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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 Philo (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 Philo. 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 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.

Philo is located in Champaign 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 Champaign County: Douglas, Edgar, Ford, McLean, Piatt & Vermilion.

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

  • Champaign County     (The home county of Philo)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Sidney
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Sidney is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sidney
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,172 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sidney <1>
    • Rutherford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Rutherford is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rutherford
    • Mira
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Mira is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mira
    • Tolono
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Tolono is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolono
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,349 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tolono <1>
    • Savoy
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Savoy is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savoy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,364 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Savoy <1>
    • Urbana
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Urbana is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbana
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 41,724 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Urbana <1>
    • Mayview
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Mayview is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayview
    • Champaign
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Pesotum
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Joseph
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Longview
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Homer
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Homer is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,143 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer <1>
    • Broadlands
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Coles County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Oakland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Rardin
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Rardin is located in Coles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rardin
    • Bushton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Bushton is located in Coles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushton
    • Humboldt
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Saint Omer ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Saint Omer is located in Coles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Omer
  • De Witt County
    • Farmer City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Fairland
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Fairland is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairland
    • Villa Grove
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Villa Grove is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,414 people
    • Hayes
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Hayes is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayes
    • Camargo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Murdock
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Patterson Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Patterson Springs is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson Springs
    • Chicken Bristle
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Chicken Bristle is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicken Bristle
    • Tuscola
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Newman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Ficklin
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Ficklin is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ficklin
    • Garrett
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Garrett is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrett
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 160 people
    • Filson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Filson is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filson
    • Kemp
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Kemp is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kemp
  • Edgar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Palermo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Palermo is located in Edgar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palermo
    • Hume
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Brocton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Metcalf
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Borton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Borton is located in Edgar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borton
    • Chrisman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Redmon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Bloomfield
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Bloomfield is located in Edgar County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
  • Ford County
    • Proctor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Proctor is located in Ford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctor
  • McLean County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Bellflower
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Kumler
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Kumler is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kumler
    • Laurette
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Laurette is located in McLean County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurette
  • Moultrie County
    • Cadwell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Cadwell is located in Moultrie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cadwell
  • Piatt County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • White Heath
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Atwood
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bement
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Monticello
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Mansfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Voorhies
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Voorhies is located in Piatt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voorhies
    • Milmine
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Hammond
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • De Land
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Burrowsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Burrowsville is located in Piatt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burrowsville
    • Cisco
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Lintner
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Lintner is located in Piatt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lintner
  • Vermilion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Philo, with the one closest to Philo listed first.
    • Allerton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Fithian
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Fairmount
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Sidell
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Muncie
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Archie
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Archie is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Archie
    • Oakwood
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Indianola
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Missionfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Missionfield is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Missionfield
    • Glenburn
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Glenburn is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenburn
    • Belgium Row
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Belgium Row is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgium Row
    • Newtown
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Newtown is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtown
    • Catlin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Catlin is located in Vermilion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catlin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,899 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Catlin <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Philo ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Philo.

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

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

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

  • Locust Grove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvary Cemetery
    • The Calvary Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Calvary Catholic Cemetery
    • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
  • Lynn Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Bill Huss Chapel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • St. Patrick Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • St. Patrick's Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Immaculate Conception Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • St. Joseph Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. Joseph Cemetery
    • The St. Joseph Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bongard Cemetery
    • Immaculate Conception Cemetery
  • Mt. Hope Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Old Huss Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Bliss Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bliss Cemetery
    • The Bliss Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Old Bliss Cemetery
  • Continue List   (271 more) ...
    • Bailey Memorial Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Memorial Cemetery
      • The Bailey Memorial Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Ash Grove Cemetery
      • Tolono Grove Cemetery
    • Champaign County Poor Farm Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • St. Marys Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Philo had a population of 491 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Philo had a population of 1,378 people.

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

  • Sidney
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Sidney is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sidney
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,172 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sidney <1>
  • Deers
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Deers is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deers
  • Tolono
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Tolono is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolono
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,349 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tolono <1>
  • Mira
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Mira is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mira
  • Savoy
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Savoy is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savoy
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,364 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Savoy <1>
  • Pesotum
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Champaign
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Mayview
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Mayview is located in Champaign County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayview
  • Villa Grove
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Villa Grove is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,414 people
  • Fairland
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Fairland is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairland
  • Saint Joseph
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Sadorus
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Broadlands
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Homer
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Homer is located in Champaign County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,143 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer <1>
    • Hayes
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Hayes is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayes

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Philo ...

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 177 newspapers that have been published in the area around Philo.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Philo. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Philo and those printed in the larger area surrounding Philo.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4> of Philo.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with 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 Philo:

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 Philo, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Philo) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.