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 Melvin (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 Melvin. 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 hospitals and 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.
Melvin is located in Ford 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 Ford County: Champaign, Iroquois, Kankakee, Livingston, McLean & Vermilion.
Below are the counties that are near Melvin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Melvin:
- Ford County (The home county of Melvin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Roberts
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Elliott
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Sibley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Garber
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Garber is located in Ford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garber
- Gibson City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- 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>
- Paxton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Piper City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Proctor
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Proctor is located in Ford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctor
- Kempton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cabery
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Champaign County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Ludlow
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Dewey
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Prospect
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Prospect is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect
- Foosland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fisher
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Rantoul
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Lotus
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lotus is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lotus
- Gifford
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Thomasboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Flatville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Flatville is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatville
- Penfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lake of the Woods
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Lake of the Woods is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake of the Woods
- De Witt County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Farmer City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Watkins
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Watkins is located in De Witt County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watkins
- Iroquois County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Loda
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Thawville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Buckley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Del Rey
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Del Rey is located in Iroquois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Del Rey
- Ridgeville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ridgeville is located in Iroquois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeville
- La Hogue
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- La Hogue is located in Iroquois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Hogue
- Onarga
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cissna Park
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Gilman
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Woodworth
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Woodworth is located in Iroquois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodworth
- Claytonville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Danforth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Livingston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Strawn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Chatsworth
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Forrest
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Charlotte
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Charlotte is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlotte
- Fairbury
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Wing
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Wing is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wing
- Cullom
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Avoca ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Avoca is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
- Saunemin
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Griswold
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Griswold is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griswold
- Eylar
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Eylar is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eylar
- McDowell
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- McDowell is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDowell
- McLean County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Cropsey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Anchor
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Saybrook
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Colfax
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Arrowsmith
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bellflower
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Weston
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Weston is located in McLean County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
- Glen Avon
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Glen Avon is located in McLean County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Avon
- Laurette
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Laurette is located in McLean County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurette
- Cooksville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Kumler
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Kumler is located in McLean County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kumler
- Ellsworth
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Piatt County
- Mansfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Vermilion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Rankin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- East Lynn
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Armstrong
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Potomac
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Melvin, see our County-by-County Page for Melvin.
Cemeteries Near Melvin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Melvin.
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 Melvin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Melvin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Melvin Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Oregon Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Germanville Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Meharry Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Hope Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Pontoppidan Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Farmersville Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Ten Mile Grove Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Ridge Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Strawn Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Drummer Twp. Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lisk Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (159 more) ...
- Thawville Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Blackford Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Prospect Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Melvin had a population of 491 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Melvin had a population of 410 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Melvin, with the one closest to Melvin listed first.
- Roberts
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Guthrie
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Guthrie is located in Ford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guthrie
- Elliott
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Sibley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Garber
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Garber is located in Ford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garber
- Gibson City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- 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>
- Loda
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Thawville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Strawn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Risk
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Risk is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Risk
- Paxton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Buckley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (19 more) ...
- Chatsworth
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Cropsey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Del Rey
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Del Rey is located in Iroquois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Del Rey
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Melvin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Melvin.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Melvin ...
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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Melvin.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Melvin. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Melvin and those printed in the larger area surrounding Melvin.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4> of Melvin.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Melvin:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Ford County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Champaign County
- De Witt County
- Iroquois County
- Livingston County
- McLean County
- Piatt County
- Vermilion 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 Melvin, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Melvin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |