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 Arden (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 Arden. 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.
Arden is located in Berrien County.
To see how the shape of Michigan's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Berrien County: LaPorte (IN), Saint Joseph (IN), Cass & Van Buren.
Below are the counties that are near Arden. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Arden:
- Berrien County (The home county of Arden)
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Hinchman
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hinchman is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinchman
- Hartman
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hartman is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartman
- Berrien Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Eau Claire
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Sodus
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Sodus is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodus
- Shanghai Corners
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Shanghai Corners is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanghai Corners
- Scottdale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Scottdale is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scottdale
- Baroda
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Berrien Center
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Snow
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Snow is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow
- Stevensville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Fair Plain
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fair Plain is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Plain
- Cass County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Sumnerville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sumnerville is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumnerville
- Pokagon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Pokagon is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pokagon
- Dowagiac
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- La Grange
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- La Grange is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Grange
- Cassopolis
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Edwardsburg
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Brownsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Brownsville is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
- Penn
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Penn is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penn
- Vandalia
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Vandalia is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandalia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
- Wakelee
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Wakelee is located in Cass County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakelee
- Marcellus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Jones
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Van Buren County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Keeler
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Keeler is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keeler
- Fish Corners
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Fish Corners is located in Van Buren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fish Corners
- Hartford
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Covert
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Decatur
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Lawrence
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Bangor
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- South Haven
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Breedsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lawton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Paw Paw
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Elkhart County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Simonton Lake
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Simonton Lake is located in Elkhart County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simonton Lake
- Elkhart
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Jamestown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Jamestown is located in Elkhart County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- LaPorte County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Hesston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Hesston is located in LaPorte County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hesston
- Smith
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Smith is located in LaPorte County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith
- Rolling Prairie
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Michiana Shores
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Long Beach
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- La Porte
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pottawattamie Park
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pottawattamie Park is located in LaPorte County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottawattamie Park
- Population from the 2020 Census: 221 people
- Saint Joseph County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Roseland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Roseland is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roseland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 635 people
- Georgetown
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Georgetown is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
- New Carlisle
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Zeigler
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Zeigler is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zeigler
- Indian Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Village is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
- Granger
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- South Bend
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Crumstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Crumstown is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumstown
- Mishawaka
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Gulivoire Park
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Gulivoire Park is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulivoire Park
- Nutwood
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Nutwood is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nutwood
- Osceola
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Osceola is located in Saint Joseph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osceola
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,486 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Osceola <1>
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Arden, see our County-by-County Page for Arden.
Cemeteries Near Arden ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Arden.
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.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Arden - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Arden covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Feather Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Salem Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lett Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Royalton Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Burke Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Rose Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Brant Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Scottdale Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Shanghai Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Ruggles Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (212 more) ...
- Hinman Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- South Maple Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Eau Claire Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
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.<2>
While we didn't find Arden in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Arden.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Arden, with the one closest to Arden listed first.
- Hinchman
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hinchman is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinchman
- Berrien Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Hartman
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hartman is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartman
- Hollywood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hollywood is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollywood
- Eau Claire
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Sodus
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Sodus is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodus
- Derby
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Derby is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derby
- Berrien Center
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Vineland
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Vineland is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
- Stevensville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Naomi
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Naomi is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naomi
- Glenlord
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Glenlord is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenlord
- Glenlord has also been known as:
- Glen Lord
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Livingston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Livingston is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston
- Bridgman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Glendora
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Glendora is located in Berrien County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendora
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Arden. See our List of 1890's Communities around Arden.
Newspapers Published in Arden ...
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 76 newspapers that have been published in the area around Arden.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Arden, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Arden.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we start 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 Arden:
- Websites specific to Michigan
- Pages specific to Berrien County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cass County
- Van Buren County
- Elkhart County
- LaPorte County
- Saint Joseph County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Michigan
Footnotes ...
| <1> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <2> | 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 Arden, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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- Arden) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |