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 Pistakee Highlands (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 Pistakee Highlands. 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 and hospitals 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.
Pistakee Highlands 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 Pistakee Highlands. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Pistakee Highlands:
- McHenry County (The home county of Pistakee Highlands)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Sunnyside
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Sunnyside is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnyside
- Spring Grove
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Johnsburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Solon Mills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lakemoor
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Ringwood
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- McCullom Lake
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- McCullom Lake is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCullom Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 996 people
- Richmond
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- McHenry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Holiday Hills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Holiday Hills is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 574 people
- Wonder Lake
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- 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>
- Barreville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Barreville is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barreville
- Greenwood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Greenwood is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
- Boone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Capron
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Garden Prairie
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Russellville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Russellville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russellville
- Cook County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Barrington
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Barrington Hills
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Barrington Hills is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,152 people
- Inverness
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Capri Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Capri Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capri Village
- South Barrington
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- South Barrington is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,976 people
- Palatine
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Plum Grove Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Plum Grove Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Grove Village
- Winthrop Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Winthrop Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winthrop Village
- Fairfax Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Fairfax Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfax Village
- Hoffman Estates
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Rolling Meadows
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Arlington Heights
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wheeling
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- DeKalb County
- New Lebanon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- New Lebanon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lebanon
- DuPage County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Bartlett
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Keeneyville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Keeneyville is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneyville
- Medinah
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Roselle
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Kane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Carpentersville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- East Dundee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- West Dundee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Freeman
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Freeman is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- Gilberts
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Sleepy Hollow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Elgin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Hampshire
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Pingree Grove
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Starks
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Starks is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starks
- North Plato
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- North Plato is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Plato
- Plato Center
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bowes Bend
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bowes Bend is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowes Bend
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Fox Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Fox Lake Hills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Fox Lake Hills is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Lake Hills
- Ingleside
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Monaville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Monaville is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monaville
- Long Lake
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Long Lake is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lake
- Round Lake Heights
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Channel Lake
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Channel Lake is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Channel Lake
- Volo
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lake Villa
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Lake Villa is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Villa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,525 people
- Round Lake Beach
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Lake Catherine
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Catherine is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Catherine
- Fort Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fort Hill is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Hill
- Round Lake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Kenosha County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Twin Lakes
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Twin Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,234 people
- Benet Lake
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Benet Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benet Lake
- Camp Lake
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Camp Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Lake
- Lake Shangrila
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Shangrila is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Shangrila
- Fox River
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fox River is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox River
- Powers Lake
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Powers Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powers Lake
- Salem Lakes
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Salem Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem Lakes
- Former names for Salem Lakes:
- Salem
- Silver Lake
- Slades Corners
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Slades Corners is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slades Corners
- Paddock Lake
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Paddock Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paddock Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,232 people
- Bristol
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Bristol is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,145 people
- Fossland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Fossland is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fossland
- Woodworth
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Woodworth is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodworth
- Brighton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Brighton is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- Milwaukee County (WI)
- Union Church
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Union Church is located in Milwaukee County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Church
- Racine County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Bohners Lake
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Bohners Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bohners Lake
- Burlington
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Burlington is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,898 people
- Browns Lake
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Browns Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Lake
- Eagle Lake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Eagle Lake is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Lake
- Union Grove
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Union Grove is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,266 people
- Rochester
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Rochester is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,880 people
- Honey Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Honey Creek is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Creek
- Waterford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Waterford is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,618 people
- Yorkville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Yorkville is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville
- Sturtevant
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Sturtevant is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sturtevant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,637 people
- Mount Pleasant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 27,048 people
- Elmwood Park
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elmwood Park is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 488 people
- Franksville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Franksville is located in Racine County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franksville
- Walworth County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Genoa City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Genoa City is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,981 people
- Pell Lake
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Pell Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pell Lake
- Zenda
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Zenda is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenda
- Lake Geneva
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Geneva is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Geneva
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,096 people
- Lyons
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Lyons is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
- Voree ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Voree is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voree
- Como
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Como is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Como
- Lake Como Beach ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Como Beach is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Como Beach
- Lake Como
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Como is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Como
- Springfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Springfield is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Fontana-on-Geneva Lake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- 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
- Williams Bay
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Williams Bay is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Bay
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,657 people
- Big Foot Prairie
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Big Foot Prairie is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Foot Prairie
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Pistakee Highlands, see our County-by-County Page for Pistakee Highlands.
Cemeteries Near Pistakee Highlands ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pistakee Highlands.
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 Pistakee Highlands - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pistakee Highlands covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Cole Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Wray - Imeson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Orvis Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Grass Lake Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- St. Peters Catholic Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sprind Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Ringwood Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- St. Patrick Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Grant Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- English Prairie Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Solon Mills Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cedarvale Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (272 more) ...
- St. Marys Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Woodland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Volo Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
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 Pistakee Highlands in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Pistakee Highlands.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Pistakee Highlands, with the one closest to Pistakee Highlands listed first.
- Fox Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Johnsburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Spring Grove
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Ringwood
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Grass Lake
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Grass Lake is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grass Lake
- Solon Mills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Volo
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- McHenry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fort Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fort Hill is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Hill
- Lake Villa
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Lake Villa is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Villa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,525 people
- Loon Lake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Loon Lake is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loon Lake
- Richmond
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Rollins
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Rollins is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Twin Lakes
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Twin Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,234 people
- Hainesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Pistakee Highlands. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pistakee Highlands.
Newspapers Published in Pistakee Highlands ...
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 105 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pistakee Highlands.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Pistakee Highlands, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Pistakee Highlands.
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 Pistakee Highlands:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to McHenry County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Cook County
- DeKalb County
- DuPage County
- Kane County
- Lake County
- Kenosha County
- Milwaukee County
- Racine County
- Walworth 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 Pistakee Highlands, 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- Pistakee Highlands) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |