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 Island Lake (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 Island Lake. 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 Island Lake ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Island Lake: Island Lk.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Island Lake. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Island Lake.
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 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.
Island Lake is primarily located in McHenry County. A portion of Island Lake extends into Lake 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 McHenry County: Boone, Cook, DeKalb, Kane, Lake, Kenosha (WI) & Walworth (WI).
Below are the counties that are near Island Lake. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Island Lake:
- McHenry County (The home county of Island Lake)
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Holiday Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Holiday Hills is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 574 people
- Oakwood Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Oakwood Hills is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,011 people
- Barreville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Barreville is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barreville
- Prairie Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Prairie Grove is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,920 people
- Lakemoor
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Fox River Grove
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Cary
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Terra Cotta
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Terra Cotta is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terra Cotta
- McHenry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Trout Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Trout Valley is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trout Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 508 people
- Crystal Lake
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bull Valley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Bull Valley is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,078 people
- Boone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Garden Prairie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Capron
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Herbert
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Herbert is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herbert
- Russellville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Russellville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russellville
- Cook County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Barrington Hills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Barrington Hills is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,152 people
- Barrington
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Capri Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Capri Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capri Village
- Inverness
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- South Barrington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- South Barrington is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,976 people
- Palatine
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hoffman Estates
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Plum Grove Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Plum Grove Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Grove Village
- Winthrop Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Winthrop Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winthrop Village
- Fairfax Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fairfax Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfax Village
- Rolling Meadows
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Arlington Heights
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- New Lebanon
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- New Lebanon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lebanon
- Charter Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Charter Grove is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charter Grove
- Genoa
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- DuPage County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Bartlett
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Keeneyville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Keeneyville is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneyville
- Roselle
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Medinah
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Wayne
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Itasca
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bloomingdale
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Cloverdale
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Cloverdale is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
- Wood Dale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Carol Stream
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Addison
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bensenville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Kane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Carpentersville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- East Dundee
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- West Dundee
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Freeman
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Freeman is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- Gilberts
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sleepy Hollow
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Elgin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Pingree Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Starks
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Starks is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starks
- Hampshire
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- North Plato
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- North Plato is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Plato
- Plato Center
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Fox River Valley Gardens
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Port Barrington
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Port Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,481 people
- Port Barrington has also been known as:
- Port Barrington village
- Wauconda
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Tower Lakes
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Tower Lakes is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,219 people
- Volo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Barrington
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Lake Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,840 people
- Fremont Center
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Fremont Center is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont Center
- Fort Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Hill is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Hill
- Round Lake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- North Barrington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- North Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,938 people
- Hawthorn Woods
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Ingleside
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Kenosha County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Benet Lake
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Benet Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benet Lake
- Lake Shangrila
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Lake Shangrila is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Shangrila
- Camp Lake
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Camp Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Lake
- Twin Lakes
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Twin Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,234 people
- Fox River
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Fox River is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox River
- Powers Lake
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Powers Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powers Lake
- Salem Lakes
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Salem Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem Lakes
- Former names for Salem Lakes:
- Salem
- Silver Lake
- Fossland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Fossland is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fossland
- Bristol
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Bristol is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,145 people
- Paddock Lake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Paddock Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paddock Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,232 people
- Slades Corners
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Slades Corners is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slades Corners
- Woodworth
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Woodworth is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodworth
- Racine County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Bohners Lake
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Bohners Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bohners Lake
- Burlington
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Burlington is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,898 people
- Browns Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Browns Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Lake
- Eagle Lake
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Eagle Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Lake
- Union Grove
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Union Grove is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,266 people
- Walworth County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Genoa City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Genoa City is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,981 people
- Pell Lake
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Pell Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pell Lake
- Zenda
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Zenda is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenda
- Lake Geneva
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Geneva is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Geneva
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,096 people
- Big Foot Prairie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Big Foot Prairie is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Foot Prairie
- Fontana-on-Geneva Lake
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Fontana-on-Geneva Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontana-on-Geneva Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,743 people
- Lake Como
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Como is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Como
- Walworth
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Walworth is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,827 people
- Lyons
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Lyons is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
- Como
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Como is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Como
- Lake Como Beach ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Como Beach is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Como Beach
- Springfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Springfield is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Island Lake, see our County-by-County Page for Island Lake.
Cemeteries Near Island Lake ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Island Lake.
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 Island Lake - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Island Lake covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Fisher Family Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Windridge Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Wauconda Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- St. Peters Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Volo Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Transfiguration Catholic Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Patrick Countryside Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- St. Patricks Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- McMillan Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Cary Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- St. Patrick Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Grant Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (334 more) ...
- Union Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Chunns Burying Ground
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chunns Burying Ground
- The Chunns Burying Ground has also been known as:
- Chunn Cemetery
- Oak Glen Cemetery
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 Island Lake in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Island Lake.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Island Lake, with the one closest to Island Lake listed first.
- Wauconda
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Barreville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Barreville is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barreville
- Volo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Terra Cotta
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Terra Cotta is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terra Cotta
- Fremont Center
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Fremont Center is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont Center
- Fort Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Hill is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Hill
- McHenry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Crystal Lake
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Johnsburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Lake Zurich
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Gilmer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Gilmer is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmer
- Ivanhoe
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Ivanhoe is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivanhoe
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Hainesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ridgefield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Ridgefield is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgefield
- Algonquin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Island Lake. See our List of 1890's Communities around Island Lake.
Newspapers Published in Island Lake ...
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 78 newspapers that have been published in the area around Island Lake.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Island Lake, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Island Lake.
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 Island Lake:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to McHenry County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Cook County
- DeKalb County
- DuPage County
- Kane County
- Lake County
- Kenosha County
- Racine County
- Walworth 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 Island Lake, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 from Point A (ie- Island Lake) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |