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 Cook (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 Cook. 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 doctors 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.
Cook is located in Lake County.
To see how the shape of Indiana's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Lake County: Cook (IL), Kankakee (IL), Will (IL), Jasper, Newton & Porter.
Below are the counties that are near Cook. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Cook:
- Lake County (The home county of Cook)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Cedar Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Lake Dalecarlia
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lake Dalecarlia is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Dalecarlia
- Saint John
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Crown Point
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lowell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Schererville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Dyer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Hartsdale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Hartsdale is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsdale
- New Elliott
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- New Elliott is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Elliott
- Lincoln Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Lincoln Village is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Village
- Griffith
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Dinwiddie
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Dinwiddie is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dinwiddie
- Jasper County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Forest City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Forest City is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
- DeMotte
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- DeMotte is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for DeMotte
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,172 people
- DeMotte has also been known as:
- De Motte
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for DeMotte <1>
- Stoutsburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Stoutsburg is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoutsburg
- Fair Oaks
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Virgie
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Virgie is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virgie
- Wheatfield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Tefft
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Tefft is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tefft
- Gifford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Gifford is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gifford
- LaPorte County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Alida
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Alida is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alida
- Haskell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Haskell is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haskell
- La Crosse
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Wanatah
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Newton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Sumava Resorts
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Thayer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Thayer is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thayer
- Lake Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Lake Village is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
- Roselawn
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Roselawn is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roselawn
- Morocco
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Mount Ayr
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Mount Ayr is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Ayr
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Porter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Hebron
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Porter Crossroads
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Porter Crossroads is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter Crossroads
- Boone Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Boone Grove is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boone Grove
- Wheeler
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wheeler is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
- Aylesworth
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Aylesworth is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aylesworth
- Portage
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- South Haven
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- South Haven is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Haven
- Willow Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Willow Creek is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
- Woodland Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Woodland Village is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
- Valparaiso
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Ogden Dunes
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Ogden Dunes is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden Dunes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,083 people
- Babcock
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Babcock is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babcock
- Cook County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Sauk Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lynwood
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Ford Heights
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- South Chicago Heights
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- South Chicago Heights is located in Cook County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Chicago Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,957 people
- Chicago Heights
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lansing
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Glenwood
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Park Forest
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Richton Park
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Globe
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Globe is located in Cook County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Globe
- Flossmoor
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Olympia Fields
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Iroquois County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Beaverville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Papineau
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Kankakee County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Sherburnville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Sherburnville is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherburnville
- Illinoi
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Illinoi is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinoi
- Grant Park
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Grant Park is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,231 people
- Illiana Heights
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Illiana Heights is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illiana Heights
- Litchfield
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Litchfield is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Litchfield
- Momence
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Manteno
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Saint George
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Saint George is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
- Hopkins Park
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Hopkins Park is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopkins Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 608 people
- Hopkins Park has also been known as:
- Hopkins Park village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hopkins Park <1>
- Sun River Terrace
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Sun River Terrace is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun River Terrace
- Population from the 2020 Census: 488 people
- Bradley
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bourbonnais
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Will County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Willowbrook
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Beecher
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Goodenow
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Goodenow is located in Will County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodenow
- Crete
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Steger
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- University Park
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Monee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Peotone
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Frankfort Square
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Frankfort Square is located in Will County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort Square
- Frankfort
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mokena
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Wallingford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Wallingford is located in Will County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallingford
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Cook, see our County-by-County Page for Cook.
Cemeteries Near Cook ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Cook.
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 Cook - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Cook covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Holy Name Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- German Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Schubert Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Brunswick Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Creston Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Zion Evangelical Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- St. John Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Hack Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Eagle Lake Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Lake Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Eagle Lake Cemetery is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the northeast of Beecher (IL).
- The Eagle Lake Cemetery has also been known as:
- North Cemetery
- St. John Lutheran Church North Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #105482 <3>
- St. Johns Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Fuller Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (245 more) ...
- St. Marys Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Prairie Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Lowell Memorial 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.<4>
While we didn't find Cook in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Cook.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Cook, with the one closest to Cook listed first.
- Cedar Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Brunswick
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Brunswick is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brunswick
- Klaasville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Klaasville is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klaasville
- Creston
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Creston is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creston
- Eagle Lake
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Eagle Lake is located in Will County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Lake
- Saint John
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Lowell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Crown Point
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Schererville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hartsdale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Hartsdale is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsdale
- Beecher
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Dyer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Orchard Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Orchard Grove is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Grove
- Goodenow
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Goodenow is located in Will County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodenow
- Crete
(9 miles [14.5 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 Cook. See our List of 1890's Communities around Cook.
Newspapers Published in Cook ...
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 64 newspapers that have been published in the area around Cook.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Cook, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Cook.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Cook:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Lake County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Jasper County
- LaPorte County
- Newton County
- Porter County
- Cook County
- Iroquois County
- Kankakee County
- Will County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Indiana
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 drawn from Point A (ie- Cook) 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 Cook, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |