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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 Hastings (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 Hastings. 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 hospitals and 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.

Hastings is located in Kosciusko 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 Kosciusko County: Elkhart, Fulton, Marshall, Noble, Wabash & Whitley.

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

  • Kosciusko County     (The home county of Hastings)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Milford
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Milford is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,551 people
    • Clunette
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Clunette is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clunette
    • Milford Junction
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Milford Junction is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford Junction
    • Leesburg
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Atwood
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Atwood is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
    • Syracuse
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Wawasee Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Wawasee Village is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wawasee Village
    • Etna Green
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Arrowhead Park
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Arrowhead Park is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arrowhead Park
    • North Webster
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Winona Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Burket
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Burket is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burket
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
    • Mentone
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Elkhart County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Gravelton
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Gravelton is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravelton
    • Nappanee
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Foraker
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Foraker is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foraker
    • New Paris
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Southwest
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Southwest is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwest
    • Bainter Town
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Bainter Town is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainter Town
    • Wakarusa
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Benton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Benton is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
    • Goshen
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Millersburg
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Dunlap
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Dunlap is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
    • Jamestown
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jamestown is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
    • Elkhart
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Fulton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Akron
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Athens
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Athens is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athens
    • Disko
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Disko is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Disko
    • Rochester
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Leiters Ford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Leiters Ford is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leiters Ford
    • Delong
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Delong is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delong
  • LaGrange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Topeka
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Shipshewana
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Wolcottville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Seyberts
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Seyberts is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seyberts
  • Marshall County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Bourbon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Bremen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Old Tip Town
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Old Tip Town is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Tip Town
    • Tippecanoe
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Linkville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Linkville is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linkville
    • Argos
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Argos is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argos
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,619 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Argos <1>
    • Harris
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Harris is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris
    • Plymouth
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • La Paz
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • La Paz is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Paz
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 549 people
    • Tyner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Tyner is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyner
    • Burr Oak
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Burr Oak is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burr Oak
    • Donaldson
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Donaldson is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donaldson
    • Culver
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Culver is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culver
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,484 people
  • Miami County
    • Gilead
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Gilead is located in Miami County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilead
  • Noble County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Indian Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Indian Village is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
    • Wilmot
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Wilmot is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmot
    • Cromwell
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Ligonier
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Kimmell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Wolf Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Wolf Lake is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Lake
    • Wawaka
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Cosperville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Cosperville is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cosperville
    • Port Mitchell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Port Mitchell is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Mitchell
    • Albion
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Merriam
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Merriam is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merriam
    • Brimfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Brimfield is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brimfield
    • Green Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Green Center is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Center
  • Saint Joseph County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Wyatt
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Osceola
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Osceola is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osceola
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,486 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Osceola <1>
    • Lakeville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Gulivoire Park
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Gulivoire Park is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulivoire Park
    • Mishawaka
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Nutwood
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Nutwood is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nutwood
    • South Bend
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Granger
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Indian Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Indian Village is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
    • North Liberty
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Georgetown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Georgetown is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
    • Roseland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Roseland is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseland
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 635 people
    • Crumstown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Crumstown is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumstown
  • Starke County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Koontz Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Koontz Lake is located in Starke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Koontz Lake
    • Grovertown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Grovertown is located in Starke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grovertown
  • Wabash County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Liberty Mills
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Liberty Mills is located in Wabash County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Mills
    • North Manchester
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Laketon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Whitley County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Etna
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Etna is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
    • Ormas
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Ormas is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ormas
    • Larwill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Larwill is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larwill
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
    • Lorane
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Lorane is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorane
    • Cresco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Cresco is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cresco
    • Collamer
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Collamer is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collamer
    • South Whitley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Tri-Lakes
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Tri-Lakes is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tri-Lakes
    • Columbia City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Collins
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Collins is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
  • Cass County (MI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hastings, with the one closest to Hastings listed first.
    • Union
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Edwardsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Saint Joseph County (MI)
    • Mottville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Mottville is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mottville

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

Cemeteries Near Hastings ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hastings.

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

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

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

  • Island Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Graber Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Clunette Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Brumbaugh Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Milford Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Lakeside Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Bethel Mennonite Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Pleasant View Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Weldy Amish Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Bull Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Highland Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Providence Primitive Baptist Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence Primitive Baptist Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Providence Primitive Baptist Cemetery is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<3> to the southeast of Wakarusa.
    • The Providence Primitive Baptist Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Primitive Baptist Cemetery
    • Providence Cemetery
    • Providence Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2168502 <2>
  • Continue List   (241 more) ...

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 in 1895, Hastings had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Gravelton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Gravelton is located in Elkhart County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravelton
  • Clunette
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Clunette is located in Kosciusko County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clunette
  • Milford
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Milford is located in Kosciusko County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,551 people
  • Leesburg
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Milford Junction
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Milford Junction is located in Kosciusko County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford Junction
  • Nappanee
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Atwood
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Atwood is located in Kosciusko County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwood
  • Oswego
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Oswego is located in Kosciusko County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oswego
  • Etna Green
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Syracuse
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • New Paris
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Foraker
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Foraker is located in Elkhart County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foraker
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Southwest
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Southwest is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwest
    • Bourbon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Wakarusa
      (11 miles [17.7 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 Hastings. See our List of 1890's Communities around Hastings.

Newspapers Published in Hastings ...

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 57 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hastings.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Hastings, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Hastings.

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 Hastings:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Hastings) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Hastings, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.