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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 Manhattan (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 Manhattan. 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.

Name Variations for Manhattan ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

Another variation: Manhattan City.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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 hospitals and doctors 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.

Manhattan is primarily located in Riley County and is the County Seat. A portion of Manhattan extends into Pottawatomie 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 Riley County: Clay, Geary, Marshall, Nemaha, Pottawatomie, Wabaunsee & Washington.

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

  • Riley County     (The home county of Manhattan)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Fairmont
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Eureka Lake
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka Lake
      • Eureka Lake is located in Riley County
    • Ashland ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ashland came from an uncertain source and they still need to be verified:<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
      • Ashland is located in Riley County
      • Ashland has also been known as:
      • Ashland Bottoms
    • Keats
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Zeandale
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Pillsbury Crossing ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Ogden
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Riley
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Leonardville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Randolph
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Walsburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Walsburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walsburg
      • Walsburg is located in Riley County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Walsburg
      • From Manhattan to Walsburg
    • Bala
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Winkler
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Winkler. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winkler
      • Winkler is located in Riley County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Winkler
      • From Manhattan to Winkler
  • Clay County
  • Dickinson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Upland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Upland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upland
      • Upland is located in Dickinson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Upland
      • From Manhattan to Upland
    • Chapman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Lyona
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lyona. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyona
      • Lyona is located in Dickinson County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Lyona
      • From Manhattan to Lyona
  • Geary County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Grandview Plaza
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grandview Plaza have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview Plaza
      • Grandview Plaza is located in Geary County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,553 people
    • Junction City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Milford
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Wreford
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wreford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wreford
      • Wreford is located in Geary County
    • Alida
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alida. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alida
      • Alida is located in Geary County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Alida
      • From Manhattan to Alida
    • Kansas Falls
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Marshall County
    • Irving ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Irving. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irving
      • Irving is located in Marshall County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Irving
      • From Manhattan to Irving
  • Morris County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Dwight
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Skiddy ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Skiddy have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skiddy
      • Skiddy is located in Morris County
    • White City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Parkerville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkerville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
  • Pottawatomie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Saint George
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint George have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
      • Saint George is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,017 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint George <4>
    • Wamego
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wamego have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wamego
      • Wamego is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,718 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wamego <4>
    • Louisville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Louisville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louisville
      • Louisville is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
      • Louisville has also been known as:
      • Louisville Springs
      • Rock City
      • Rock Creek Falls
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Louisville <4>
    • Olsburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Olsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olsburg
      • Olsburg is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 223 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Olsburg <4>
    • Westmoreland
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Fostoria
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fostoria. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fostoria
      • Fostoria is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Fostoria
      • From Manhattan to Fostoria
    • Belvue
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belvue have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belvue
      • Belvue is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 204 people
    • Blaine
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Wheaton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheaton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheaton
      • Wheaton is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
    • Saint Marys
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Marys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
      • Saint Marys is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,652 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Marys <4>
    • Aikins
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Emmett
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emmett have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmett
      • Emmett is located in Pottawatomie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 187 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emmett <4>
    • Duluth
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Wabaunsee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan listed first.
    • Alma
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alma have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alma
      • Alma is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 776 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alma <4>
    • McFarland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McFarland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McFarland
      • McFarland is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
    • Alta Vista
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alta Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <4>
    • Paxico
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Vera
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Maple Hill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maple Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Hill
      • Maple Hill is located in Wabaunsee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 599 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maple Hill <4>

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

Cemeteries Near Manhattan ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Manhattan.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Manhattan, with the one closest to Manhattan 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.<7>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Manhattan had a population of 3,004 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Manhattan had a population of 54,944 people.

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

  • Eureka Lake
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka Lake
    • Eureka Lake is located in Riley County
  • Keats
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Ogden
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint George
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint George have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
    • Saint George is located in Pottawatomie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,017 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint George <4>
  • Wabaunsee
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wabaunsee have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabaunsee
    • Wabaunsee is located in Wabaunsee County
  • Wamego
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wamego have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wamego
    • Wamego is located in Pottawatomie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,718 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wamego <4>
  • Riley
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Louisville
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Louisville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louisville
    • Louisville is located in Pottawatomie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
    • Louisville has also been known as:
    • Louisville Springs
    • Rock City
    • Rock Creek Falls
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Louisville <4>
  • Westmoreland
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Olsburg
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Olsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olsburg
    • Olsburg is located in Pottawatomie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 223 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Olsburg <4>
  • Junction City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Fostoria
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fostoria. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fostoria
    • Fostoria is located in Pottawatomie County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Fostoria
    • From Manhattan to Fostoria
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Manhattan ...

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 164 newspapers that have been published in the area around Manhattan.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

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

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Manhattan:

The official website for Manhattan: www.ci.manhattan.ks.us/

The official website for Riley County: www.rileycountyks.gov

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>If we found a location and have questions about the accuracy of our information, we will simply say that the marker is 'in the vicinity'. We are not confident about the location and the position of our marker is only a rough guide. If we have too many doubts about the location, we will not include it in our database.
<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>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>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.
<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- Manhattan) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Manhattan. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.1930, Longitude: -96.5855    
<7>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 Manhattan, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025