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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 Marengo (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 Marengo. 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.

Marengo is located in McHenry 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 Marengo. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Marengo:

  • McHenry County     (The home county of Marengo)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Union
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Woodstock
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Huntley
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Lakewood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Ridgefield
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Harvard
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Bull Valley
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Bull Valley is located in McHenry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull Valley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,078 people
    • Crystal Lake
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Terra Cotta
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Alden
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Greenwood
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Greenwood is located in McHenry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
    • Wonder Lake
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Wonder Lake is located in McHenry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wonder Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,837 people
      • Wonder Lake has also been known as:
      • Wonder Lake village
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wonder Lake <1>
  • Boone County
  • Cook County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Barrington Hills
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Barrington Hills is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington Hills
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,152 people
    • Barrington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • South Barrington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • South Barrington is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Barrington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,976 people
    • Hoffman Estates
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Inverness
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Streamwood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Hanover Park
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Capri Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Capri Village is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capri Village
    • Palatine
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Schaumburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • DeKalb County
  • DuPage County
  • Kane County
  • Lake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Fox River Valley Gardens
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Port Barrington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • 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
    • Lake Barrington
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Lake Barrington is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Barrington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,840 people
    • Tower Lakes
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Tower Lakes is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Lakes
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,219 people
    • Volo
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Wauconda
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • North Barrington
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • North Barrington is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Barrington
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,938 people
    • Ingleside
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Long Lake
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Long Lake is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lake
    • Fox Lake
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Fort Hill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Fox Lake Hills
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Fox Lake Hills is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Lake Hills
  • Ogle County
  • Winnebago County
  • Kenosha County (WI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Powers Lake
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Powers Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powers Lake
    • Twin Lakes
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Slades Corners
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Camp Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Camp Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Lake
    • Fox River
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Racine County (WI)
    • Bohners Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Bohners Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bohners Lake
  • Rock County (WI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Clinton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Beloit
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Shopiere
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Tiffany
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Avalon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Garden Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Garden Village is located in Rock County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Village
  • Walworth County (WI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Marengo, with the one closest to Marengo listed first.
    • Big Foot Prairie
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Sharon
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Sharon is located in Walworth County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,546 people
    • Walworth
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Walworth is located in Walworth County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walworth
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,827 people
    • Zenda
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Fontana-on-Geneva Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • 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
    • Genoa City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Genoa City is located in Walworth County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,981 people
    • Delavan Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Delavan Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delavan Lake
    • Williams Bay
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Pell Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Pell Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pell Lake
    • Allens Grove
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Darien
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Lake Como
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)

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

Cemeteries Near Marengo ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Marengo.

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 Marengo - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

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 Marengo had a population of 1,445 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Marengo had a population of 7,377 people.

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

  • Coral
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Coral is located in McHenry County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coral
  • Union
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Garden Prairie
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Harmony
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Harmony is located in McHenry County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
  • Coyne
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Coyne is located in McHenry County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coyne
  • Woodstock
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Hartland
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Hartland is located in McHenry County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
  • Reeds Crossing ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Reeds Crossing is located in Boone County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Crossing
  • Herbert
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Herbert is located in Boone County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herbert
  • New Lebanon
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Hampshire
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Huntley
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Colvin Park
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Colvin Park is located in DeKalb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvin Park
    • Chemung
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Chemung is located in McHenry County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chemung
    • Genoa
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Marengo ...

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 53 newspapers that have been published in the area around Marengo.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Marengo. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Marengo and those printed in the larger area surrounding Marengo.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<2> of Marengo.

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 Marengo:

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