RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Illinois >> Johnson County >> Parker >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Parker (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 Parker. 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.

Parker is located in Johnson 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 Johnson County: Massac, Pope, Pulaski, Saline, Union & Williamson.

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

  • Johnson County     (The home county of Parker)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • New Burnside
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Ozark
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Reynoldsburg
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Reynoldsburg is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynoldsburg
    • Egyptian Hills
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Egyptian Hills is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egyptian Hills
    • Simpson
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Deer Ridge
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Deer Ridge is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Ridge
    • Eagle Point Bay
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Eagle Point Bay is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Point Bay
    • Goreville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Wartrace
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Wartrace is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wartrace
    • Buncombe
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Vienna
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Grantsburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Fitt's Hill ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Fitt's Hill is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitt's Hill
    • West Frankfort
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • West Frankfort is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Frankfort
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,733 people
    • Deering City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Deering City is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deering City
    • Thompsonville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Plumfield
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Plumfield is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumfield
    • Orient
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Parrish
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Parrish is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
    • Cambon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Cambon is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambon
    • Hanaford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Hanaford is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanaford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
    • Smothersville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Smothersville is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smothersville
    • Zeigler
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Royalton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Gallatin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Equality
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Lawler
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Lawler is located in Gallatin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawler
  • Hamilton County
    • Walpole
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Walpole is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walpole
  • Hardin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Shetlerville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Shetlerville is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shetlerville
    • Karbers Ridge
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Rosiclare
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Mineral City ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Mineral City is located in Hardin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral City
    • Elizabethtown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Makanda
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Carbondale
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • De Soto
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Pomona
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Massac County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • New Columbia
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • New Columbia is located in Massac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Columbia
    • Big Bay
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Big Bay is located in Massac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bay
    • Joppa
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Massac City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Massac City is located in Massac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massac City
    • Metropolis
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Pope County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • McCormick
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • McCormick is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCormick
    • Glendale
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Glendale is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
    • Eddyville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Rock
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Rock is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock
    • Oak
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Oak is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak
    • Dixon Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Dixon Springs is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon Springs
    • Hartsville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Hartsville is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsville
    • Lusk
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Lusk is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lusk
    • Herod
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Leisure City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Leisure City is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure City
    • Golconda
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Bay City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Bay City is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay City
  • Pulaski County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Karnak
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Perks
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • New Grand Chain
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • New Grand Chain is located in Pulaski County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Grand Chain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 178 people
    • Grand Chain
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Ullin
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Saline County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Stonefort
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Carrier Mills
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Carrier Mills is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrier Mills
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,527 people
      • Former names for Carrier Mills:
      • Carriers Mills
      • Morrilsville
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carrier Mills <1>
    • Ledford
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Ledford is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledford
    • Mitchellsville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Mitchellsville is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellsville
    • Buena Vista
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Buena Vista is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
    • Liberty
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Liberty is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
    • Gaskins City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Gaskins City is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaskins City
    • Harrisburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Muddy
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Galatia
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Wasson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Wasson is located in Saline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasson
    • Raleigh
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
  • Union County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Lick Creek
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Lick Creek is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lick Creek
    • Mount Pleasant
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
    • Water Valley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Water Valley is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Water Valley
    • Dongola
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Anna
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Anna is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anna
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,059 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Anna <1>
    • Cobden
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Jonesboro
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Dutch Mills
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Dutch Mills is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dutch Mills
    • Alto Pass
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Mill Creek
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Mill Creek is located in Union County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Creek
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 64 people
  • Williamson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Creal Springs
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Lake Crest
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Lake Crest is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Crest
    • Marion
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Marion is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,417 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marion <1>
    • Pittsburg
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Spillertown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Spillertown is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spillertown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
    • Whiteash
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Whiteash is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteash
      • Estimated population in 2014: 240 people
    • Corinth
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Corinth is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
    • Hartford
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Hartford is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
    • Johnston City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Crainville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Crainville is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crainville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,419 people
    • Energy
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Energy is located in Williamson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Energy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,086 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Energy <1>
    • Carterville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Ballard County (KY)
    • Bandana
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Bandana is located in Ballard County (KY)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bandana
  • Livingston County (KY)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Parker, with the one closest to Parker listed first.
    • Carrsville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Carrsville is located in Livingston County (KY)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
    • Hampton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Hampton is located in Livingston County (KY)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton
  • McCracken County (KY)
    • Ragland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Ragland is located in McCracken County (KY)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ragland

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

Cemeteries Near Parker ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Parker.

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

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

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

  • Newbold Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Woodside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Robertson Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Rich Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Drake Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Reynoldsburg Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Holmes Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Simmons Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Salem Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Simmons Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Choate Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (531 more) ...
    • Albright Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Cedar Creek Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Creal Springs Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)

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.<2>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Parker had a post office and railroad service.

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

  • New Burnside
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Ozark
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Tunnel Hill
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Creal Springs
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Sandburn
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Sandburn is located in Johnson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandburn
  • Simpson
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • McCormick
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • McCormick is located in Pope County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCormick
  • New Dennison
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • New Dennison is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Dennison
  • Bloomfield
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Bloomfield is located in Johnson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
  • Goreville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Crab Orchard
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Crab Orchard is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crab Orchard
  • Glendale
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Glendale is located in Pope County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Buncombe
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Vienna
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Wartrace
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Wartrace is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wartrace

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

Newspapers Published in Parker ...

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 65 newspapers that have been published in the area around Parker.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Parker, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Parker.

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 Parker:

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>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 Parker, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Parker) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.