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 Surprise (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 Surprise. 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.
Surprise is located in Jackson 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 Jackson County: Bartholomew, Brown, Jennings, Lawrence, Scott & Washington.
Below are the counties that are near Surprise. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Surprise:
- Jackson County (The home county of Surprise)
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Spraytown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Spraytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spraytown
- Freetown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Cortland
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Cortland is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortland
- New Elizabethtown
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- New Elizabethtown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Elizabethtown
- Brownstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Houston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Houston is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Kurtz
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Kurtz is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kurtz
- Vallonia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Seymour
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Dudleytown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Dudleytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudleytown
- Medora
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Medora is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medora
- Population from the 2020 Census: 693 people
- Norman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Bartholomew County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- North Ogilville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- North Ogilville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ogilville
- Jonesville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bethel Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bethel Village is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel Village
- Stony Lonesome
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Stony Lonesome is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Lonesome
- Garden City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Garden City is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Elizabethtown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Elizabethtown is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabethtown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 540 people
- Columbus
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Corn Brook
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Corn Brook is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corn Brook
- Jewell Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Jewell Village is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewell Village
- Grammer
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Grammer is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grammer
- Petersville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Petersville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersville
- Clifford
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Clifford is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 252 people
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Becks Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Becks Grove is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becks Grove
- Pikes Peak
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Pikes Peak is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pikes Peak
- Story
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Story is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Story
- Mount Liberty
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Mount Liberty is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Liberty
- Gnaw Bone
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Nashville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Beanblossom
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Beanblossom is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beanblossom
- Beanblossom has also been known as:
- Bean Blossom
- Helmsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Helmsburg is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helmsburg
- Spearsville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Spearsville is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spearsville
- Clark County
- Underwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Underwood is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Underwood
- Decatur County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Alert
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Alert is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alert
- Sardinia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Sardinia is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardinia
- Harper
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Harper is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harper
- Westport
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Westport is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,416 people
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Deputy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Dupont
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Jennings County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Four Corners
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Four Corners is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
- Hayden
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Hayden is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayden
- Scipio
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Scipio is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipio
- Queensville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Queensville is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queensville
- Commiskey
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- North Vernon
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Vernon
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Paris Crossing
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Paris Crossing is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paris Crossing
- Grayford
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Grayford is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayford
- Oakdale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Oakdale is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakdale
- Butlerville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- San Jacinto
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- San Jacinto is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Jacinto
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Edinburgh
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Peoga
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Peoga is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoga
- Princes Lakes
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Princes Lakes is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princes Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,342 people
- Nineveh
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Samaria
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Samaria is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samaria
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Zelma
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Zelma is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zelma
- Leesville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Leesville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Heltonville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Fort Ritner
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Fort Ritner is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Ritner
- Erie
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Erie is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
- Crawford
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Crawford is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
- Tunnelton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Tunnelton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnelton
- Bono
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bono is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bono
- Lawrenceport
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Lawrenceport is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrenceport
- Stonington
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Stonington is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonington
- Bedford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Guthrie
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Guthrie is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guthrie
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Smithville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Unionville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Harrodsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Harrodsburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrodsburg
- Clear Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Clear Creek is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Creek
- Bloomington
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dolan
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dolan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dolan
- Kirksville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Kirksville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirksville
- Morgan County
- Morgantown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Orange County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Leipsic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Leipsic is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leipsic
- Bromer
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bromer is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bromer
- Orleans
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Scott County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Austin
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Albion
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Albion is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Marshfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Marshfield is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshfield
- Scottsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Blocher
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Blocher is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blocher
- Goshen
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Goshen is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Flat Rock
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Auburn
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Mount Auburn is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Auburn
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Plattsburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Plattsburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plattsburg
- Kossuth
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Kossuth is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kossuth
- Little York
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Little York is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little York
- Population from the 2020 Census: 191 people
- Smedley
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Smedley is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smedley
- Campbellsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Saltillo
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Saltillo is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saltillo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Harristown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Harristown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harristown
- Salem
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- South Boston
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- South Boston is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Boston
- Claysville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Claysville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claysville
- Bartle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bartle is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartle
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Surprise, see our County-by-County Page for Surprise.
Cemeteries Near Surprise ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Surprise.
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 Surprise - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Surprise covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Spraytown Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Robertson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robertson Cemetery
- The Robertson Cemetery has also been known as:
- Honeytown Cemetery
- Honeytown Christian Cemetery
- Robinson Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #86607 <2>
- Wayman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayman Cemetery
- The Wayman Cemetery has also been known as:
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
- Wayman / Pleasant Grove Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #87305 <2>
- Weddell Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cortland Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Lucas Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Durland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Waggoner Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Bagwell Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Smallwood Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Woodmansee Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Knabb Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knabb Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Knabb Cemetery is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<3> to the northwest of Seymour.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2316507 <2>
- Continue List (298 more) ...
- Miller Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Weathers Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Burrell Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
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, Surprise had a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
- Spraytown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Spraytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spraytown
- Freetown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shields
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Shields is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shields
- Ewing
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Ewing is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ewing
- Brownstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Waymansville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Waymansville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waymansville
- Houston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Houston is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Kurtz
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Kurtz is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kurtz
- Vallonia
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Becks Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Becks Grove is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becks Grove
- Seymour
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Rockford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Rockford is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
- Continue List (19 more) ...
- Peters Switch
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Peters Switch is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peters Switch
- Christiansburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Christiansburg is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christiansburg
- Medora
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Medora is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medora
- Population from the 2020 Census: 693 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Surprise. See our List of 1890's Communities around Surprise.
Newspapers Published in Surprise ...
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 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Surprise.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Surprise, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Surprise.
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 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 Surprise:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Jackson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bartholomew County
- Brown County
- Clark County
- Decatur County
- Jefferson County
- Jennings County
- Johnson County
- Lawrence County
- Monroe County
- Morgan County
- Orange County
- Scott County
- Shelby County
- Washington 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Surprise) 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 Surprise, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |