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 Prospect Heights (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 Prospect Heights. 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.
Name Variations for Prospect Heights ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Prospect Heights: Prospect Hts. (in Canada, 'Hgts.' is the more common abbreviation.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Prospect Heights. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Prospect Heights.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 hospitals and doctors 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.
Prospect Heights is located in Cook 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 Cook County: DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, Lake (IN) & Berrien (MI).
Below are the counties that are near Prospect Heights. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Prospect Heights:
- Cook County (The home county of Prospect Heights)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Wheeling
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Mount Prospect
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Arlington Heights
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- The Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- The Grove is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Grove
- Covenant Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Covenant Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covenant Village
- Northbrook
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Norma
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Norma is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norma
- Des Plaines
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Glenview
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Capri Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Capri Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capri Village
- Fairfax Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Fairfax Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfax Village
- Palatine
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Plum Grove Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Plum Grove Village is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Grove Village
- DuPage County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Wood Dale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Itasca
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bensenville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Medinah
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Roselle
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Addison
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Bloomingdale
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Keeneyville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Keeneyville is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneyville
- Elmhurst
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- South Elmhurst
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- South Elmhurst is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Elmhurst
- Bartlett
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cloverdale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cloverdale is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
- Glendale Heights
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Kane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- East Dundee
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Carpentersville
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Elgin
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Sleepy Hollow
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Coleman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Coleman is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleman
- South Elgin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- South Elgin is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Elgin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 24,646 people
- West Dundee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Gilberts
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Saint Charles
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Freeman
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Freeman is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- Geneva
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bonnie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bonnie is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonnie
- Bonnie has also been known as:
- Bonnie Valley
- Bowes Bend
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- 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 Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Buffalo Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Aptakisic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Aptakisic is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aptakisic
- Riverwoods
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Deerfield
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lincolnshire
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Prairie View
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Prairie View is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie View
- Bannockburn
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Long Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Indian Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Indian Creek is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Creek
- Population from the 2020 Census: 538 people
- Braeside
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Braeside is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braeside
- Highland Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ravinia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Ravinia is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravinia
- Kildeer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- McHenry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Fox River Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Trout Valley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Trout Valley is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trout Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 508 people
- Cary
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Island Lake
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Island Lake is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Island Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,951 people
- Oakwood Hills
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Oakwood Hills is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,011 people
- Algonquin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Barreville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Barreville is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barreville
- Holiday Hills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Holiday Hills is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 574 people
- Lake-in-the-Hills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Lakemoor
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Prairie Grove
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Prairie Grove is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Grove
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,920 people
- Crystal Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Terra Cotta
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Terra Cotta is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terra Cotta
- Will County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Winston Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Winston Village is located in Will County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winston Village
- Bolingbrook
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Colonial Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Colonial Village is located in Will County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
- Bloomfield Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bloomfield Village is located in Will County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield Village
- Kenosha County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Fossland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Fossland is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fossland
- Benet Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Benet Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benet Lake
- Lake Shangrila
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Lake Shangrila is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Shangrila
- Pleasant Prairie
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Prairie is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Prairie
- Population from the 2020 Census: 21,373 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Prospect Heights, see our County-by-County Page for Prospect Heights.
Cemeteries Near Prospect Heights ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Prospect Heights.
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 Prospect Heights - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Prospect Heights covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Wheeling Twp. Arlington Heights Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- St. Peter Lutheran Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- English Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Memory Gardens Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- St. Pauls Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Northfield Oakwood Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Wheeling Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- All Saints Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Northfield Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (320 more) ...
- Ridgewood Memorial Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgewood Memorial Park
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Ridgewood Memorial Park is a very large cemetery that is located in Glenview.
- The Ridgewood Memorial Park has also been known as:
- Ridgewood Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #107685 <2>
- Sunset Memorial Lawns
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Northfield Union Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
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 Prospect Heights in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Prospect Heights.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Prospect Heights, with the one closest to Prospect Heights listed first.
- Wheeling
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Arlington Heights
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mount Prospect
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Ridgeland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Ridgeland is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeland
- The Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- The Grove is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Grove
- Buffalo Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Northfield
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- North Northfield is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Northfield
- Des Plaines
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Aptakisic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Aptakisic is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aptakisic
- Shermerville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Shermerville is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shermerville
- Deerfield
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Palatine
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Prairie View
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Prairie View is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie View
- Half Day
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Half Day is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Half Day
- Elk Grove Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Prospect Heights. See our List of 1890's Communities around Prospect Heights.
Newspapers Published in Prospect Heights ...
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 71 newspapers that have been published in the area around Prospect Heights.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Prospect Heights, there are papers which were published within 5 miles [8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Prospect Heights.
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 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 Prospect Heights:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Cook County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- DuPage County
- Kane County
- Lake County
- McHenry County
- Will County
- Kenosha 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 Prospect Heights, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Prospect Heights) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |