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 Harris (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 Harris. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.
Neighboring Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Harris is located in Edgar 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 Edgar County: Champaign, Clark, Coles, Douglas, Vermilion, Vermillion (IN) & Vigo (IN).
Below are the counties that are near Harris. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Harris:
- Edgar County (The home county of Harris)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Paris
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Bloomfield
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Bloomfield is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Logan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Clays Prairie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Clays Prairie is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clays Prairie
- Kentucky
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Kentucky is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentucky
- Conlogue
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Conlogue is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conlogue
- Huffmanville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Huffmanville is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffmanville
- Chrisman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Redmon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Kidley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kidley is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kidley
- Vermilion
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Metcalf
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Nevins
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Nevins is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevins
- Champaign County
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Broadlands
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Longview
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Homer
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rutherford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rutherford is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutherford
- Sidney
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Clark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Dennison
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Dennison is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennison
- Clarksville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Clarksville is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
- Farrington
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Farrington is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farrington
- Livingston
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Livingston is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
- Weaver
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Weaver is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weaver
- Marshall
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Cleone
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Cleone is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleone
- Westfield
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Clark Center
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Clark Center is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark Center
- Oilfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Oilfield is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oilfield
- Martinsville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Snyder
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Snyder is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snyder
- Cumberland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cumberland is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland
- Coles County
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Oakland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Saint Omer ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Omer is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Omer
- Ashmore
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Rardin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Rardin is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rardin
- Bushton
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Bushton is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushton
- Hutton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Hutton is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutton
- Charleston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Douglas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Newman
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Murdock
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hindsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Fairland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fairland is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairland
- Camargo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Kemp
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Kemp is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kemp
- Patterson Springs
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Patterson Springs is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson Springs
- Villa Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Villa Grove is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,414 people
- Filson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Filson is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filson
- Vermilion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Ridge Farm
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Archie
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Archie is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Archie
- Indianola
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Sidell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Vermilion Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Vermilion Grove is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vermilion Grove
- Olivet
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Olivet is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
- Georgetown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Allerton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Busenville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Busenville is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busenville
- Meeks
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Meeks is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meeks
- Westville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Belgium
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Belgium is located in Vermilion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgium
- Population from the 2020 Census: 362 people
- Catlin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Clay County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Cloverland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cloverland is located in Clay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverland
- Billtown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Billtown is located in Clay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billtown
- Perth
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Perth is located in Clay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perth
- Bee Ridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Bee Ridge is located in Clay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bee Ridge
- Staunton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Staunton is located in Clay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Staunton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 502 people
- Fountain County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Harveysburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Harveysburg is located in Fountain County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harveysburg
- Kingman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Parke County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Numa
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Numa is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Numa
- West Atherton
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- West Atherton is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Atherton
- Armiesburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Armiesburg is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armiesburg
- Montezuma
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Mecca
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Mecca is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mecca
- Population from the 2020 Census: 325 people
- Rosedale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rosedale is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 704 people
- Rosedale has also been known as:
- Roseville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rosedale <1>
- West Union
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- West Union is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Union
- Rockville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Bloomingdale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Billie Creek Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Billie Creek Village is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billie Creek Village
- Annapolis
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Annapolis is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annapolis
- Bridgeton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Marshall
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Marshall is located in Parke County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 315 people
- Vermillion County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Blanford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Blanford is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanford
- Saint Bernice
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Saint Bernice is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Bernice
- Sandytown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Sandytown is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandytown
- Universal
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Universal is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Universal
- Population from the 2020 Census: 339 people
- Dana
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Dana is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
- Population from the 2020 Census: 564 people
- Fairview Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Fairview Park is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,298 people
- Clinton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Summit Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Summit Grove is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit Grove
- Alta
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Alta is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
- Hillsdale
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hillsdale is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsdale
- Newport
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cayuga
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Cayuga is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,095 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cayuga <1>
- Eugene
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Eugene is located in Vermillion County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eugene
- Vigo County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Libertyville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Libertyville is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libertyville
- Pine Ridge
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Ridge is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Ridge
- New Goshen
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Shepardsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Shepardsville is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shepardsville
- Saint Mary-of-the-Woods
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Barnhart Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Barnhart Town is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnhart Town
- Harrison
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Harrison is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
- Liggett
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Liggett is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liggett
- Spelterville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Spelterville is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spelterville
- Toad Hop
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Toad Hop is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toad Hop
- West Terre Haute
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Terre Town
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Terre Town is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terre Town
- North Terre Haute
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- North Terre Haute is located in Vigo County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Terre Haute
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Harris, see our County-by-County Page for Harris.
Cemeteries Near Harris ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Harris.
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 Harris - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Harris covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- St. Marys Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Conkey Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Paris Memorial Gardens
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Edgar Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Franklin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Sixteen Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Aloysius Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Scott Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Stafford - Crimmons Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Old Scott Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Redmon Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Blackburn Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (409 more) ...
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Blackman Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Littlefield Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
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 Harris in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Harris.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
- Wetzel
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Wetzel is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wetzel
- Horace
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Horace is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horace
- Paris
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Mays
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Mays is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mays
- Edgar
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Edgar is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgar
- Logan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Garland
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Garland is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garland
- Conlogue
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Conlogue is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conlogue
- Clays Prairie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Clays Prairie is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clays Prairie
- Redmon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Chrisman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Cherry Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Cherry Point is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Point
- Continue List (19 more) ...
- Vermilion
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kidley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kidley is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kidley
- Dudley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Dudley is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudley
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Harris. See our List of 1890's Communities around Harris.
Newspapers Published in Harris ...
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 93 newspapers that have been published in the area around Harris.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Harris, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Harris.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Harris:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Edgar County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Champaign County
- Clark County
- Coles County
- Douglas County
- Vermilion County
- Clay County
- Fountain County
- Parke County
- Vermillion County
- Vigo 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 Harris, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Harris) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |