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 Walker Ford (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 Walker Ford. 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 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.
Walker Ford is located in Coles 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 Coles County: Clark, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Moultrie & Shelby.
Below are the counties that are near Walker Ford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Walker Ford:
- Coles County (The home county of Walker Ford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Charleston
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Hutton
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hutton is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutton
- Lerna
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Trilla
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Bushton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Bushton is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushton
- Ashmore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Magnet
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Magnet is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnet
- Mattoon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Saint Omer ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Saint Omer is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Omer
- Dorans
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dorans is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorans
- Rardin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Rardin is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rardin
- Humboldt
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Cooks Mills
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Cooks Mills is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Mills
- Clark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Westfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Oilfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Oilfield is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oilfield
- Casey
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cumberland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cumberland is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland
- Cleone
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Cleone is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleone
- Martinsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Oak Point
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Point is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Point
- Clarksville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Clarksville is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
- Hogue Town
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hogue Town is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hogue Town
- Clark Center
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Clark Center is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark Center
- Marshall
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Melrose
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Melrose is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Livingston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Livingston is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Bellair
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bellair is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellair
- Annapolis
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kibbie ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kibbie is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kibbie
- Dogwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Dogwood is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogwood
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Diona
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Diona is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diona
- Janesville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Union Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Union Center is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Center
- Bradbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bradbury is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradbury
- Johnstown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Johnstown is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
- Timothy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Timothy is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timothy
- Toledo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Greenup
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Jewett
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Walla Walla
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Walla Walla is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walla Walla
- Hazel Dell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hazel Dell is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazel Dell
- Neoga
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Douglas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Filson
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Filson is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filson
- Hindsboro
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Kemp
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Kemp is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kemp
- Arcola
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Chesterville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Chesterville is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterville
- Patterson Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Patterson Springs is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patterson Springs
- Arthur
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Camargo
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Murdock
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Tuscola
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Ficklin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Ficklin is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ficklin
- Newman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Garrett
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Garrett is located in Douglas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 160 people
- Edgar County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Kansas
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Grandview
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Grandview is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
- Borton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Borton is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borton
- Bell Ridge
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Bell Ridge is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell Ridge
- Redmon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Conlogue
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Conlogue is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conlogue
- Brocton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Oliver
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Oliver is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oliver
- Paris
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Nevins
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Nevins is located in Edgar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevins
- Hume
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Effingham County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Montrose
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Montrose is located in Effingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montrose
- Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
- Green Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Green Creek is located in Effingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Creek
- Teutopolis
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Dieterich
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Effingham
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Shumway
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Jasper County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Hidalgo
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Rose Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Rose Hill is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
- Yale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Falmouth
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Falmouth is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth
- Hunt City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Hunt City is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunt City
- Wheeler
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lis
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Lis is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lis
- Newton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Willow Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Moultrie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Coles
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Coles is located in Moultrie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coles
- Gays
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Allenville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Allenville is located in Moultrie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 141 people
- Cadwell
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cadwell is located in Moultrie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cadwell
- Sullivan
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cushman
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Cushman is located in Moultrie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cushman
- Piatt County
- Atwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Sexson Corner
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Sexson Corner is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sexson Corner
- Trowbridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Trowbridge is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trowbridge
- Sigel
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Windsor
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Strasburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Stewardson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Middlesworth
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Middlesworth is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesworth
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Walker Ford, see our County-by-County Page for Walker Ford.
Cemeteries Near Walker Ford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Walker Ford.
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 Walker Ford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Walker Ford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Leitch Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- New Kelley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Kickapoo Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Mt. Tabor Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- McKenzie Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Adkins Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Shiloh Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hurricane Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Anderson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- The Anderson Cemetery is located on private property - be sure to secure permission before visiting.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Anderson Cemetery is located 6 miles [9.7 km]<2> to the southeast of Charleston.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2388901 <3>
- Stringtown Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Kelley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Unity Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (399 more) ...
- Janesville Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bell Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Salisbury Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
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 Walker Ford in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Walker Ford.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Walker Ford, with the one closest to Walker Ford listed first.
- Campbell
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Campbell is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
- Diona
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Diona is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diona
- Charleston
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Janesville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hutton
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hutton is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutton
- Lerna
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Johnstown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Johnstown is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnstown
- Bradbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bradbury is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradbury
- Union Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Union Center is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Center
- Loxa
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Loxa is located in Coles County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loxa
- Timothy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Timothy is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timothy
- Trilla
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Westfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Toledo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Ashmore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Walker Ford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Walker Ford.
Newspapers Published in Walker Ford ...
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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Walker Ford.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Walker Ford, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Walker Ford.
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 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 Walker Ford:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Coles County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clark County
- Crawford County
- Cumberland County
- Douglas County
- Edgar County
- Effingham County
- Jasper County
- Moultrie County
- Piatt 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Walker Ford) 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 Walker Ford, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |