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 Riley (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 Riley. 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 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.
Riley 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 Riley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Riley:
- McHenry County (The home county of Riley)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Marengo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Union
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Huntley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Lakewood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Woodstock
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ridgefield
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Ridgefield is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgefield
- Crystal Lake
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Lake-in-the-Hills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Harvard
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Bull Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bull Valley is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull Valley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,078 people
- Algonquin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Greenwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- 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 Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Garden Prairie
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Herbert
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Herbert is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herbert
- Belvidere
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Russellville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Russellville is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russellville
- Irene
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Irene is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irene
- Capron
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Poplar Grove
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Timberlane
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Timberlane is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timberlane
- Population from the 2020 Census: 934 people
- Caledonia
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Cook County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Barrington Hills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Barrington Hills is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,152 people
- Barrington
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- South Barrington
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- South Barrington is located in Cook County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,976 people
- Hoffman Estates
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Streamwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Inverness
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Hanover Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Schaumburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- New Lebanon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- New Lebanon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lebanon
- Genoa
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Charter Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Charter Grove is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charter Grove
- Kingston
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Brush Point ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Brush Point is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brush Point
- Kirkland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Sycamore
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Sycamore is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 18,317 people
- Clare
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Coltonville ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Coltonville is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coltonville
- Fairdale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fairdale is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdale
- Cortland
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Esmond
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- DuPage County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Wayne
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Bartlett
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ingalton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ingalton is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingalton
- West Chicago
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- West Chicago is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chicago
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,593 people
- Keeneyville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Keeneyville is located in DuPage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeneyville
- Kane County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Hampshire
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Burlington
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Starks
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Starks is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starks
- North Plato
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- North Plato is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Plato
- Pingree Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Freeman
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Freeman is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
- West Dundee
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Gilberts
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Plato Center
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bowes Bend
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bowes Bend is located in Kane County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowes Bend
- Sleepy Hollow
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Virgil
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Fox River Valley Gardens
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Port Barrington
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Port Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,481 people
- Port Barrington has also been known as:
- Port Barrington village
- Lake Barrington
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Lake Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,840 people
- Tower Lakes
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Tower Lakes is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,219 people
- North Barrington
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- North Barrington is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,938 people
- Wauconda
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Volo
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Deer Park
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Lake Zurich
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Fort Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Fort Hill is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Hill
- Fox Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Ingleside
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lee County
- Steward
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ogle County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Monroe Center
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Lindenwood
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Creston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Davis Junction
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Holcomb
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Hillcrest
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Hillcrest is located in Ogle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,216 people
- Rochelle
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Stillman Valley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Flagg Center
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Flagg Center is located in Ogle County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flagg Center
- Winnebago County
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Cherry Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Argyle
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Argyle is located in Winnebago County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argyle
- North Park
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- North Park is located in Winnebago County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Park
- Loves Park
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Machesney Park
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- New Millford
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- New Millford is located in Winnebago County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Millford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 851 people
- Rockford
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Roscoe
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Indian Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Indian Village is located in Winnebago County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Sturbridge Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sturbridge Village is located in Winnebago County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sturbridge Village
- Rockton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- South Beloit
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Kenosha County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Powers Lake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Powers Lake is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powers Lake
- Twin Lakes
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Twin Lakes is located in Kenosha County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,234 people
- Rock County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Clinton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Clinton is located in Rock County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clinton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,119 people
- Beloit
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Beloit is located in Rock County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beloit
- Population from the 2020 Census: 36,637 people
- Shopiere
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Shopiere is located in Rock County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shopiere
- Tiffany
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Tiffany is located in Rock County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tiffany
- Walworth County (WI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Big Foot Prairie
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Big Foot Prairie is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Foot Prairie
- Sharon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Sharon is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,546 people
- Walworth
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Walworth is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,827 people
- Zenda
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Zenda is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenda
- Fontana-on-Geneva Lake
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- 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
- Genoa City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Genoa City is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,981 people
- Allens Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Allens Grove is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allens Grove
- Delavan Lake
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Delavan Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delavan Lake
- Williams Bay
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Williams Bay is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Bay
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,657 people
- Pell Lake
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pell Lake is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pell Lake
- Darien
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Darien is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darien
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,591 people
- Lake Como
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Lake Como is located in Walworth County (WI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Como
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Riley, see our County-by-County Page for Riley.
Cemeteries Near Riley ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Riley.
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 Riley - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Riley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Riley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riley Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Riley Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the south of Marengo.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2143541 <3>
- Barber Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Ney Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Coral Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Union Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Old Marengo Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Harmony Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Garden Prairie Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Shattucks Grove Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- North Kingston Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Genoa Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (283 more) ...
- Hampshire Center Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Kingston Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Charter Grove Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charter Grove Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Charter Grove Cemetery is located outside and to the southwest of Charter Grove.
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 Riley in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Riley.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Riley, with the one closest to Riley listed first.
- Coral
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Coral is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coral
- Marengo
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Harmony
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Harmony is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
- Union
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- New Lebanon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- New Lebanon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lebanon
- Garden Prairie
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Herbert
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Herbert is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herbert
- Genoa
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Colvin Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Colvin Park is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvin Park
- Charter Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Charter Grove is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charter Grove
- Hampshire
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Reeds Crossing ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Reeds Crossing is located in Boone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Crossing
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Kingston
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Coyne
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Coyne is located in McHenry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coyne
- Burlington
(10 miles [16.1 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 Riley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Riley.
Newspapers Published in Riley ...
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 59 newspapers that have been published in the area around Riley.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Riley, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Riley.
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 helpful 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 Riley:
- 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
- Lee County
- Ogle County
- Winnebago County
- Kenosha County
- Rock 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Riley) 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 Riley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |