RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Kansas >> Lyon County >> Americus >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Kansas

The Commemorative Quarter for Kansas





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 Americus (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 Americus. 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 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.

Americus is located in Lyon County.

To see how the shape of Kansas' counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Lyon County: Chase, Coffey, Greenwood, Morris, Osage & Wabaunsee.

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

  • Lyon County     (The home county of Americus)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Americus, with the one closest to Americus listed first.
    • Merrick
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Merrick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrick
      • Merrick is located in Lyon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Merrick
      • From Americus to Merrick
    • Berkeley Hills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berkeley Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkeley Hills
      • Berkeley Hills is located in Lyon County
    • Plymouth
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plymouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth
      • Plymouth is located in Lyon County
    • Emporia Junction
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emporia Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emporia Junction
      • Emporia Junction is located in Lyon County
    • Emporia
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Bushong
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bushong have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushong
      • Bushong is located in Lyon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 33 people
    • Lang
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lang. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lang
      • Lang is located in Lyon County
      • Lang has also been known as:
      • Hortonville
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Lang
      • From Americus to Lang
    • Agnes City ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnes City
      • Agnes City is located in Lyon County
    • Allen
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Allen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
      • Allen is located in Lyon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
    • Admire
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Admire have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Admire
      • Admire is located in Lyon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 153 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Admire <3>
    • Reading
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reading have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reading
      • Reading is located in Lyon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reading <3>
    • Miller
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Chase County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Americus, with the one closest to Americus listed first.
    • Toledo
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Toledo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toledo
      • Toledo is located in Chase County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Toledo
      • From Americus to Toledo
    • Saffordville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Ellinor
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ellinor. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellinor
      • Ellinor is located in Chase County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Ellinor
      • From Americus to Ellinor
    • Gladstone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gladstone have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone
      • Gladstone is located in Chase County
    • Strong City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Strong City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strong City
      • Strong City is located in Chase County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 446 people
      • Strong City has also been known as:
      • Strong
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Strong City <3>
    • Cottonwood Falls
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottonwood Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood Falls
      • Cottonwood Falls is located in Chase County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 845 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cottonwood Falls <3>
    • Neva
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Neva. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neva
      • Neva is located in Chase County
      • Neva has also been known as:
      • Neva Station
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Neva
      • From Americus to Neva
    • Bazaar
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Rockland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rockland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
      • Rockland is located in Chase County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rockland
      • From Americus to Rockland
    • Elmdale
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elmdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmdale
      • Elmdale is located in Chase County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elmdale <3>
    • Hymer
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hymer. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hymer
      • Hymer is located in Chase County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Hymer
      • From Americus to Hymer
    • Clements
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Coffey County
  • Greenwood County
  • Morris County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Americus, with the one closest to Americus listed first.
    • Dunlap
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunlap have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
      • Dunlap is located in Morris County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
    • Council Grove
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Helmick
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Helmick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helmick
      • Helmick is located in Morris County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Helmick
      • From Americus to Helmick
    • Kelso
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kelso. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelso
      • Kelso is located in Morris County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Kelso
      • From Americus to Kelso
    • Downing ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Downing have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downing
      • Downing is located in Morris County
    • Wilsey
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Diamond Springs ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Parkerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkerville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkerville
      • Parkerville is located in Morris County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 59 people
    • Dwight
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Osage County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Americus, with the one closest to Americus listed first.
    • Barclay
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Osage City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Osage City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage City
      • Osage City is located in Osage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,765 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Osage City <3>
    • Peterton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Peterton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterton
      • Peterton is located in Osage County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Peterton
      • From Americus to Peterton
    • Olivet
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Burlingame
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burlingame have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame
      • Burlingame is located in Osage County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 884 people
      • Former name for Burlingame:
      • American Settlement
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burlingame <3>
  • Wabaunsee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Americus, with the one closest to Americus listed first.
    • Wilmington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilmington. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
      • Wilmington is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wilmington
      • From Americus to Wilmington
    • Eskridge
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Harveyville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harveyville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harveyville
      • Harveyville is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 246 people
    • Alta Vista
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alta Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta Vista
      • Alta Vista is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 419 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alta Vista <3>

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

Cemeteries Near Americus ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Americus.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Americus had a population of 393 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Americus had a population of 872 people.

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

  • Plymouth
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plymouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth
    • Plymouth is located in Lyon County
  • Dunlap
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunlap have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
    • Dunlap is located in Morris County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
  • Toledo
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Toledo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toledo
    • Toledo is located in Chase County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Toledo
    • From Americus to Toledo
  • Emporia
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Emporia Junction
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emporia Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emporia Junction
    • Emporia Junction is located in Lyon County
  • Bushong
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bushong have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushong
    • Bushong is located in Lyon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 33 people
  • Saffordville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Lang
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lang. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lang
    • Lang is located in Lyon County
    • Lang has also been known as:
    • Hortonville
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Lang
    • From Americus to Lang
  • Ellinor
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ellinor. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellinor
    • Ellinor is located in Chase County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Ellinor
    • From Americus to Ellinor
  • Allen
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Allen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
    • Allen is located in Lyon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
  • Admire
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Admire have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Admire
    • Admire is located in Lyon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 153 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Admire <3>
  • Strong City
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Strong City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strong City
    • Strong City is located in Chase County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 446 people
    • Strong City has also been known as:
    • Strong
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Strong City <3>
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Gladstone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gladstone have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone
      • Gladstone is located in Chase County
    • Reading
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reading have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reading
      • Reading is located in Lyon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reading <3>
    • Cottonwood Falls
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottonwood Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood Falls
      • Cottonwood Falls is located in Chase County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 845 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cottonwood Falls <3>

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

Newspapers Published in Americus ...

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 150 newspapers that have been published in the area around Americus.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Americus, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Americus.

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 Americus:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Americus. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Lyon County: www.lyoncounty.org/

The official website for State of Kansas: https://portal.kansas.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>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.
<5>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 Americus, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Americus) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Americus. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.5070, Longitude: -96.2604    









 

Copyright 2025
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025