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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 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 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.

Harris is located in Piatt 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 Piatt County: Champaign, De Witt, Douglas, Macon, McLean & Moultrie.

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:

  • Piatt County     (The home county of Harris)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Mansfield
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • De Land
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • White Heath
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Monticello
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Cisco
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Bement
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Milmine
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Cerro Gordo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Voorhies
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Voorhies is located in Piatt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voorhies
    • Burrowsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Burrowsville is located in Piatt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrowsville
    • Atwood
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Hammond
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Champaign County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Lotus
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Lotus is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lotus
    • Lake of the Woods
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Lake of the Woods is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake of the Woods
    • Mahomet
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Foosland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Seymour
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Fisher
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Fisher is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,911 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fisher <1>
    • Bondville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Staley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Staley is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Staley
    • Dewey
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Prospect
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Prospect is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect
    • Champaign
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ivesdale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • De Witt County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Farmer City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Watkins
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Watkins is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watkins
    • Parnell
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Parnell is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnell
    • Fullerton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Fullerton is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fullerton
    • De Witt
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • De Witt is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Witt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
    • Weldon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lane
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Birkbeck
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Birkbeck is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birkbeck
    • Wapella
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Clinton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Rowell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Rowell is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowell
    • Hallsville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Hallsville is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallsville
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Chicken Bristle
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Chicken Bristle is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicken Bristle
    • Hayes
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Hayes is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayes
  • Ford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Proctor
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Proctor is located in Ford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctor
    • Gibson City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Gibson City is located in Ford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibson City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,275 people
      • Gibson City has also been known as:
      • Gibson
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gibson City <1>
    • Garber
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Garber is located in Ford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garber
    • Elliott
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Sibley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Melvin
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Paxton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Livingston County
    • Strawn
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Macon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Argenta
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Maroa
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Oreana
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Forsyth
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Sangamon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Sangamon is located in Macon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sangamon
  • McLean County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Harris, with the one closest to Harris listed first.
    • Kumler
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Kumler is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kumler
    • Laurette
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Laurette is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurette
    • Glen Avon
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Glen Avon is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Avon
    • Bellflower
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Le Roy
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Saybrook
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Arrowsmith
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Ellsworth
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Downs
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Gillum
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Gillum is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillum
    • Heyworth
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Brokaw
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Brokaw is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brokaw

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.

  • Farmer City Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Maple Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • St. Josephs Catholic Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Greenleaf Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Blue Ridge Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Campground Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Mansfield Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Dunkard Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Barnes Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Deland Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Mackey Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • McCord Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (224 more) ...
    • Argo Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Madden Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Ingram Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)

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 in 1895, Harris had railroad service and no post office.

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

  • Farmer City
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Weedman
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Weedman is located in De Witt County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weedman
  • Mansfield
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Kumler
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Kumler is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kumler
  • Galesville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Galesville is located in Piatt County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galesville
  • Blue Ridge
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Blue Ridge is located in Piatt County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Ridge
  • Laurette
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Laurette is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurette
  • Osman
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Osman is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osman
  • Empire
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Empire is located in McLean County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
  • Fullerton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Fullerton is located in De Witt County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fullerton
  • De Land
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Lodge
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Lodge is located in Piatt County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodge
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Sabina
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Sabina is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sabina
    • De Witt
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • De Witt is located in De Witt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Witt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
    • White Heath
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)

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 165 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 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. 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 first visit 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:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Harris) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Harris, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.