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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 Shafter (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 Shafter. 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 and hospitals 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.

Shafter is located in Fayette 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 Fayette County: Bond, Clay, Clinton, Effingham, Marion, Montgomery & Shelby.

Below are the counties that are near Shafter. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Shafter:

  • Fayette County     (The home county of Shafter)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Hagarstown
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Vandalia
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Bingham
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Bayle City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Bayle City is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayle City
    • Bluff City
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Bluff City is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
    • Ramsey
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Shobonier
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Brownstown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Avena
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Avena is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avena
    • Dressor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Dressor is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dressor
    • Saint Paul
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Saint Paul is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Paul
    • Howards Point ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Howards Point is located in Fayette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howards Point
  • Bond County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Mulberry Grove
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Pleasant Mound
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Pleasant Mound is located in Bond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Mound
    • Smithboro
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Greenville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Reno
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Reno is located in Bond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
    • Sorento
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Old Ripley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Old Ripley is located in Bond County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Ripley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
    • Pocahontas
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Pierron
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Christian County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Rosamond
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Pana
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Pana is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pana
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,327 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pana <1>
    • Millersville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Millersville is located in Christian County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millersville
  • Clinton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Keyesport
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Boulder
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Boulder is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boulder
    • Marydale
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Marydale is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marydale
    • Carlyle
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Huey
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Huey is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huey
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 161 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Huey <1>
    • Saint Rose
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Saint Rose is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Rose
  • Effingham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Altamont
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Beecher City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Beecher City is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beecher City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 451 people
    • Moccasin
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Moccasin is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moccasin
    • Gilmore
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Gilmore is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore
    • Dexter
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Dexter is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dexter
    • Edgewood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Funkhouser
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Funkhouser is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Funkhouser
    • Mason
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Mason is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 333 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mason <1>
    • Shumway
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Macoupin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Mount Olive
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Lake Ka-ho
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Lake Ka-ho is located in Macoupin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ka-ho
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 214 people
      • Lake Ka-ho has also been known as:
      • Lake Ka-Ho village
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • New Douglas
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Grantfork
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Grantfork is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grantfork
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 341 people
    • Sebastopol
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Sebastopol is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebastopol
    • Alhambra
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Vernon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Patoka
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Fairman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Fairman is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairman
    • Alma
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Kinmundy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Sandoval
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Odin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Odin is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,004 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Odin <1>
    • Salem
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Junction City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Junction City is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 468 people
    • Omega
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Omega is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omega
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Fillmore
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Chapman
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Chapman is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
    • Coffeen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Donnellson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Irving
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Schram City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Schram City is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schram City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 542 people
    • Taylor Springs
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Witt
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Witt is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Witt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 833 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Witt <1>
    • Panama
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Coalton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Coalton is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 282 people
    • Hillsboro
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Nokomis
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.
    • Herrick
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Oconee
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Cowden
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Lakewood
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Lakewood is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
    • Fancher
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Fancher is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancher
    • Tower Hill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Mode
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Mode is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mode

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Shafter, see our County-by-County Page for Shafter.

Cemeteries Near Shafter ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shafter.

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 Shafter - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Shafter covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.

  • Wright & Neathery Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Lawler Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Browning Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Eakle Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Cook Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Holy Cross Lutheran Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Rush Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Ritter Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Hoffman Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Renshaw Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Neathery Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (407 more) ...
    • Etcheson Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Sharon Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Union Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 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.<2>

While we didn't find Shafter in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Shafter.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Shafter, with the one closest to Shafter listed first.

  • Hagarstown
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Vera
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Vera is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vera
  • Vandalia
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Bingham
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Mulberry Grove
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Bayle City
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Bayle City is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayle City
  • Fillmore
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Pittsburg
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Pittsburg is located in Fayette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsburg
  • Ramsey
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Chapman
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Chapman is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
  • Smithboro
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Pleasant Mound
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Pleasant Mound is located in Bond County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Mound
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Shobonier
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Brownstown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Coffeen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Shafter. See our List of 1890's Communities around Shafter.

Newspapers Published in Shafter ...

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 193 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shafter.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shafter, 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 Shafter.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Shafter:

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 Shafter, 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' (or 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- Shafter) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.