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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 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.

Gridley is located in McLean 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 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadows
      • Meadows is located in McLean County
    • Chenoa
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Lexington
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lexington have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
      • Lexington is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,020 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lexington <1>
    • Hudson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hudson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
      • Hudson is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,810 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
    • Towanda
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Towanda have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Towanda
      • Towanda is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Towanda <1>
    • Weston
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
      • Weston is located in McLean County
    • Merna
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merna
      • Merna is located in McLean County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Merna <1>
    • 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)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carlock have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlock
      • Carlock is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 558 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carlock <1>
    • Yuton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yuton
      • Yuton is located in McLean County
    • Colfax
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colfax have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colfax
      • Colfax is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,009 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colfax <1>
    • 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)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sibley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sibley
      • Sibley is located in Ford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 251 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sibley <1>
    • Garber
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Garber. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garber
      • Garber is located in Ford County
  • 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)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dana have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
      • Dana is located in La Salle County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dana <1>
    • Rutland
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rutland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutland
      • Rutland is located in La Salle County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 303 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rutland <1>
    • Leeds
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Leeds. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
      • Leeds is located in La Salle County
    • Streator
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Kangley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kangley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kangley
      • Kangley is located in La Salle County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
    • Kernan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kernan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kernan
      • Kernan is located in La Salle County
    • Lostant
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lostant
      • Lostant is located in La Salle County
      • 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)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Priscilla. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Priscilla
      • Priscilla is located in La Salle County
  • 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)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flanagan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flanagan
      • Flanagan is located in Livingston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,057 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flanagan <1>
    • Graymont
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Graymont have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graymont
      • Graymont is located in Livingston County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Graymont <1>
    • Pontiac
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pontiac have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontiac
      • Pontiac is located in Livingston County
      • 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDowell
      • McDowell is located in Livingston County
    • Long Point
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Point
      • Long Point is located in Livingston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Long Point <1>
    • Cornell
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cornell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornell
      • Cornell is located in Livingston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 451 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cornell <1>
    • Avoca ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Avoca. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
      • Avoca is located in Livingston County
    • 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
      • Cayuga is located in Livingston County
    • Swygert
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Swygert. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swygert
      • Swygert is located in Livingston County
    • Coalville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coalville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
      • Coalville is located in Livingston County
    • Forrest
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forrest have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forrest
      • Forrest is located in Livingston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,124 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Forrest <1>
  • 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans
      • Evans is located in Marshall County
    • Wenona
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wenona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona
      • Wenona is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 926 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wenona <1>
    • La Rose
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Rose have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Rose
      • La Rose is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 127 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for La Rose <1>
    • Varna
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Putnam County
    • Magnolia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Magnolia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
      • Magnolia is located in Putnam County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 244 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Magnolia <1>
  • 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly
      • Lilly is located in Tazewell County
    • Washington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Mackinaw
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackinaw
      • Mackinaw is located in Tazewell County
      • 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)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
      • Cooper is located in Tazewell County
    • Tazewell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Tazewell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tazewell
      • Tazewell is located in Tazewell County
    • Crandall ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Crandall. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crandall
      • Crandall is located in Tazewell County
    • Mayfair
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayfair
      • Mayfair is located in Tazewell County
    • Allentown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allentown
      • Allentown is located in Tazewell County
    • Beverly Manor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly Manor
      • Beverly Manor is located in Tazewell County
  • 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)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for El Paso have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Paso
      • El Paso is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,700 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for El Paso <1>
    • Panola
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Panola have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panola
      • Panola is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
    • Kappa
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kappa
      • Kappa is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 247 people
    • Woodford
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Woodford. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodford
      • Woodford is located in Woodford County
    • Minonk
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Secor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Secor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Secor
      • Secor is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 351 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Secor <1>
    • Benson
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Roanoke
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Roanoke have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanoke
      • Roanoke is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,966 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Roanoke <1>
    • Congerville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Congerville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Congerville
      • Congerville is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 494 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Congerville <1>
    • Eureka
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,232 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eureka <1>
    • Goodfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goodfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodfield
      • Goodfield is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 986 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Goodfield <1>
    • Washburn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Washburn have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washburn
      • Washburn is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,064 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Washburn <1>
    • Metamora
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Metamora have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Metamora
      • Metamora is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,648 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Metamora <1>

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.

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 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)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gridley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gridley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hibbs - Bigger Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hibbs - Bigger Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hibbs - Bigger Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Waldo Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Waldo Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Waldo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilcox - Coon Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilcox - Coon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wilcox - Coon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Clarksville Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Clarksville Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Clarksville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pike Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pike Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pike Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • El Paso Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the El Paso Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the El Paso Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kappa Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kappa Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kappa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Messer Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Messer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Messer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • 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 the 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]<4> to the south of Bloomington.
    • The Hinthorn Union Chapel Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hinthorn Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1934183 <5>
  • Dawson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dawson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dawson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (256 more) ...
    • Lexington Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Scrogin Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Scrogin Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Scrogin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<6>

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)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadows
    • Meadows is located in McLean County
  • El Paso
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for El Paso have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for El Paso
    • El Paso is located in Woodford County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,700 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for El Paso <1>
  • Kappa
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kappa
    • Kappa is located in Woodford County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 247 people
  • Lexington
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lexington have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
    • Lexington is located in McLean County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,020 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lexington <1>
  • Chenoa
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Flanagan
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flanagan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flanagan
    • Flanagan is located in Livingston County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,057 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flanagan <1>
  • Graymont
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Graymont have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graymont
    • Graymont is located in Livingston County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Graymont <1>
  • Hudson
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hudson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
    • Hudson is located in McLean County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,810 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
  • Ocoya
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ocoya have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocoya
    • Ocoya is located in Livingston County
  • Towanda
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Towanda have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Towanda
    • Towanda is located in McLean County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 461 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Towanda <1>
  • Weston
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
    • Weston is located in McLean County
  • Rooks Creek
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rooks Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rooks Creek
    • Rooks Creek is located in Livingston County
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Minonk
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Secor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Secor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Secor
      • Secor is located in Woodford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 351 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Secor <1>
    • 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]<4> of Gridley.

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 helpful 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:

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

The official website for McLean County: www.mclean.gov/

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

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 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.
<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>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- Gridley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Gridley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.7441, Longitude: -88.8801       In this case, the coordinates for Gridley have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<6>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.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025