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 Prairie City (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 Prairie City. 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.
Prairie City is located in McDonough 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 McDonough County: Fulton, Hancock, Henderson, Schuyler & Warren.
Below are the counties that are near Prairie City. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Prairie City:
- McDonough County (The home county of Prairie City)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Bushnell
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- New Philadelphia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- New Philadelphia is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Philadelphia
- Bardolph
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Good Hope
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Adair
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- East Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- East Village is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- Lamone Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lamone Village is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamone Village
- Macomb
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- University Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- University Village is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Village
- Sciota
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Colchester
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Blandinsville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Fulton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Avon
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Babylon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Babylon is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babylon
- Checkrow
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Checkrow is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Checkrow
- Ellisville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Marietta
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Blyton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Blyton is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blyton
- London Mills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Smithfield
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Bybee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Bybee is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bybee
- Fairview
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Fiatt
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Cuba
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hancock County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- La Harpe
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- La Harpe is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Harpe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,123 people
- Joetta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Joetta is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joetta
- Fountain Green
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Fountain Green is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Green
- Disco
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Disco is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Disco
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Raritan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Raritan is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raritan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
- Media
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Media is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Media
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Stronghurst
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Biggsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Biggsville is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biggsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Olena
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Olena is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
- Terre Haute
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Terre Haute is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terre Haute
- Gladstone
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rozetta
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rozetta is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rozetta
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Saint Augustine
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Abingdon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- De Long
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- De Long is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Long
- Maquon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Gilson
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Knoxville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- East Galesburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- East Galesburg is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Galesburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 761 people
- Galesburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Knox
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Knox is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox
- Yates City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Appleton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Appleton is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleton
- Henderson Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Henderson Grove is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson Grove
- Mason County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Buzzville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Buzzville is located in Mason County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buzzville
- Havana
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mercer County
- Alexis
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Peoria County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Elmwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Trivoli
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Schuyler County
- Littleton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Youngstown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Youngstown is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngstown
- Berwick
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Roseville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Cameron
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Surrey
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Surrey is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surrey
- Smithshire
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Kirkwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Monmouth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Utah
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Utah is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Utah
- Gerlaw
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Eleanor
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Eleanor is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eleanor
- Shanghai City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Shanghai City is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanghai City
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Prairie City, see our County-by-County Page for Prairie City.
Cemeteries Near Prairie City ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Prairie City.
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 Prairie City - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Prairie City covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Old Prairie City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Old Prairie City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Prairie City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Avon Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Virgil Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Peirsol Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Guernsey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Holeman Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Holeman Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Bushnell City Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell City Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Bushnell City Cemetery is located outside and to the southeast of Bushnell.
- The Bushnell City Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bushnell Cemetery
- McMahill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hageman Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hageman Cemetery
- The Hageman Cemetery has also been known as:
- Lynn - Hageman Cemetery
- Continue List (371 more) ...
- Solon - Robinson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Barnes Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Checkrow Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
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 Prairie City had a population of 812 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Prairie City had a population of 344 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Prairie City, with the one closest to Prairie City listed first.
- Manley
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Manley is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manley
- Avon
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bushnell
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Babylon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Babylon is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babylon
- Greenbush
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Greenbush is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbush
- Saint Augustine
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Scottsburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Scottsburg is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scottsburg
- Ellisville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Youngstown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Youngstown is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngstown
- New Philadelphia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- New Philadelphia is located in McDonough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Philadelphia
- Marietta
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Bardolph
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Blyton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Blyton is located in Fulton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blyton
- Swan Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Swan Creek is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Creek
- Good Hope
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Prairie City. See our List of 1890's Communities around Prairie City.
Newspapers Published in Prairie City ...
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 83 newspapers that have been published in the area around Prairie City.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Prairie City, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Prairie City.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Prairie City:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to McDonough County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Fulton County
- Hancock County
- Henderson County
- Knox County
- Mason County
- Mercer County
- Peoria County
- Schuyler County
- Warren 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> | 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 Prairie City, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Prairie City) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |