Welcome to Aral (aka 'Otter Creek') ...
So far, we found very little information about Aral. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added Aral to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Aral, please Contact Us.
Aral would have been located within present day Benzie County<2>.
We aren't confident of the location of Aral, so consider the above location as an estimate.<3>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Aral, you might consider that their post office opened in 1883.
While the community is gone, the present day location for Aral is 600 feet [183 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: The area where Aral was located is in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
Note: If you travel west from Aral, you will leave Eastern Time and cross into the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT).
Aral would have been located in the (231) area code.
The community of Aral has also been called Otter Creek.
Communities Also Named Aral ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 2 communities that are also named Aral - they are located in Kansas and Virginia.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Aral.
Communities near Aral ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Aral.
- Frankfort
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frankfort have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort
- Frankfort is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,289 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frankfort <6>
- Benzonia
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benzonia
- Benzonia is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 505 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Benzonia <6>
- Thompsonville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
- Thompsonville is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 459 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thompsonville <6>
- Empire
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Empire have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
- Empire is located in Leelanau County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 375 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Empire <6>
- Elberta
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elberta
- Elberta is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 373 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elberta <6>
- Beulah
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beulah have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beulah
- Beulah is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 347 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Beulah <6>
- Honor
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Honor have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honor
- Honor is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Honor <6>
- Lake Ann
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Ann have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ann
- Lake Ann is located in Benzie County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 271 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Ann <6>
- Jacktown ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Burdickville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burdickville have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burdickville
- Burdickville is located in Leelanau County
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Aral. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Aral.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Aral. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Aral.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Aral. See our Newspapers Page for Aral.
Adding Aral to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Aral in the GNIS. For more information, see the Referenced GNIS Codes section on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Aral was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the Aral post office opened in 1883.
For more details, see References and Mentions for Aral.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Benzie County: www.berriencounty.org/
The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Aral, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | If you're interested in how the shape of Michigan's counties, including Benzie, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <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 elevation is an estimate for the area around Aral - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | 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. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |