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 Summit (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 Summit. 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 and 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.
Summit is located in LaPorte 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 LaPorte County: Jasper, Porter, Saint Joseph, Starke & Berrien (MI).
Below are the counties that are near Summit. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Summit:
- LaPorte County (The home county of Summit)
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Waterford
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Waterford is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterford
- Trail Creek
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Trail Creek is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trail Creek
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,985 people
- Door Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Door Village is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Door Village
- La Porte
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Holmesville
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Holmesville is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmesville
- Michigan City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Pottawattamie Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Pottawattamie Park is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottawattamie Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 221 people
- Otis
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Otis is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otis
- Michiana Shores
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Long Beach
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Smith
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Smith is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith
- Kingsbury
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kingsbury is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 239 people
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Deep River
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Deep River is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deep River
- Duneland Village of Gary
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Duneland Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Duneland Village is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duneland Village
- Hobart
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Lake Station
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- New Chicago
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- New Chicago is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Chicago
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,937 people
- Lakes of the Four Seasons
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Liverpool
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Liverpool is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liverpool
- Green Acres
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Green Acres is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Acres
- Winfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Winfield is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,265 people
- Merrillville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gary
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Donaldson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Donaldson is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donaldson
- Tyner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Tyner is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyner
- La Paz
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- La Paz is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Paz
- Population from the 2020 Census: 549 people
- Harris
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Harris is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris
- Linkville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Linkville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linkville
- Porter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Town-of-Pines
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Town-of-Pines is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town-of-Pines
- Population from the 2020 Census: 688 people
- Beverly Shores
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Suman
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Suman is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suman
- Tratebas Mill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Tratebas Mill is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tratebas Mill
- Chesterton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Porter
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Dune Acres
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Dune Acres is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dune Acres
- Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
- Babcock
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Babcock is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babcock
- Burns Harbor
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Valparaiso
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- South Haven
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- South Haven is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Haven
- Ogden Dunes
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Ogden Dunes is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogden Dunes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,083 people
- Saint Joseph County
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- New Carlisle
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Zeigler
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Zeigler is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zeigler
- Crumstown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Crumstown is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumstown
- North Liberty
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Walkerton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Nutwood
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Nutwood is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nutwood
- Gulivoire Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Gulivoire Park is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulivoire Park
- Lakeville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Roseland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Roseland is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 635 people
- South Bend
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Georgetown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Georgetown is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- Indian Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Indian Village is located in Saint Joseph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
- Starke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Hamlet
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Koontz Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Koontz Lake is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Koontz Lake
- Grovertown
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Grovertown is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grovertown
- Knox
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Toto
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Toto is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toto
- North Judson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Ober
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ober is located in Starke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ober
- Berrien County (MI)
- The following are listed by their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Michiana
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Grand Beach
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Grand Beach is located in Berrien County (MI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Beach
- Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
- New Buffalo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Union Pier
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Three Oaks
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Avery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Avery is located in Berrien County (MI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery
- Lakeside
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lakeside is located in Berrien County (MI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside
- Galien
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Galien is located in Berrien County (MI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galien
- Population from the 2020 Census: 527 people
- Harbert
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hazelhurst
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hazelhurst is located in Berrien County (MI)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelhurst
- Sawyer
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Shorewood - Tower Hills - Harbert
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Summit, see our County-by-County Page for Summit.
Cemeteries Near Summit ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Summit.
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 Summit - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Summit covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Lows Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Pine Lake Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Cross Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Swan Lake Memorial Gardens
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sharp Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Quaker Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Beattys Corner Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Patton Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Rossburg Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- St. Stanislaus Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (148 more) ...
- Griffin Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Greenwood Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Eight Square Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
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 Summit in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Summit.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Summit, with the one closest to Summit listed first.
- Oakwood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Oakwood is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
- Waterford
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Waterford is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterford
- Durham
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Durham is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
- Door Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Door Village is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Door Village
- La Porte
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Holmesville
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Holmesville is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmesville
- Otis
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Otis is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otis
- Michigan City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Burdick
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Burdick is located in Porter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burdick
- Westville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Kingsbury
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kingsbury is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 239 people
- Rolling Prairie
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Alida
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Alida is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alida
- Union Mills
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Wellsboro
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Wellsboro is located in LaPorte County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellsboro
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Summit. See our List of 1890's Communities around Summit.
Newspapers Published in Summit ...
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 38 newspapers that have been published in the area around Summit.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Summit, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Summit.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Summit:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to LaPorte County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Lake County
- Marshall County
- Porter County
- Saint Joseph County
- Starke County
- Berrien 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 Summit, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Summit) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |