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 Laura (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 Laura. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Laura is located in Jasper 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 Jasper County: Benton, Lake, LaPorte, Newton, Porter, Pulaski, Starke & White.
Below are the counties that are near Laura. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Laura:
- Jasper County (The home county of Laura)
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Gifford
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Gifford is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gifford
- Virgie
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Virgie is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virgie
- Stoutsburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Stoutsburg is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoutsburg
- Wheatfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Tefft
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Tefft is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tefft
- DeMotte
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- 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>
- Fair Oaks
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Forest City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Forest City is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
- Rensselaer
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Collegeville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Collegeville is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collegeville
- Egypt
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Egypt is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egypt
- Remington
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Benton County
- Wadena
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Wadena is located in Benton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Shelby
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Shelby is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
- Dinwiddie
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Dinwiddie is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dinwiddie
- Leroy
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Leroy is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leroy
- Schneider
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Schneider is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schneider
- Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
- Lakes of the Four Seasons
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Lowell
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Dalecarlia
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Lake Dalecarlia is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Dalecarlia
- Winfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Winfield is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,265 people
- Illinoi
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Illinoi is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinoi
- Cedar Lake
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Crown Point
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Deep River
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Deep River is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deep River
- LaPorte County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- La Crosse
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Wanatah
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Hanna
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Haskell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Haskell is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haskell
- Alida
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Alida is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alida
- Newton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Roselawn
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Roselawn is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roselawn
- Thayer
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Thayer is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thayer
- Mount Ayr
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Ayr is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Ayr
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Sumava Resorts
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Foresman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Foresman is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foresman
- Lake Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Lake Village is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
- Beaver City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Beaver City is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver City
- Brook
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Morocco
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Goodland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Newton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Newton is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Kentland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Porter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Aylesworth
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Aylesworth is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aylesworth
- Kouts
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Hebron
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Boone Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Boone Grove is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boone Grove
- Porter Crossroads
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Porter Crossroads is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter Crossroads
- Valparaiso
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Wheeler
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Wheeler is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
- South Haven
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- South Haven is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Haven
- Suman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Suman is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suman
- Pulaski County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Medaryville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Francesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Denham
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Denham is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denham
- Beardstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Beardstown is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beardstown
- Winamac
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Lawton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Lawton is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawton
- Star City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Monterey
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Monterey is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Thornhope
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Thornhope is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornhope
- Former names for Thornhope:
- Parisville
- Rosedale
- Thornhope has also been known as:
- Oak
- Starke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- San Pierre
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- North Judson
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Aldine
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Aldine is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldine
- Toto
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Toto is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toto
- Bass Lake
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Bass Lake is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bass Lake
- Knox
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ora
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Ora is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ora
- Ober
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ober is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ober
- White County
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Lee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Lee is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee
- Monon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Buffalo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Buffalo is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
- Wolcott
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Headlee
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Headlee is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Headlee
- Sitka
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Sitka is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sitka
- Indiana Beach
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Indiana Beach is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indiana Beach
- Reynolds
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Norway
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Norway is located in White County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norway
- Monticello
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Kankakee County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Illinoi
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Illinoi is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinoi
- Illiana Heights
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Illiana Heights is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illiana Heights
- Sherburnville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Sherburnville is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherburnville
- Litchfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Litchfield is located in Kankakee County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Litchfield
- Hopkins Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- 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>
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Laura, see our County-by-County Page for Laura.
Cemeteries Near Laura ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Laura.
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 Laura - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Laura covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Hershman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Kniman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dunkard Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sandridge Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Prater Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Price Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Independence Church Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Kankakee Twp. Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Yeoman Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Smith Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Hankle Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (150 more) ...
- Parkison Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Brown Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Robinson Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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.<3>
While we didn't find Laura in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Laura.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Laura, with the one closest to Laura listed first.
- Kniman
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Kniman is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kniman
- Virgie
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Virgie is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virgie
- Stoutsburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Stoutsburg is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoutsburg
- Wheatfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Tefft
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Tefft is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tefft
- Surrey
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Surrey is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surrey
- Medaryville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- DeMotte
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- 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>
- Fair Oaks
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Ridge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Ridge is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Ridge
- San Pierre
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rensselaer
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Francesville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Forest City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Forest City is located in Jasper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
- Roselawn
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Roselawn is located in Newton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roselawn
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Laura. See our List of 1890's Communities around Laura.
Newspapers Published in Laura ...
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 27 newspapers that have been published in the area around Laura.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Laura, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Laura.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Laura:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Jasper County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Benton County
- Lake County
- LaPorte County
- Newton County
- Porter County
- Pulaski County
- Starke County
- White County
- Kankakee 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> | 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 Laura, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Laura) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |