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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 Bannister (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 Bannister. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Bannister is located in Gratiot County.

To see how the shape of Michigan's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Gratiot County: Clinton, Ionia, Isabella, Midland, Montcalm, Saginaw & Shiawassee.

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

  • Gratiot County     (The home county of Bannister)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Ashley
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Pompeii
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Edgewood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Edgewood. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewood
      • Edgewood is located in Gratiot County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Edgewood
      • From Bannister to Edgewood
    • Sickles
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • North Star
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Perrinton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Ithaca
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ithaca have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ithaca
      • Ithaca is located in Gratiot County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,744 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ithaca <1>
    • Middleton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Breckenridge
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Breckenridge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breckenridge
      • Breckenridge is located in Gratiot County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,265 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Breckenridge <1>
    • Wheeler
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheeler have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
      • Wheeler is located in Gratiot County
    • Alma
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alma have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alma
      • Alma is located in Gratiot County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,807 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alma <1>
    • Saint Louis
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Clinton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Elsie
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Eureka
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in Clinton County
    • Duplain
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Shepardsville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Ovid
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ovid have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ovid
      • Ovid is located in Clinton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,607 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ovid <1>
    • Saint Johns
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Johns have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
      • Saint Johns is located in Clinton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,904 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Johns <1>
    • Maple Rapids
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maple Rapids have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Rapids
      • Maple Rapids is located in Clinton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 671 people
    • Price
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Price. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Price
      • Price is located in Clinton County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Price
      • From Bannister to Price
    • Fowler
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • East DeWitt
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Bath
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bath have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath
      • Bath is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bath <1>
    • De Witt
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Eaton County
    • Waverly
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waverly have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly
      • Waverly is located in Eaton County
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Montrose
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Flushing
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flushing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flushing
      • Flushing is located in Genesee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,840 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flushing <1>
    • Duffield
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Ingham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Haslett
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Haslett have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haslett
      • Haslett is located in Ingham County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Haslett <1>
    • North Lansing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • East Lansing
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Lansing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lansing
      • East Lansing is located in Ingham County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 47,641 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for East Lansing <1>
    • Edgemont Park
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edgemont Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgemont Park
      • Edgemont Park is located in Ingham County
    • Lansing
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Okemos
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Meridian
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Meridian. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meridian
      • Meridian is located in Ingham County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Meridian
      • From Bannister to Meridian
  • Ionia County
  • Isabella County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Coe
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coe have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coe
      • Coe is located in Isabella County
    • Shepherd
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Midland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Ryan
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ryan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ryan
      • Ryan is located in Midland County
    • Redstone
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Porter
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
  • Montcalm County
  • Saginaw County
  • Shiawassee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bannister, with the one closest to Bannister listed first.
    • Henderson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Henderson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson
      • Henderson is located in Shiawassee County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Henderson <1>
    • Burton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Smith Crossing
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Five Points
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Owosso
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Laingsburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laingsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laingsburg
      • Laingsburg is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,283 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Laingsburg <1>
    • Middletown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middletown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
      • Middletown is located in Shiawassee County
    • Corunna
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corunna have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corunna
      • Corunna is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,320 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Corunna <1>
    • Juddville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • New Lothrop
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Lothrop have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lothrop
      • New Lothrop is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Lothrop <1>
    • Morrice
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morrice have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrice
      • Morrice is located in Shiawassee County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 906 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Morrice <1>
    • Newburg
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Bannister ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bannister.

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

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

  • Ford Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • 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.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Riverside Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Elsie Village Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elsie Village Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elsie Village Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Chapin Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Eureka Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eureka Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Eureka Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Richmond Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Richmond Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Richmond Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Duplain Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Duplain Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Duplain Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Fairfield Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Fairfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Fairfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hufford Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hufford Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hufford Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Union Home Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Home Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Home Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Collier Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Collier Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Collier Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (248 more) ...

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 in 1895, Bannister had a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Elsie
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Ashley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Eureka
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eureka have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
    • Eureka is located in Clinton County
  • Chapin
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Duplain
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Carland
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carland
    • Carland is located in Shiawassee County
  • Shepardsville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Bridgeville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bridgeville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeville
    • Bridgeville is located in Gratiot County
  • Ovid
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ovid have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ovid
    • Ovid is located in Clinton County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,607 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ovid <1>
  • Pompeii
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Edgewood
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Edgewood. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewood
    • Edgewood is located in Gratiot County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Edgewood
    • From Bannister to Edgewood
  • North Star
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Sickles
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Saint Johns
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Johns have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
      • Saint Johns is located in Clinton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,904 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Johns <1>
    • Burton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bannister ...

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 85 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bannister.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

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

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 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 Bannister:

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

The official website for Gratiot County: www.co.gratiot.mi.us/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/

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>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.
<3>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.
<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 Bannister, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Bannister) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bannister. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.1332, Longitude: -84.4223    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025