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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 Lawton (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 Lawton. 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.

Lawton is located in Van Buren 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 Van Buren County: Allegan, Berrien, Cass, Kalamazoo & Saint Joseph.

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

  • Van Buren County     (The home county of Lawton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Mattawan
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mattawan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattawan
      • Mattawan is located in Van Buren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,973 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mattawan <2>
    • Paw Paw
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Almena
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Almena. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almena
      • Almena is located in Van Buren County
    • Decatur
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Decatur have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
      • Decatur is located in Van Buren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,716 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Decatur <2>
    • Glendale
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
      • Glendale is located in Van Buren County
    • North Lake
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Lake
      • North Lake is located in Van Buren County
    • Lawrence
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Gobles
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Kendall
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendall
      • Kendall is located in Van Buren County
    • Bangor
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bangor
      • Bangor is located in Van Buren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,808 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bangor <2>
    • Breedsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Hartford
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Allegan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Otsego
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Plainwell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Allegan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Pullman
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Watson
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watson
      • Watson is located in Allegan County
    • Leisure
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure
      • Leisure is located in Allegan County
      • Leisure has also been known as:
      • East Casco
    • Martin
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Hooper
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hooper. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooper
      • Hooper is located in Allegan County
    • Neeley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neeley
      • Neeley is located in Allegan County
    • Hawkhead
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawkhead
      • Hawkhead is located in Allegan County
    • Mount Pleasant
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Allegan County
    • South Haven Highlands
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Barry County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Doster
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Doster. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doster
      • Doster is located in Barry County
    • Hickory Corners
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hickory Corners. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Corners
      • Hickory Corners is located in Barry County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hickory Corners <2>
    • Prairieville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Prairieville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairieville
      • Prairieville is located in Barry County
  • Berrien County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Watervliet
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Naomi
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Naomi. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naomi
      • Naomi is located in Berrien County
    • Paw Paw Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paw Paw Lake
      • Paw Paw Lake is located in Berrien County
    • Coloma
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Berrien Center
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berrien Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berrien Center
      • Berrien Center is located in Berrien County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Berrien Center <2>
    • Eau Claire
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eau Claire have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eau Claire
      • Eau Claire is located in Berrien County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 591 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eau Claire <2>
    • Hartman
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hartman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartman
      • Hartman is located in Berrien County
    • Shanghai Corners
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanghai Corners
      • Shanghai Corners is located in Berrien County
    • Lake Michigan Beach
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Michigan Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Michigan Beach
      • Lake Michigan Beach is located in Berrien County
    • Riverside
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Riverside. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
      • Riverside is located in Berrien County
    • Twelve Corners
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Twelve Corners. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twelve Corners
      • Twelve Corners is located in Berrien County
    • Benton Heights
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Benton Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Heights
      • Benton Heights is located in Berrien County
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Fort Custer
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fort Custer. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Custer
      • Fort Custer is located in Calhoun County
      • Former name for Fort Custer:
      • Camp Custer
    • West Leroy
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for West Leroy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Leroy
      • West Leroy is located in Calhoun County
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Marcellus
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Wakelee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wakelee. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakelee
      • Wakelee is located in Cass County
    • Penn
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penn
      • Penn is located in Cass County
    • Vandalia
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vandalia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandalia
      • Vandalia is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
    • La Grange
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Grange
      • La Grange is located in Cass County
    • Corey
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corey
      • Corey is located in Cass County
    • Jones
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Dowagiac
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Cassopolis
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Pokagon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pokagon
      • Pokagon is located in Cass County
    • Sumnerville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumnerville
      • Sumnerville is located in Cass County
    • Union
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
  • Kalamazoo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Oshtemo
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oshtemo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oshtemo
      • Oshtemo is located in Kalamazoo County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oshtemo <2>
    • Schoolcraft
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Portage
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Westwood
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
      • Westwood is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Milwood
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milwood
      • Milwood is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Alamo
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamo
      • Alamo is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Kalamazoo
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Vicksburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Eastwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eastwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastwood
      • Eastwood is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Pavillion Center
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pavillion Center
      • Pavillion Center is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Comstock
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Comstock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comstock
      • Comstock is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Parchment
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parchment have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parchment
      • Parchment is located in Kalamazoo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,825 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Parchment <2>
  • Saint Joseph County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Chamberlain
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamberlain
      • Chamberlain is located in Saint Joseph County
    • Fabius
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fabius
      • Fabius is located in Saint Joseph County
    • Parkville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkville
      • Parkville is located in Saint Joseph County
    • Three Rivers
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Three Rivers have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Rivers
      • Three Rivers is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,600 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Three Rivers <2>
    • Mendon
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mendon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendon
      • Mendon is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 848 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mendon <2>
    • Centreville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centreville
      • Centreville is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,400 people
    • Constantine
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Constantine have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Constantine
      • Constantine is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,107 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Constantine <2>
    • Mottville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mottville
      • Mottville is located in Saint Joseph County
    • Wasepi
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasepi
      • Wasepi is located in Saint Joseph County
    • Nottawa
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nottawa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nottawa
      • Nottawa is located in Saint Joseph County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nottawa <2>
    • Leonidas
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • White Pigeon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Elkhart County (IN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Lawton, with the one closest to Lawton listed first.
    • Simonton Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Simonton Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simonton Lake
      • Simonton Lake is located in Elkhart County (IN)
    • Bristol
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bristol have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
      • Bristol is located in Elkhart County (IN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,697 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bristol <2>

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

Cemeteries Near Lawton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Lawton.

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

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

  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Chamberlin Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chamberlin Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chamberlin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bangs Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bangs Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bangs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Harwick Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Harwick Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Harwick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Prospect Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prospect Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Prospect Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kern Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kern Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kern Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Virgo Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Virgo Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Virgo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pioneer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pioneer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pioneer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Clapp Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Clapp Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Clapp Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Maple Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Maple Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Maple Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Threemile Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Threemile Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Threemile Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (306 more) ...
    • Anderson Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Anderson Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Anderson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Pretty Lake Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pretty Lake Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pretty Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Almena Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Almena Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Almena Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Lawton had a population of 788 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Lawton had a population of 1,796 people.

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

  • Mattawan
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mattawan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattawan
    • Mattawan is located in Van Buren County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,973 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mattawan <2>
  • Paw Paw
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Almena
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Almena. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almena
    • Almena is located in Van Buren County
  • Decatur
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Decatur have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
    • Decatur is located in Van Buren County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,716 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Decatur <2>
  • Marcellus
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Oshtemo
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oshtemo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oshtemo
    • Oshtemo is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oshtemo <2>
  • Glendale
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
    • Glendale is located in Van Buren County
  • Howardsville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Howardsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howardsville
    • Howardsville is located in Saint Joseph County
  • Flowerfield
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flowerfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flowerfield
    • Flowerfield is located in Saint Joseph County
  • Schoolcraft
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Lawrence
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Glenwood
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
    • Glenwood is located in Cass County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Volinia
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Volinia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Volinia
      • Volinia is located in Cass County
    • Wakelee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wakelee. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakelee
      • Wakelee is located in Cass County
    • Pine Grove
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove
      • Pine Grove is located in Van Buren County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Lawton ...

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 227 newspapers that have been published in the area around Lawton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Lawton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Lawton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Lawton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<5> of Lawton.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Lawton:

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

The official website for Van Buren County: www.vbco.org/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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 Lawton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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- Lawton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Lawton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.1678, Longitude: -85.8459       In this case, the coordinates for Lawton have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025