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 Kentwood (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 Kentwood. 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 doctors and 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.
Kentwood is located in Kent 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 Kent County: Allegan, Barry, Ionia, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo & Ottawa.
Below are the counties that are near Kentwood. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Kentwood:
- Kent County (The home county of Kentwood)
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Dutton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Dutton is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dutton
- East Grand Rapids
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Cutlerville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Burlingame
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Burlingame is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame
- Clyde Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Clyde Park is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde Park
- Galewood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Galewood is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galewood
- Grand Rapids
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Urbandale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Urbandale is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
- Carlisle
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Carlisle is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
- Beverly
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Beverly is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
- Burlingame Heights
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Burlingame Heights is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame Heights
- Wyoming
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Allegan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Moline
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Moline is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moline
- Dorr
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- New Salem
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- New Salem is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Salem
- Wayland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Hilliards
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hilliards is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilliards
- Burnips
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Burnips is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnips
- Former name for Burnips:
- Burnip's Corners
- Bradley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Bradley is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradley
- Hopkins
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Shelbyville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Diamond Springs
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Diamond Springs is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond Springs
- Martin
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- South Monterey
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- South Monterey is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Monterey
- Barry County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Middleville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Freeport
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Irving
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Irving is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irving
- Hastings
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Cloverdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cloverdale is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
- Woodland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Woodland is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 449 people
- Prairieville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Prairieville is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairieville
- Morgan
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Morgan is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan
- Delton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Doster
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Doster is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doster
- Cedar Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Creek is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Creek
- Dowling
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Dowling is located in Barry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dowling
- Eaton County
- Woodbury
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Woodbury is located in Eaton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodbury
- Ionia County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Elmdale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Elmdale is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmdale
- Clarksville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Campbell Corners
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Campbell Corners is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell Corners
- Saranac
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Smyrna
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Belding
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Odessa
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Orleans
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Orleans is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
- Ionia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- South Ionia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- South Ionia is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Ionia
- West Sebewa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- West Sebewa is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Sebewa
- Shiloh
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Shiloh is located in Ionia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
- Montcalm County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Greenville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Eureka Place
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Eureka Place is located in Montcalm County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka Place
- Gowen
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Pierson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Amsden
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Amsden is located in Montcalm County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amsden
- Muskegon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Canada Corners
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Canada Corners is located in Muskegon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canada Corners
- Ravenna
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Slocum
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Slocum is located in Muskegon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slocum
- Bailey
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ottawa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Jenison
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Hudsonville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Jamestown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Jamestown is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Forest Grove
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Forest Grove is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Grove
- Marne
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bauer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Bauer is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bauer
- Forest Grove Station
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Forest Grove Station is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Grove Station
- South Blendon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- South Blendon is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Blendon
- Lamont
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Lamont is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamont
- Drenthe
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Drenthe is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenthe
- Wright
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Wright is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wright
- Allendale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Kentwood, see our County-by-County Page for Kentwood.
Cemeteries Near Kentwood ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Kentwood.
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 Kentwood - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Kentwood covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Pine Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Maple Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rest Lawn Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Blain Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dutton Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Teeple Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Garfield Park Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Woodlawn Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Martin Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Continue List (301 more) ...
- Graceland Mausoleum
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Resurrection Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Kent Memorial Gardens
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
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 Kentwood in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Kentwood.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Kentwood, with the one closest to Kentwood listed first.
- Dutton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Dutton is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dutton
- East Paris
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- East Paris is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Paris
- Cascade
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Cascade is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cascade
- Carlisle
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Carlisle is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
- Alaska
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Alaska is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alaska
- Whitneyville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Whitneyville is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitneyville
- Grand Rapids
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Corinth
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Corinth is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Labarge
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Labarge is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Labarge
- Ada
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Byron Center
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Ross
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Ross is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Grandville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Moline
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Moline is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moline
- Corning
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Corning is located in Allegan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corning
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Kentwood. See our List of 1890's Communities around Kentwood.
Newspapers Published in Kentwood ...
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 258 newspapers that have been published in the area around Kentwood.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Kentwood, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Kentwood.
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 Kentwood:
- Websites specific to Michigan
- Pages specific to Kent County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allegan County
- Barry County
- Eaton County
- Ionia County
- Montcalm County
- Muskegon County
- Ottawa 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> | 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 Kentwood, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Kentwood) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |