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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 Bloom (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 Bloom. 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 doctors and 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.

Bloom is located in Ford 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 Ford County: Clark, Edwards, Gray, Hodgeman, Kiowa & Meade.

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

  • Ford County     (The home county of Bloom)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bloom, with the one closest to Bloom listed first.
    • Ford
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ford
      • Ford is located in Ford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ford <2>
    • Wilroads
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilroads. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilroads
      • Wilroads is located in Ford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wilroads
      • From Bloom to Wilroads
    • Bucklin
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bucklin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklin
      • Bucklin is located in Ford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 754 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bucklin <2>
    • Wilroads Gardens
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Fort Dodge
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Dodge City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Wright
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Windhorst
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Windthorst
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Howell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Howell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
      • Howell is located in Ford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Howell
      • From Bloom to Howell
    • Spearville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
  • Clark County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bloom, with the one closest to Bloom listed first.
    • Minneola
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Ashland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Lexington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lexington. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
      • Lexington is located in Clark County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Lexington
      • From Bloom to Lexington
    • Sitka
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sitka. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sitka
      • Sitka is located in Clark County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sitka
      • From Bloom to Sitka
  • Comanche County
  • Gray County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bloom, with the one closest to Bloom listed first.
    • Ensign
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Wettick
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wettick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wettick
      • Wettick is located in Gray County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wettick
      • From Bloom to Wettick
    • Montezuma
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Kiowa County
    • Mullinville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
  • Meade County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bloom, with the one closest to Bloom listed first.
    • Fowler
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fowler have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler
      • Fowler is located in Meade County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 516 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fowler <2>
    • Meade
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Bloom ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bloom.

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 Bloom covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Bloom Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bloom Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bloom Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Appleton Twp. Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Appleton Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Appleton Twp. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sodville Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sodville Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sodville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Christ the King Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Christ the King Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Christ the King Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilburn Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Ford Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ford Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ford Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Concord Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Concord Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Concord Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bucklin Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Golden Plains Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Golden Plains Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Golden Plains Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kansas Veterans' Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kansas Veterans' Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kansas Veterans' Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • McCauley Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Fowler Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fowler Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fowler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (24 more) ...
    • Cave Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cave Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cave Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Lexington Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lexington Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lexington Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Greencrest Memorial Garden
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greencrest Memorial Garden
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greencrest Memorial Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 Bloom had a population of 28 people in 1895 with railroad service and no post office.

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

  • Minneola
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Kingsdown
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingsdown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsdown
    • Kingsdown is located in Ford County
  • Ford
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ford
    • Ford is located in Ford County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ford <2>
  • Wilroads
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilroads. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilroads
    • Wilroads is located in Ford County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Wilroads
    • From Bloom to Wilroads
  • Bucklin
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bucklin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklin
    • Bucklin is located in Ford County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 754 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bucklin <2>
  • Fowler
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fowler have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler
    • Fowler is located in Meade County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 516 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fowler <2>
  • South Dodge
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Dodge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Dodge
    • South Dodge is located in Ford County
  • Dodge City
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Wright
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Ashland
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Lexington
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lexington. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
    • Lexington is located in Clark County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Lexington
    • From Bloom to Lexington
  • Ensign
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (7 more) ...
    • Mullinville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Sitka
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sitka. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sitka
      • Sitka is located in Clark County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sitka
      • From Bloom to Sitka
    • Howell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Howell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
      • Howell is located in Ford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Howell
      • From Bloom to Howell

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bloom ...

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 88 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bloom.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Bloom. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Bloom and those printed in the larger area surrounding Bloom.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6> of Bloom.

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 helpful 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 Bloom:

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

The official website for Ford County: www.fordcounty.net/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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 Bloom, 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' (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- Bloom) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bloom. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.4867, Longitude: -99.8985    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025