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 West End (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 West End. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.
West End is primarily located in Saline County. A portion of West End extends into Franklin 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 Saline County: Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Johnson, Pope, White & Williamson.
Below are the counties that are near West End. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West End:
- Saline County (The home county of West End)
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Cornerville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Cornerville is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornerville
- Galatia
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Long Branch
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Long Branch is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Branch
- Raleigh
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Harrisburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Liberty
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Liberty is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Muddy
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Wasson
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Wasson is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasson
- Carrier Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Carrier Mills is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrier Mills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,527 people
- Former names for Carrier Mills:
- Carriers Mills
- Morrilsville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carrier Mills <1>
- Gaskins City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Gaskins City is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaskins City
- Ledford
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ledford is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledford
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Thompsonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Fitt's Hill ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Fitt's Hill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitt's Hill
- Parrish
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Parrish is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
- Akin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hanaford
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Hanaford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanaford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
- Smothersville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Smothersville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smothersville
- Deering City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Deering City is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deering City
- Steel City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Steel City is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steel City
- West Frankfort
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- West Frankfort is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Frankfort
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,733 people
- Benton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Orient
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Cambon
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Cambon is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambon
- Gallatin County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Elba
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Elba is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elba
- Omaha
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Equality
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ridgway
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Lawler
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Lawler is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawler
- Junction
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Inman
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Inman is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inman
- Shawneetown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Bowlesville ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bowlesville is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowlesville
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Walpole
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Walpole is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walpole
- Macedonia
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Flint
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Flint is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint
- Broughton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Dale
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Diamond City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Diamond City is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond City
- McLeansboro
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lovilla
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Lovilla is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovilla
- Dahlgren
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Piopolis
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Piopolis is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piopolis
- Jefferson City ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Jefferson City is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson City
- Belle Prairie City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Belle Prairie City is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Prairie City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
- Hardin County
- Karbers Ridge
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- De Soto
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Elkville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hallidayboro
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hallidayboro is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallidayboro
- Dowell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Carbondale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Ina
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Ina is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ina
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,279 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ina <1>
- Belle Rive
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Fitzgerrell ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Fitzgerrell is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitzgerrell
- Bonnie
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Nason
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Opdyke
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Dareville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Dareville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dareville
- Emerson City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Emerson City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerson City
- Waltonville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Marcoe
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Marcoe is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcoe
- Scheller
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bluford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- New Burnside
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Egyptian Hills
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Egyptian Hills is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egyptian Hills
- Ozark
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Eagle Point Bay
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Eagle Point Bay is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Point Bay
- Deer Ridge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Deer Ridge is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Ridge
- Reynoldsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Reynoldsburg is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynoldsburg
- Goreville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Simpson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Perry County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Du Quoin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Du Quoin is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Du Quoin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,591 people
- Saint Johns
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Saint Johns is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
- Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
- Pope County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- McCormick
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- McCormick is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCormick
- Oak
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Oak is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak
- Herod
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Eddyville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Hartsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hartsville is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsville
- Glendale
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Glendale is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
- Lusk
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Lusk is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lusk
- White County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Norris City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Roland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Roland is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roland
- Enfield
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Stokes
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Stokes is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stokes
- Springerton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Herald
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Williamson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Hartford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Hartford is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
- Corinth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Corinth is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Pittsburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Whiteash
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Whiteash is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteash
- Estimated population in 2014: 240 people
- Johnston City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Stiritz
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Stiritz is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stiritz
- Spillertown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Spillertown is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spillertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
- Marion
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Freeman Spur
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Freeman Spur is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman Spur
- Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
- Freeman Spur has also been known as:
- Freeman Spur village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Freeman Spur <1>
- Herrin Junction ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Herrin Junction is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herrin Junction
- Herrin
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Energy
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West End, see our County-by-County Page for West End.
Cemeteries Near West End ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West End.
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 West End - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West End covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Hall Town Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Old Ruff Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cardwell Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- McFarland Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Locust Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Winn Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Isaacs Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Brooks Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Good Hope Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lampley Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Clem Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Durham Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (498 more) ...
- Downs Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Smothers Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- East Fork Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Fork Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the East Fork Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<2> to the southwest of Thompsonville.
- The East Fork Cemetery has also been known as:
- East Fork Baptist Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1989982 <3>
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that West End had a population of 38 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West End, with the one closest to West End listed first.
- Locust Grove ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Locust Grove is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Grove
- Thompsonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Galatia
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Rural Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Rural Hill is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural Hill
- Fitt's Hill ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Fitt's Hill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitt's Hill
- Corinth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Corinth is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Long Branch
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Long Branch is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Branch
- Parrish
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Parrish is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
- Akin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Walpole
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Walpole is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walpole
- Braden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Braden is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braden
- Smothersville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Smothersville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smothersville
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Attila
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Attila is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attila
- Olga
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Olga is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olga
- Raleigh
(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 West End. See our List of 1890's Communities around West End.
Newspapers Published in West End ...
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 99 newspapers that have been published in the area around West End.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West End, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West End.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 West End:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Saline County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Franklin County
- Gallatin County
- Hamilton County
- Hardin County
- Jackson County
- Jefferson County
- Johnson County
- Perry County
- Pope County
- White County
- Williamson 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 '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- West End) 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 West End, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |