in La Salle County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Priscilla
  • Livingston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Flanagan
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Graymont
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Pontiac
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Pontiac is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontiac
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,176 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pontiac <1>
    • McDowell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • McDowell is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDowell
    • Long Point
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Cornell
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Avoca ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Avoca is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
    • Fairbury
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Ancona
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Cayuga
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Cayuga is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
    • Swygert
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Swygert is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swygert
    • Coalville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Coalville is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
    • Forrest
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
  • Marshall County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Toluca
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Evans ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Evans is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans
    • Wenona
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • La Rose
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Varna
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Putnam County
    • Magnolia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Tazewell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • Deer Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Lilly
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Lilly is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly
    • Washington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Mackinaw
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Mackinaw is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackinaw
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,861 people
      • Former name for Mackinaw:
      • Mackinawtown
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mackinaw <1>
    • Cooper
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Cooper is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
    • Tazewell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Tazewell is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tazewell
    • Crandall ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Crandall is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crandall
    • Mayfair
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Mayfair is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayfair
    • Allentown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Allentown is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allentown
    • Beverly Manor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Beverly Manor is located in Tazewell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly Manor
  • Woodford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gridley, with the one closest to Gridley listed first.
    • El Paso
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Panola
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Panola is located in Woodford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panola
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
    • Kappa
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Kappa is located in Woodford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kappa
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 247 people
    • Woodford
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Woodford is located in Woodford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodford
    • Minonk
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Secor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Benson
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Roanoke
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Congerville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Eureka
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Goodfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Washburn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Metamora
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Gridley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gridley.

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

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

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

  • Gridley Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Hibbs - Bigger Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Waldo Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Wilcox - Coon Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Clarksville Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Pike Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • El Paso Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Kappa Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Messer Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Hinthorn Union Chapel Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinthorn Union Chapel Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hinthorn Union Chapel Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 10 miles [16.1 km]<2> to the north of Bloomington.
    • The Hinthorn Union Chapel Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hinthorn Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1934183 <3>
  • Dawson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (257 more) ...
    • Lexington Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Scrogin Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)

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 Gridley had a population of 474 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Gridley had a population of 1,392 people.

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

  • Meadows
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Meadows is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadows
  • El Paso
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Kappa
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Kappa is located in Woodford County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kappa
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 247 people
  • Lexington
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Chenoa
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Flanagan
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Graymont
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Hudson
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Ocoya
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Ocoya is located in Livingston County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocoya
  • Towanda
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Weston
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Weston is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
  • Rooks Creek
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Rooks Creek is located in Livingston County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rooks Creek
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Minonk
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Secor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Benson
      (14 miles [22.5 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 Gridley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gridley.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Gridley ...

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 215 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gridley.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Gridley. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Gridley and those printed in the larger area surrounding Gridley.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<2> of Gridley.

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 Gridley:

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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gridley) 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 Gridley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.