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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 Beal City (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 Beal City. 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 and doctors 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.

Beal City is located in Isabella 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 Isabella County: Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Mecosta, Midland, Montcalm & Osceola.

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

  • Isabella County     (The home county of Beal City)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Weidman
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Lake Isabella
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake Isabella is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Isabella
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,688 people
      • Lake Isabella has also been known as:
      • Lake Isabella village
    • Rosebush
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Brinton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Brinton is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinton
    • Mount Pleasant
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jordan
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Jordan is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordan
    • Sherman City ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Sherman City is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherman City
    • Winn
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Winn is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winn
    • Crawford
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Crawford is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
    • Vernon City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Vernon City is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon City
    • Strickland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Strickland is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strickland
    • Alembic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Alembic is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alembic
    • Blanchard
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Clare County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Farwell
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Clare
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Lake is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
      • Former name for Lake:
      • Lake Station
    • Dover
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Dover is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
    • Hatton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Hatton is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
    • Lake George
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Lake George is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake George
    • Allendale
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Allendale is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allendale
    • Harrison
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
  • Gladwin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Beaverton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Gladwin
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Gratiot County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Riverdale
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Forest Hill
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Forest Hill is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hill
    • Elm Hall
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Elm Hall is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Hall
    • Elwell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Alma
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Alma is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alma
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,807 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alma <1>
    • Saint Louis
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Sumner
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Sumner is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumner
    • North Wheeler
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • North Wheeler is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Wheeler
    • Breckenridge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Wheeler
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Wheeler is located in Gratiot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
    • Ithaca
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Mecosta County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Millbrook
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Millbrook is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millbrook
    • Remus
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Barryton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Mecosta
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Halls Corner
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Halls Corner is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halls Corner
    • Canadian Lakes
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Canadian Lakes is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canadian Lakes
    • Chippewa Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Rodney
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Pogy
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Pogy is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pogy
    • Rustford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Rustford is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rustford
    • Borland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Borland is located in Mecosta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borland
    • Stanwood
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Big Rapids
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Midland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Oil City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Oil City is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
    • Coleman
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Alamando
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Alamando is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamando
    • North Bradley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • North Bradley is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bradley
    • Porter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Porter is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter
    • Redstone
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Redstone is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redstone
    • Sanford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Edenville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Edenville is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edenville
    • Averill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Averill is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Averill
    • Hope
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Ryan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Ryan is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ryan
  • Montcalm County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Wyman
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Wyman is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyman
    • Cedar Lake
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Cedar Lake is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Lake
    • Vestaburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Vestaburg is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vestaburg
    • Edmore
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Six Lakes
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • McBride
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Lakeview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Entrican
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Entrican is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Entrican
    • Stanton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Crystal
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Amble
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Amble is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amble
    • Langston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Langston is located in Montcalm County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langston
  • Osceola County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beal City, with the one closest to Beal City listed first.
    • Chippewa Station ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Chippewa Station is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chippewa Station
    • Orient
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Orient is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orient
    • Sears
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Evart
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Evart is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evart
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,886 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Evart <1>
    • Gormer ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Gormer is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gormer
    • Avondale
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Avondale is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale
    • Hersey
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Beal City ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Beal City.

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 Beal City - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Beal City covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • St. Joseph Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Zion Lutheran Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Bennett Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Two Rivers Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Redman Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Mission Creek Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Woodland Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Woodland Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Cemetery
    • The Woodland Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Isabella Twp. Cemetery
  • Gilmore Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Broomfield Twp. Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (184 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.<3>

While we didn't find Beal City in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Beal City.

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

  • Horr
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Horr is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horr
  • Mount Pleasant
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Brinton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Brinton is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinton
  • Jordan
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jordan is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordan
  • Sherman City ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Sherman City is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherman City
  • Leaton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Leaton is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaton
  • Crawford
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Crawford is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
  • Delwin
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Delwin is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delwin
  • Farwell
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Remus
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Millbrook
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Millbrook is located in Mecosta County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millbrook
  • Strickland
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Strickland is located in Isabella County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strickland
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Clare
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Blanchard
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Lake is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
      • Former name for Lake:
      • Lake Station

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

Newspapers Published in Beal City ...

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 152 newspapers that have been published in the area around Beal City.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Beal City, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Beal City.

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 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 Beal City:

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>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.
<3>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 Beal City, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Beal City) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.