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 Guilford (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 Guilford. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.
Neighboring Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Guilford 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 Guilford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Guilford:
- Jo Daviess County (The home county of Guilford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Scales Mound
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bremen
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Bremen is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bremen
- Galena
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Elizabeth
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Aiken
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Aiken is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aiken
- Galena Junction
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Galena Junction is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena Junction
- Apple River
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Hanover
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Menominee
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Menominee is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menominee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 241 people
- Stockton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Warren
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- East Dubuque
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Blackhawk
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Blackhawk is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackhawk
- Arnold
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Arnold is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
- Marcus
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Marcus is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Polsgrove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Polsgrove is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polsgrove
- Savanna
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Ayers
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Ayers is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers
- Center Hill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Center Hill is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Hill
- Hickory Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Grove is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
- Mount Carroll
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wacker
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wacker is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wacker
- Georgetown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Georgetown is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Zier Cors
(30 miles [48.3 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 Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Kent
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Yellow Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Yellow Creek is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Creek
- Loran
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Loran is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loran
- Lena
(24 miles [38.6 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>
- Winslow
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Pearl City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Salem
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Salem is located in Stephenson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Eleroy
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- McConnell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Clinton County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Teeds Grove
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Teeds Grove is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teeds Grove
- Andover
(30 miles [48.3 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
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Elk River Junction is located in Clinton County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk River Junction
- Dubuque County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Wilkins
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Wilkins is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilkins
- Massey
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Massey is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massey
- Cattese
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Cattese is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cattese
- Dubuque
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Key West
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Key West is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Key West
- Rockdale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Rockdale is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale
- Zwingle
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Zwingle is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zwingle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Sageville
(22 miles [35.4 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
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Asbury is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,841 people
- Washington Mills
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Washington Mills is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington Mills
- Durango
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Centralia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Centralia is located in Dubuque County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centralia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 128 people
- Jackson County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Smiths
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Smiths is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smiths
- North Bellevue
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- North Bellevue is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bellevue
- Bellevue
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Donatus
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Green Island
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Green Island is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Island
- La Motte
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Cottonville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cottonville is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonville
- Springbrook
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Van Buren
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Van Buren is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Buren
- Andrew
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Spragueville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Miles
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Grant County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Hazel Green
(10 miles [16.1 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
(14 miles [22.5 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
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jamestown is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Rutledge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Rutledge is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutledge
- Dickeyville
(20 miles [32.2 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
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sinnipee is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinnipee
- Platteville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Platteville is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Platteville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,650 people
- Tennyson
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Tennyson is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tennyson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 339 people
- Potosi
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Potosi is located in Grant County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potosi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 668 people
- Green County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Cadiz
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- 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
- Iowa County (WI)
- Rewey
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Rewey is located in Iowa County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rewey
- Population from the 2020 Census: 283 people
- Lafayette County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- White Oak
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- White Oak is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak
- New Diggings
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- New Diggings is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Diggings
- Fort Gratiot ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 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
- Etna
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Etna is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
- Benton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Benton is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
- Shullsburg
(11 miles [17.7 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
- Gratiot
(17 miles [27.4 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
- Elk Grove
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Elk Grove is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Grove
- Darlington
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Darlington is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darlington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,317 people
- Belmont
(22 miles [35.4 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
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Calamine is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calamine
- South Wayne
(23 miles [37 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
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Guilford, see our County-by-County Page for Guilford.
Cemeteries Near Guilford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Guilford.
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 Guilford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Guilford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Singers Catholic Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Miners Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Citzens Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Holy Trinity Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Prospect Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect Hill Cemetery
- The Prospect Hill Cemetery has also been known as:
- Prospect Hill Methodist Episcopalian Cemetery
- Council Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Weston Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Grant Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- St. Michaels Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Shawnee Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Elizabeth Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (306 more) ...
- White Oak Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Marys Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Marys Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Galena.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #108003 <2>
- Greenwood Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Greenwood Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Galena.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #105926 <2>
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>
While we didn't find Guilford in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Guilford.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Guilford, with the one closest to Guilford listed first.
- Scales Mound
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Schapville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Schapville is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schapville
- Council Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Council Hill is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Council Hill
- Rodden
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Rodden is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodden
- Millbrig ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Millbrig is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millbrig
- Galena
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Galena Junction
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Galena Junction is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena Junction
- Aiken
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Aiken is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aiken
- Elizabeth
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- White Oak
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- White Oak is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak
- Portage
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Portage is located in Jo Daviess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portage
- New Diggings
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- New Diggings is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Diggings
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Strawbridge
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Strawbridge is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strawbridge
- Smiths
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Smiths is located in Jackson County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smiths
- Lead Mine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Lead Mine is located in Lafayette County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lead Mine
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Guilford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Guilford.
Newspapers Published in Guilford ...
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 173 newspapers that have been published in the area around Guilford.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Guilford, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Guilford.
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 Guilford:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Jo Daviess County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Carroll County
- Stephenson County
- Clinton County
- Dubuque County
- Jackson County
- Grant County
- Green County
- Iowa 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 Guilford, 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- Guilford) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |