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 Porterfield (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 Porterfield. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Porterfield is located in Marshall 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 Marshall County: Bureau, La Salle, Peoria, Putnam, Stark & Woodford.
Below are the counties that are near Porterfield. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Porterfield:
- Marshall County (The home county of Porterfield)
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Evans ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Evans is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans
- Varna
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Toluca
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Wenona
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- La Rose
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Henry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Lacon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Sparland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Hopewell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hopewell is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 394 people
- Camp Grove
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Bureau County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Spring Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Bureau Junction
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Bureau Junction is located in Bureau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bureau Junction
- Population from the 2020 Census: 297 people
- Bureau Junction has also been known as:
- Bureau
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bureau Junction <1>
- Dalzell
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Ottville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Ottville is located in Bureau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottville
- De Pue
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- De Pue is located in Bureau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Pue
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,665 people
- Hollowayville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Hollowayville is located in Bureau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollowayville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
- Ladd
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Seatonville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Cherry
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Tiskilwa
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Milo
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Milo is located in Bureau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milo
- Malden
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- La Salle County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Priscilla ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Priscilla is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Priscilla
- Lostant
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lostant is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lostant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 477 people
- Lostant has also been known as:
- Lost Ant
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lostant <1>
- Rutland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Tonica
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Leeds
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Leeds is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
- Leonore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cedar Point
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Vermilionville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Vermilionville is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vermilionville
- Dana
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kangley
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Kangley is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kangley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
- Oglesby
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Deer Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Deer Park is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Park
- Livingston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Munster
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Munster is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Munster
- Ancona
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Long Point
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Coalville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Coalville is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalville
- Vermilion City
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Vermilion City is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vermilion City
- Missal
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Missal is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Missal
- Flanagan
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cornell
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Blackstone
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Graymont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Budd
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Budd is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Budd
- Adams ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Adams is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
- McLean County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Gridley
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Meadows
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Meadows is located in McLean County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadows
- Peoria County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Chillicothe
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rome
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Edelstein
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- West Hallock
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- West Hallock is located in Peoria County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Hallock
- Mossville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Magnolia
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- McNabb
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Mount Palatine
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Mount Palatine is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Palatine
- Standard
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Granville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Mark
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Hennepin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Putnam
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Stark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Bradford
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Speer
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Castleton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Tazewell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Harvard Hills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Harvard Hills is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard Hills
- Washington
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Trailpark Gardens
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Trailpark Gardens is located in Tazewell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trailpark Gardens
- Woodford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Washburn
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Minonk
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Benson
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Woodford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Woodford is located in Woodford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodford
- Roanoke
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Panola
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Panola is located in Woodford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panola
- Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
- Metamora
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Secor
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- El Paso
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Spring Bay
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Spring Bay is located in Woodford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Bay
- Population from the 2020 Census: 456 people
- Eureka
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Bay View Gardens
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bay View Gardens is located in Woodford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View Gardens
- Population from the 2020 Census: 407 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Porterfield, see our County-by-County Page for Porterfield.
Cemeteries Near Porterfield ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Porterfield.
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 Porterfield - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Porterfield covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Cumberland Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Roberts Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Magnolia Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Magnolia Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Roberts Twp. Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roberts Twp. Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Roberts Twp. Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the north of Varna.
- The Roberts Twp. Cemetery has also been known as:
- Hamilton Cemetery
- Myers Cemetery
- Statler Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #108380 <3>
- Salem Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cherry Point Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Salem Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Antioch Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Friends Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Boyle - Price Valley Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Caledonia Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (264 more) ...
- Immaculate Conception Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- St. Anns Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<4>
While we didn't find Porterfield in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Porterfield.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Porterfield, with the one closest to Porterfield listed first.
- Magnolia
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Varna
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Toluca
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Wenona
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Lostant
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lostant is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lostant
- Population from the 2020 Census: 477 people
- Lostant has also been known as:
- Lost Ant
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lostant <1>
- Mount Palatine
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Mount Palatine is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Palatine
- La Rose
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Rutland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Leeds
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Leeds is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
- Garfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Garfield is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garfield
- Tonica
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Henry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Leonore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Florid
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Florid is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florid
- Ticona
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ticona is located in La Salle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ticona
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Porterfield. See our List of 1890's Communities around Porterfield.
Newspapers Published in Porterfield ...
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 88 newspapers that have been published in the area around Porterfield.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Porterfield, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Porterfield.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Porterfield:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Marshall County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bureau County
- La Salle County
- Livingston County
- McLean County
- Peoria County
- Putnam County
- Stark County
- Tazewell County
- Woodford 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Porterfield) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Porterfield, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |