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 Rock Creek (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 Rock Creek. 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 Rock Creek ...
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.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
Another variation: Rockcreek.
- A typical abbreviation for Rock Creek: Rock Crk. (or less commonly used: Rock Ck. or Rock Cr.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Rock Creek. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rock Creek.
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 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.
Rock Creek is located in Adams 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 Adams County: Brown, Hancock, Pike, Schuyler, Lewis (MO) & Marion (MO).
Below are the counties that are near Rock Creek. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rock Creek:
- Adams County (The home county of Rock Creek)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Ursa
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Marcelline
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Marcelline is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcelline
- Mendon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ewbanks
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ewbanks is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ewbanks
- Fowler
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Quincy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Meyer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Meyer is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meyer
- Lima
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Paloma
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Coatsburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Loraine
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Burton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Burton is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
- Columbus
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Columbus is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 96 people
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Mound Station
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mound Station is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Station
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Timewell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Hancock County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Sutter
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Sutter is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutter
- Chili
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Chili is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chili
- West Point
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- West Point is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
- Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
- Warsaw
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Bowen
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Basco
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hamilton
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Elvaston
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Bentley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bentley is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 32 people
- Augusta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Carthage
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Plymouth
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pike County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Shepherd
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Shepherd is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shepherd
- Spencer
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Spencer is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer
- Hull
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Kinderhook
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Barry
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Schuyler County
- Huntsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Lee County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Buena Vista ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Buena Vista is located in Lee County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Keokuk
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Sandusky
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Sandusky is located in Lee County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandusky
- Clark County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Saint Patrick
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Patrick is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Patrick
- Alexandria
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Wayland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Wayland is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 506 people
- Neeper
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Neeper is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neeper
- Saint Francisville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Saint Francisville is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Francisville
- Clark City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Clark City is located in Clark County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark City
- Knox County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Forest Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Forest Springs is located in Knox County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Springs
- Jeddo
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Jeddo is located in Knox County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
- Newark
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Lewis County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- La Grange
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Canton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Weber
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Weber is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weber
- Maywood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Maywood is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maywood
- Durham
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Sellers
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Sellers is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sellers
- Gilead
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Gilead is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilead
- Ewing
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Monticello
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Monticello is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello
- Population from the 2020 Census: 92 people
- Argola
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Argola is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argola
- Lewistown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- New Court Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- New Court Village is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Court Village
- Williamstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Williamstown is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamstown
- Marion County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Taylor
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Dodge City
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Dodge City is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodge City
- Helton
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Helton is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helton
- Palmyra
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Hannibal
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Philadelphia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Philadelphia is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philadelphia
- Nelsonville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Nelsonville is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelsonville
- Cave City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Cave City is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave City
- Oakwood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Oakwood is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- Ralls County (MO)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Rensselaer
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Rensselaer is located in Ralls County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rensselaer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
- Saverton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Saverton is located in Ralls County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saverton
- Shelby County (MO)
- Emden
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Emden is located in Shelby County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emden
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rock Creek, see our County-by-County Page for Rock Creek.
Cemeteries Near Rock Creek ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rock Creek.
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 Rock Creek - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rock Creek covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Booth Memorial Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Wesley Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Stone Family Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Denson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- New Providence Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ellington Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- St. Joseph Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Keath Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Gallimore Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Marks Memorial Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Riverview Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Sunset Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Continue List (345 more) ...
- Calvary Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Powell Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Laughlin 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.<3>
While we didn't find Rock Creek in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rock Creek.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rock Creek, with the one closest to Rock Creek listed first.
- Ursa
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Marcelline
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Marcelline is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcelline
- La Grange
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Mendon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Quincy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Fowler
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- West Quincy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- West Quincy is located in Marion County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Quincy
- Canton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Taylor
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Lima
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Weber
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Weber is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weber
- Paloma
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Tioga
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Tioga is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tioga
- Maywood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Maywood is located in Lewis County (MO)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maywood
- Burton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Burton is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rock Creek. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rock Creek.
Newspapers Published in Rock Creek ...
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 73 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rock Creek.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rock Creek, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rock Creek.
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 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 Rock Creek:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Adams County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Brown County
- Hancock County
- Pike County
- Schuyler County
- Lee County
- Clark County
- Knox County
- Lewis County
- Marion County
- Ralls County
- Shelby 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 Rock Creek, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Rock Creek) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |