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Home >> State of Indiana >> LaGrange County >> River Oaks >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 River Oaks (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 River Oaks. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

River Oaks is located in LaGrange 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 LaGrange County: Elkhart, Noble, Steuben, Branch (MI) & Saint Joseph (MI).

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

  • LaGrange County     (The home county of River Oaks)
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Howe
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Brighton
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Brighton is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
    • LaGrange
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Seyberts
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Seyberts is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seyberts
    • Mongo
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Plato
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Plato is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plato
    • Valentine
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Valentine is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valentine
    • Scott
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Scott is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott
    • Greenfield Mills
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Greenfield Mills is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield Mills
    • Brushy Prairie
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Brushy Prairie is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushy Prairie
    • Shipshewana
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Wolcottville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Stroh
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Stroh is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stroh
  • DeKalb County
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Ashley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Fairfield Center
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairfield Center is located in DeKalb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield Center
    • Corunna
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Corunna is located in DeKalb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corunna
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 258 people
    • Waterloo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Altona
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Altona is located in DeKalb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altona
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
    • Garrett
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Auburn
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Elkhart County
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Middlebury
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Millersburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Bristol
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Benton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Benton is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
    • Goshen
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Bainter Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Bainter Town is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainter Town
    • New Paris
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Garden Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Garden Village is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Village
    • Dunlap
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Dunlap is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
    • Elkhart
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Simonton Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Simonton Lake is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simonton Lake
    • Foraker
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Foraker is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foraker
    • Southwest
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Southwest is located in Elkhart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwest
  • Kosciusko County
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Syracuse
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Wawasee Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Wawasee Village is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wawasee Village
    • Milford Junction
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Milford Junction is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford Junction
    • Milford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Milford is located in Kosciusko County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,551 people
    • North Webster
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Noble County
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Rome City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Cosperville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Cosperville is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cosperville
    • Brimfield
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Brimfield is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brimfield
    • Wawaka
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Wakeville Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Wakeville Village is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakeville Village
    • Kendallville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Ligonier
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Albion
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Kimmell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Cromwell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Port Mitchell
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Port Mitchell is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Mitchell
    • Avilla
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Indian Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Indian Village is located in Noble County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
  • Steuben County
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Orland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Jamestown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jamestown is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
    • Hudson
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Angola
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Pleasant Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Pleasant Lake is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Lake
    • Fremont
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Ray
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Ray is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ray
    • Russels Point
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Russels Point is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russels Point
    • Hamilton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Hamilton is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamilton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,595 people
    • Clear Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Clear Lake is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
    • Alvarado
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Alvarado is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alvarado
    • York
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • York is located in Steuben County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
  • Whitley County
    • Ormas
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Ormas is located in Whitley County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ormas
  • Branch County (MI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Gilead
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Gilead is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilead
    • Bronson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Bronson is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bronson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,298 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bronson <1>
    • Hatmaker
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Hatmaker is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatmaker
    • Matteson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Matteson is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matteson
    • Batavia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Batavia is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batavia
    • Sherwood
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Sherwood is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 306 people
    • Canada Shores
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Canada Shores is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canada Shores
    • Coldwater
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Ray
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Hodunk
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Hodunk is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hodunk
    • Trailtree Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Trailtree Village is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trailtree Village
    • Union City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Fisher
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Fisher is located in Branch County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher
  • Calhoun County (MI)
    • Athens
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Athens is located in Calhoun County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athens
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 996 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Athens <1>
  • Cass County (MI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Corey
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Corey is located in Cass County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corey
    • Jones
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Union
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Vandalia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Vandalia is located in Cass County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandalia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
    • Marcellus
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Wakelee
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Wakelee is located in Cass County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakelee
    • Brownsville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Brownsville is located in Cass County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
  • Kalamazoo County (MI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Fulton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Fulton is located in Kalamazoo County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fulton
    • Vicksburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Vicksburg is located in Kalamazoo County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vicksburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,581 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vicksburg <1>
    • Schoolcraft
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Saint Joseph County (MI)
    • The following are listed by their distance from River Oaks, with the one closest to River Oaks listed first.
    • Fawn River
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Fawn River is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fawn River
    • Sturgis
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Sturgis is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sturgis
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,803 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sturgis <1>
    • Klingers
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Klingers is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klingers
    • Bluff Beach
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Bluff Beach is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Beach
    • Oakwood
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Oakwood is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
    • Burr Oak
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Burr Oak is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burr Oak
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 800 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burr Oak <1>
    • Findley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Findley is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Findley
    • White Pigeon
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Nottawa
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Centreville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Centreville is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centreville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,400 people
    • Fairfax
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Fairfax is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfax
    • Wasepi
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Wasepi is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasepi
    • Constantine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near River Oaks ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of River Oaks.

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 River Oaks - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Riverside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Ontario Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Hoagland Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • McCoy Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Bontragger Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Bontrager Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Oaklawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Eagle Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Sturgis Memorial Gardens Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • County Farm Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (304 more) ...
    • Fawn River Village Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Oak Lawn Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Eagley Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagley Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Eagley Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the east of Scott.
      • The Eagley Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Callahan Cemetery
      • Cowen Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2417739 <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>

While we didn't find River Oaks in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of River Oaks.

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

  • Ontario
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Ontario is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ontario
  • LaGrange
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Brighton
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Brighton is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
  • Fawn River
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Fawn River is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fawn River
  • Seyberts
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Seyberts is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seyberts
  • Mongo
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Sturgis
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Sturgis is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sturgis
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,803 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sturgis <1>
  • Valentine
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Valentine is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valentine
  • Scott
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Scott is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott
  • Shipshewana
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Emma
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Emma is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
  • Brushy Prairie
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Brushy Prairie is located in LaGrange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushy Prairie
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Greenfield Mills
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Greenfield Mills is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield Mills
    • Woodruff
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Woodruff is located in LaGrange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodruff
    • Burr Oak
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Burr Oak is located in Saint Joseph County (MI)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burr Oak
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 800 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burr Oak <1>

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around River Oaks. See our List of 1890's Communities around River Oaks.

Newspapers Published in River Oaks ...

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 159 newspapers that have been published in the area around River Oaks.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of River Oaks, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for River Oaks.

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 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 River Oaks:

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' (or 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- River Oaks) 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 River Oaks, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.