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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 Irwins Park (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 Irwins Park. 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.

Name Variations for Irwins Park ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

While the name of this community is Irwins Park, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Irwins Park may originally have been Irwin's Park.

Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Irwins Park might be written as Irwin Park.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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.

Irwins Park is located in Sangamon 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 Sangamon County: Christian, Logan, Macon, Macoupin, Menard, Montgomery & Morgan.

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

  • Sangamon County     (The home county of Irwins Park)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Auburn
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Chatham
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Glenarm
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Divernon
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Commanche Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Commanche Village is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commanche Village
    • Woodside
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Woodside is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
    • Thayer
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Pawnee
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Loami
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Curran
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Curran is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curran
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
    • Lowder
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Southern View
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Southern View is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southern View
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,557 people
    • Jerome
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jerome is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerome
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,575 people
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Ashland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Gurney ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Gurney is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gurney
    • Old Princeton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Old Princeton is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Princeton
    • Philadelphia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Philadelphia is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
    • Newmansville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Newmansville is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newmansville
    • Sylvan ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Sylvan is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvan
  • Christian County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Zenobia
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Zenobia is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenobia
    • Tovey
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Tovey is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tovey
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 467 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tovey <2>
    • Bulpitt
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Kincaid
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Edinburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Jeisyville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jeisyville is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeisyville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 100 people
    • Sharpsburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Sharpsburg is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharpsburg
    • Langleyville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Langleyville is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langleyville
    • Morrisonville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Palmer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Bolivia
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Bolivia is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolivia
    • Clarksdale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Clarksdale is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksdale
    • Grove City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Grove City is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove City
  • Logan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Cornland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Elkhart
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Macoupin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Virden
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Girard
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Nilwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Modesto
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Standard City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Standard City is located in Macoupin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Standard City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 144 people
    • Palmyra
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Scottville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Hettick
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Carlinville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Comer
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Comer is located in Macoupin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comer
    • Hagaman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Hagaman is located in Macoupin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagaman
  • Menard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Athens
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Tallula
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Petersburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Croft
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Croft is located in Menard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Croft
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • White Oak
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • White Oak is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak
    • Farmersville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Waggoner
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Harvel
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Raymond
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Shop Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Shop Creek is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shop Creek
    • Honey Bend
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Honey Bend is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Bend
  • Morgan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Irwins Park, with the one closest to Irwins Park listed first.
    • Waverly
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Alexander
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Franklin
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Pisgah
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Pisgah is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisgah
    • Prentice
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Prentice is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prentice
    • Arnold
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Arnold is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
    • Woodson
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Jacksonville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • South Jacksonville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • South Jacksonville is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Jacksonville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,075 people
    • Murrayville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Literberry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Irwins Park ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Irwins Park.

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 Irwins Park - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Cumberland Sugar Creek Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Sugar Creek Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Auburn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Wimmer Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • St. Bernard Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Easley Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Chatham Community Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Chatham Memorial Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Young Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Jones Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (332 more) ...
    • Bridges Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • West Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Brush Creek Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 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>

While we didn't find Irwins Park in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Irwins Park.

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

  • Auburn
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Chatham
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Pawnee Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Pawnee Junction is located in Sangamon County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pawnee Junction
  • Glenarm
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Divernon
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Woodside
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Woodside is located in Sangamon County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodside
  • Pawnee
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Cotton Hill
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Cotton Hill is located in Sangamon County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Hill
  • Loami
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Lowder
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Virden
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Curran
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Curran is located in Sangamon County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curran
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Bates
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Bates is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bates
    • Thomasville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Thomasville is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomasville
    • New City
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • New City is located in Sangamon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New City

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Irwins Park. See our List of 1890's Communities around Irwins Park.

Newspapers Published in Irwins Park ...

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 251 newspapers that have been published in the area around Irwins Park.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Irwins Park, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Irwins Park.

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 websites either 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 Irwins Park:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<4>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Irwins Park, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Irwins Park) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.