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 New Salem (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 New Salem. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.
New Salem is located in Pike 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 Pike County: Adams, Brown, Calhoun, Greene, Morgan, Scott, Marion (MO), Pike (MO) & Ralls (MO).
Below are the counties that are near New Salem. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to New Salem:
- Pike County (The home county of New Salem)
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Baylis
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Griggsville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Hadley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Hadley is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hadley
- Perry
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pittsfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- El Dara
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Valley City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Valley City is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14 people
- Detroit
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Detroit is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Detroit
- Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
- Barry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Summer Hill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Summer Hill is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer Hill
- Chambersburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Time
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Time is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Time
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23 people
- Florence
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Florence is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 36 people
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Beverly
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Beverly is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
- Kellerville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Kellerville is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerville
- Liberty
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Plainville
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Adams
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Adams is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
- Payson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Clayton
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Columbus
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Columbus is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 96 people
- Fall Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Fall Creek is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall Creek
- Burton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Burton is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
- Camp Point
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Blacks
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Blacks is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blacks
- Coatsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Versailles
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Gilbirds
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Gilbirds is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbirds
- Hersman
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Hersman is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hersman
- Mount Sterling
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Mound Station
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Mound Station is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Station
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Timewell
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Cooperstown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cooperstown is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooperstown
- Ripley
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Ripley is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ripley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 82 people
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Belleview
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Belleview is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleview
- Cliffdale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cliffdale is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffdale
- Mozier
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Kampsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Cass County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Arenzville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hagener
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Hagener is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagener
- Beardstown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Hillview
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Patterson
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wilmington
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wilmington is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 129 people
- Roodhouse
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Walkerville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Walkerville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkerville
- White Hall
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Morgan County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Meredosia
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Morgan City ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Morgan City is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan City
- Chapin
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Concord
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Lynnville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Lynnville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynnville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 113 people
- Schuyler County
- Camden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Scott County
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Naples
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Oxville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Oxville is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxville
- Bluffs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Exeter
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Exeter is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exeter
- Population from the 2020 Census: 60 people
- Winchester
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Glasgow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Glasgow is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glasgow
- Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
- Alsey
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Manchester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Marion County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Cave City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Cave City is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave City
- Hannibal
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Oakwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Oakwood is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- Helton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Helton is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helton
- Pike County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Ashburn
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ashburn is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashburn
- Population from the 2010 Census: 52 people
- Louisiana
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Clarksville
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Calumet
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Calumet is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calumet
- Frankford
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Annada
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Annada is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annada
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28 people
- Paynesville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Paynesville is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paynesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 74 people
- Tarrants
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Tarrants is located in Pike County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarrants
- Population from the 2010 Census: 22 people
- Ralls County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Saverton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Saverton is located in Ralls County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saverton
- New London
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to New Salem, see our County-by-County Page for New Salem.
Cemeteries Near New Salem ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of New Salem.
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 New Salem - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for New Salem covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Swiggett Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Gray Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Maysville Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Starkey Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Hinman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Baylis Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Petersen Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Woodland Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Simpkins - Brown Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Johnson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Moore Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (538 more) ...
- Brower Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- McWorter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Shaw Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
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 New Salem in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of New Salem.
These communities are listed based on their distance from New Salem, with the one closest to New Salem listed first.
- Maysville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Maysville is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maysville
- Baylis
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Griggsville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Hadley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Hadley is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hadley
- Fishhook
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Fishhook is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishhook
- Pittsfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Perry
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- El Dara
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- New Hartford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- New Hartford is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hartford
- Detroit
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Detroit is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Detroit
- Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
- Valley City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Valley City is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 14 people
- Morrelville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Morrelville is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrelville
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Benville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Benville is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benville
- Barry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Summer Hill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Summer Hill is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer Hill
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around New Salem. See our List of 1890's Communities around New Salem.
Newspapers Published in New Salem ...
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 77 newspapers that have been published in the area around New Salem.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of New Salem, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for New Salem.
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 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 New Salem:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Pike County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Brown County
- Calhoun County
- Cass County
- Greene County
- Morgan County
- Schuyler County
- Scott County
- Marion County
- Pike County
- Ralls 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 New Salem, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- New Salem) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |