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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 Macatawa (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 Macatawa. 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.

Macatawa is located in Ottawa 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 Ottawa County: Allegan, Kent & Muskegon.

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

  • Ottawa County     (The home county of Macatawa)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Macatawa, with the one closest to Macatawa listed first.
    • Beechwood
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beechwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood
      • Beechwood is located in Ottawa County
    • Holland
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Waverly
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waverly have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly
      • Waverly is located in Ottawa County
    • Noordeloos
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noordeloos
      • Noordeloos is located in Ottawa County
    • Zeeland
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Port Sheldon
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Sheldon
      • Port Sheldon is located in Ottawa County
    • West Olive
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Olive have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Olive
      • West Olive is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Olive <2>
    • Drenthe
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Drenthe have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenthe
      • Drenthe is located in Ottawa County
    • Agnew
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnew
      • Agnew is located in Ottawa County
    • Forest Grove Station
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Grove Station
      • Forest Grove Station is located in Ottawa County
    • Rusk
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
      • Rusk is located in Ottawa County
    • South Blendon
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Blendon
      • South Blendon is located in Ottawa County
  • Allegan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Macatawa, with the one closest to Macatawa listed first.
    • Graafschap
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graafschap
      • Graafschap is located in Allegan County
    • Singapore ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Singapore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Singapore
      • Singapore is located in Allegan County
    • Saugatuck
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saugatuck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saugatuck
      • Saugatuck is located in Allegan County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saugatuck <2>
    • Douglas
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Fillmore
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fillmore
      • Fillmore is located in Allegan County
    • Hamilton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Ganges
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
      • Ganges is located in Allegan County
    • Fennville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Diamond Springs
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond Springs
      • Diamond Springs is located in Allegan County
    • Glenn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Burnips
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnips
      • Burnips is located in Allegan County
      • Former name for Burnips:
      • Burnip's Corners
    • Glenn Shores
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenn Shores
      • Glenn Shores is located in Allegan County
      • Glenn Shores has also been known as:
      • Glenn Stores
  • Kent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Macatawa, with the one closest to Macatawa listed first.
    • North Dorr
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Dorr have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Dorr
      • North Dorr is located in Kent County
    • Byron Center
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Grandville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Burlingame Heights
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame Heights
      • Burlingame Heights is located in Kent County
    • Carlisle
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carlisle have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
      • Carlisle is located in Kent County
    • Burlingame
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame
      • Burlingame is located in Kent County
    • Clyde Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde Park
      • Clyde Park is located in Kent County
    • Corinth
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corinth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
      • Corinth is located in Kent County
    • Cutlerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cutlerville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cutlerville
      • Cutlerville is located in Kent County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cutlerville <2>
    • Beverly
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
      • Beverly is located in Kent County
    • Kinney
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kinney have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kinney
      • Kinney is located in Kent County
    • Urbandale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
      • Urbandale is located in Kent County
  • Muskegon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Macatawa, with the one closest to Macatawa listed first.
    • Fruitport
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fruitport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitport
      • Fruitport is located in Muskegon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,165 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fruitport <2>
    • Norton Shores
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norton Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norton Shores
      • Norton Shores is located in Muskegon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24,623 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norton Shores <2>
    • Roosevelt Park
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Sullivan
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivan
      • Sullivan is located in Muskegon County
    • Muskegon Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Van Buren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Macatawa, with the one closest to Macatawa listed first.
    • Kibbie
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kibbie
      • Kibbie is located in Van Buren County
    • Lacota
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacota
      • Lacota is located in Van Buren County
    • South Haven
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Bloomingdale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Grand Junction
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Breedsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Macatawa ...

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 142 newspapers that have been published in the area around Macatawa.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Macatawa, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Macatawa.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Macatawa:

Cemeteries Near Macatawa ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Macatawa.

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

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

  • Lakewood Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakewood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakewood Cemetery
  • Memorial Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Memorial Cemetery
  • Graafschap Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Graafschap Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Graafschap Cemetery
  • Graafschap Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Lake Shore Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Shore Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Shore Cemetery
  • Gibson Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gibson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gibson Cemetery
  • East Saugatuck Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Saugatuck Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Saugatuck Cemetery
  • Ventura Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ventura Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ventura Cemetery
  • Riverside Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverside Cemetery
  • Pilgrim Home Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Pilgrim Home Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Holland.
    • The Pilgrim Home Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Holland Twp. Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pilgrim Home Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1371 <4>
  • North Holland Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the North Holland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the North Holland Cemetery
  • Roselawn Memorial Gardens
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Roselawn Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Roselawn Memorial Gardens
  • Continue List   (153 more) ...
    • East Holland Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Holland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Holland Cemetery
    • New Groningen Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Groningen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Groningen Cemetery
    • Douglas Annex Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Douglas Annex Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Douglas Annex Cemetery

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>

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

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

  • Graafschap
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graafschap
    • Graafschap is located in Allegan County
  • Gibson
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gibson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibson
    • Gibson is located in Allegan County
  • Holland
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Saugatuck
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saugatuck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saugatuck
    • Saugatuck is located in Allegan County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 966 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saugatuck <2>
  • Douglas
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • East Saugatuck
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Saugatuck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Saugatuck
    • East Saugatuck is located in Allegan County
  • Noordeloos
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noordeloos
    • Noordeloos is located in Ottawa County
  • New Holland
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Holland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Holland
    • New Holland is located in Ottawa County
  • New Richmond
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Richmond have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Richmond
    • New Richmond is located in Allegan County
  • Fillmore
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fillmore
    • Fillmore is located in Allegan County
  • Zeeland
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Overisel
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Overisel have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Overisel
    • Overisel is located in Allegan County
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • West Olive
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Olive have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Olive
      • West Olive is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Olive <2>
    • Olive Center
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Olive Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olive Center
      • Olive Center is located in Ottawa County
    • Hamilton
      (12 miles [19.3 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 Macatawa. See our List of 1890's Communities around Macatawa.

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

The official website for Ottawa County: www.co.ottawa.mi.us/

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Macatawa) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Macatawa. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.7693, Longitude: -86.2069    
<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 Macatawa, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024