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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 Dorrance (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 Dorrance. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Dorrance is located in Russell 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 Russell County: Barton, Ellis, Ellsworth, Lincoln, Osborne, Rooks & Rush.

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

  • Russell County     (The home county of Dorrance)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Bunker Hill
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bunker Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
      • Bunker Hill is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bunker Hill <2>
    • Lucas
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Russell
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Balta ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Balta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balta
      • Balta is located in Russell County
    • Luray
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
      • Luray is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
    • Milberger
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milberger
      • Milberger is located in Russell County
    • Waldo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
      • Waldo is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
      • Former name for Waldo:
      • Pleasant Run
    • Gorham
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gorham have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gorham
      • Gorham is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 336 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gorham <2>
    • Paradise
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paradise have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
      • Paradise is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
  • Barton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Dubuque ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dubuque
      • Dubuque is located in Barton County
    • Beaver
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beaver have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver
      • Beaver is located in Barton County
    • Hitschmann
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hitschmann. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hitschmann
      • Hitschmann is located in Barton County
    • Susank
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Susank have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susank
      • Susank is located in Barton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 31 people
    • Farhman
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Farhman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farhman
      • Farhman is located in Barton County
    • Odin
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odin
      • Odin is located in Barton County
    • Stickney
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stickney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stickney
      • Stickney is located in Barton County
    • Millard
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Millard. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millard
      • Millard is located in Barton County
    • Claflin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Redwing
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Redwing. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwing
      • Redwing is located in Barton County
    • Galatia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Galatia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galatia
      • Galatia is located in Barton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 36 people
    • Hoisington
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • South Hoisington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Hoisington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hoisington
      • South Hoisington is located in Barton County
  • Ellis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Walker
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Walker have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walker
      • Walker is located in Ellis County
    • Victoria
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Victoria have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
      • Victoria is located in Ellis County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,215 people
    • Emmeram
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmeram
      • Emmeram is located in Ellis County
  • Ellsworth County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Wilson
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
      • Wilson is located in Ellsworth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 713 people
    • Holyrood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holyrood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holyrood
      • Holyrood is located in Ellsworth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 409 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holyrood <2>
    • Ellsworth
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Lorraine
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lorraine have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lorraine
      • Lorraine is located in Ellsworth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 125 people
    • Kanopolis
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kanopolis have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kanopolis
      • Kanopolis is located in Ellsworth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 446 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kanopolis <2>
    • Frantz ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frantz have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frantz
      • Frantz is located in Ellsworth County
    • Midway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Midway. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
      • Midway is located in Ellsworth County
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Sylvan Grove
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sylvan Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvan Grove
      • Sylvan Grove is located in Lincoln County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 269 people
      • Sylvan Grove has also been known as:
      • Sylvan Grove Station
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sylvan Grove <2>
    • Denmark
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denmark
      • Denmark is located in Lincoln County
    • Lincoln Center
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Center
      • Lincoln Center is located in Lincoln County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,189 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lincoln Center <2>
    • Quartzite
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quartzite
      • Quartzite is located in Lincoln County
  • Mitchell County
    • Hunter
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hunter have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter
      • Hunter is located in Mitchell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 53 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hunter <2>
  • Rice County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dorrance, with the one closest to Dorrance listed first.
    • Bushton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bushton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushton
      • Bushton is located in Rice County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
    • Frederick
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frederick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frederick
      • Frederick is located in Rice County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18 people

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

Cemeteries Near Dorrance ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dorrance.

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

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

  • St. Joseph Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Joseph Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Joseph Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Colony Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Colony Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Colony Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bunker Hill Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bunker Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bunker Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Blooming Grove Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Blooming Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Blooming Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hyde Park Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hyde Park Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hyde Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Schreiner Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Schreiner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Schreiner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Immanuel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immanuel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilson Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilson Cemetery
    • The Wilson Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Union Cemetery
    • Wilson City Cemetery
    • Wilson Union Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #94086 <4>
  • Immanuel Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immanuel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Wilson Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Wilson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Wilson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Catherine's Catholic Church Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Pleasant Valley Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (78 more) ...
    • Cross Plains Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cross Plains Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cross Plains Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Josephs Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Presbyterian Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Presbyterian Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Presbyterian Cemetery 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 Dorrance had a population of 175 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Dorrance had a population of 180 people.

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

  • Wilson
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
    • Wilson is located in Ellsworth County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 713 people
  • Bunker Hill
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bunker Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunker Hill
    • Bunker Hill is located in Russell County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bunker Hill <2>
  • Homer
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homer have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
    • Homer is located in Russell County
  • Black Wolf ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Black Wolf have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Wolf
    • Black Wolf is located in Ellsworth County
  • Lucas
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
  • Russell
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Sylvan Grove
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sylvan Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sylvan Grove
    • Sylvan Grove is located in Lincoln County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 269 people
    • Sylvan Grove has also been known as:
    • Sylvan Grove Station
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sylvan Grove <2>
  • Luray
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luray
    • Luray is located in Russell County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
  • Odin
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odin
    • Odin is located in Barton County
  • Vesper
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vesper have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vesper
    • Vesper is located in Lincoln County
  • Millard
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Millard. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millard
    • Millard is located in Barton County
  • Ellsworth
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Waldo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
      • Waldo is located in Russell County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
      • Former name for Waldo:
      • Pleasant Run
    • Redwing
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Redwing. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redwing
      • Redwing is located in Barton County
    • Claflin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Dorrance ...

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 111 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dorrance.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Dorrance. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Dorrance and those printed in the larger area surrounding Dorrance.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6> of Dorrance.

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 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 Dorrance:

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

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 Dorrance, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Dorrance) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Dorrance. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.8471, Longitude: -98.5903       In this case, the coordinates for Dorrance have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025