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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 Stillwell (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 Stillwell. 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.

Stillwell is located in Hancock 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 Hancock County: Lee (IA), Adams, Henderson, McDonough, Schuyler, Clark (MO) & Lewis (MO).

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

  • Hancock County     (The home county of Stillwell)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Chili
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Chili is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chili
    • West Point
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • West Point is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
    • Bowen
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Basco
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Bentley
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Bentley is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 32 people
    • Sutter
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Sutter is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutter
    • Augusta
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Elvaston
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Carthage
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Plymouth
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Hamilton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Warsaw
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Adams County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Loraine
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • La Prairie
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Mendon
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Lima
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Golden
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Marcelline
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Marcelline is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcelline
    • Coatsburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Paloma
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Camp Point
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Ursa
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Blacks
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Blacks is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blacks
    • Fowler
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Brown County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Mound Station
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Mound Station is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Station
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Timewell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Mount Sterling
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Hersman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Hersman is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hersman
  • McDonough County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Colmar
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Colmar is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colmar
    • VIshnu Springs ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • VIshnu Springs is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for VIshnu Springs
    • Tennessee
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Colchester
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Doddsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Doddsville is located in McDonough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doddsville
    • Blandinsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Schuyler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Huntsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Camden
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Wayland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Wayland is located in Schuyler County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayland
    • Littleton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
  • Lee County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Keokuk
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Keokuk is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keokuk
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,090 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Keokuk <1>
    • Buena Vista ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Buena Vista is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
    • Sandusky
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Sandusky is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandusky
    • Galland
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Galland is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galland
    • Montrose
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Vincennes
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Vincennes is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vincennes
    • Fort Madison
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Argyle
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • New Boston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • New Boston is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Boston
    • Jeffersonville ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jeffersonville is located in Lee County (IA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeffersonville
  • Clark County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Alexandria
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Saint Patrick
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Saint Patrick is located in Clark County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Patrick
    • Wayland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Wayland is located in Clark County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 506 people
    • Saint Francisville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • 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
  • Lewis County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Stillwell, with the one closest to Stillwell listed first.
    • Canton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Canton is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,314 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Canton <1>
    • La Grange
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Weber
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Weber is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weber
    • Maywood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Maywood is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maywood
    • Monticello
      (28 miles [45.1 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
    • Sellers
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Sellers is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sellers
    • Gilead
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Gilead is located in Lewis County (MO)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilead
    • Durham
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Marion County (MO)
    • Taylor
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Stillwell ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Stillwell.

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

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

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

  • Woodville Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Breneman Farm Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Morgan Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Chili Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • West Point Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Bean Family Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Forsyth Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Kesler Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Kittle Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Webster Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Loraine Old Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Old Sixteen Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (442 more) ...
    • Payne Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Graham Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Loraine New Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Stillwell had a population of 90 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • West Point
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • West Point is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
  • Woodville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Woodville is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
  • Loraine
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Bowen
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Denver
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Denver is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
  • Basco
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Tioga
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Tioga is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tioga
  • Chatton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Chatton is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatton
  • Bentley
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Bentley is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 32 people
  • Elderville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Elderville is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elderville
  • Sutter
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Sutter is located in Hancock County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutter
  • Lima
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Mendon
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • La Prairie
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Marcelline
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Marcelline is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcelline

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

Newspapers Published in Stillwell ...

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 69 newspapers that have been published in the area around Stillwell.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Stillwell, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Stillwell.

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 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 Stillwell:

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 Stillwell, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Stillwell) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.