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 Oak Wood Shores (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 Oak Wood Shores. 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.
Name Variations for Oak Wood Shores ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Oak Wood Shores: Oak Wood Shrs.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Oak Wood Shores is located in Iosco 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 Iosco County: Alcona, Arenac, Ogemaw & Oscoda.
Below are the counties that are near Oak Wood Shores. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Oak Wood Shores:
- Iosco County (The home county of Oak Wood Shores)
- The following are listed by their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Tawas City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- East Tawas
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- White Rock ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- White Rock is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
- National City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Wilber
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Wilber is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilber
- Whittemore
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Foote Site Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Foote Site Village is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foote Site Village
- Sid Town
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Sid Town is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sid Town
- Hale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Au Sable
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Au Sable is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Au Sable
- Oscoda
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Lincoln Junction
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Lincoln Junction is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Junction
- Long Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Alcona County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Glennie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Mikado
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Greenbush
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Curtisville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Curtisville is located in Alcona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtisville
- Gustin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Gustin is located in Alcona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gustin
- Arenac County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Harmon City Heights
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Harmon City Heights is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmon City Heights
- Turner
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Turner is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turner
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Au Gres
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Twining
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Twining is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twining
- Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
- Omer
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Omer is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- Maple Ridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Maple Ridge is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
- Arenac
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Arenac is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
- Pine River
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pine River is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
- Melita
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Melita is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melita
- Standish
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Whites Beach
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Whites Beach is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites Beach
- Saganing
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Saganing is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saganing
- Sterling
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Huron County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Caseville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Bay Port
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Ora Labora
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ora Labora is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ora Labora
- Ora Labora has also been known as:
- Ora et Labora
- Port Crescent ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Port Crescent is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Crescent
- Valley Island
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Valley Island is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Island
- Berne
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Berne is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berne
- Pigeon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pinnebog
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pinnebog is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinnebog
- Port Austin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Ogemaw County
- The following are listed by their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Prescott
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Skidway Lake
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- South Branch
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lupton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Greenwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Greenwood is located in Ogemaw County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Fayettes Corner ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fayettes Corner is located in Ogemaw County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayettes Corner
- Campbells Corners
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Campbells Corners is located in Ogemaw County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbells Corners
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Oak Wood Shores, see our County-by-County Page for Oak Wood Shores.
Cemeteries Near Oak Wood Shores ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Oak Wood Shores.
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 Oak Wood Shores - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Oak Wood Shores covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Alabaster Twp. Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Emmanuel Lutheran Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Immaculate Heart of Mary's Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Memory Gardens Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Memory Gardens Cemetery
- The Memory Gardens Cemetery has also been known as:
- Tawas City Cemetery
- Tawas City Memory Gardens
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1063 <2>
- Zion Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Laidlaw Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- St. Joseph's Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Poor Farm Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- American Legion Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Greenwood Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Pine Top Rest Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sims Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Continue List (64 more) ...
- Whitney Sims Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Pioneer Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Wilber Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
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 Oak Wood Shores in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Oak Wood Shores.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Oak Wood Shores, with the one closest to Oak Wood Shores listed first.
- Alabaster
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Alabaster is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabaster
- Tawas City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- East Tawas
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- McIvor
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- McIvor is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McIvor
- Wilber
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Wilber is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilber
- Whittemore
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Au Gres
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Hale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Au Sable
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Au Sable is located in Iosco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Au Sable
- Omer
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Omer is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- Oscoda
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Prescott
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Maple Ridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Maple Ridge is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
- Arenac
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Arenac is located in Arenac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
- Long Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Oak Wood Shores. See our List of 1890's Communities around Oak Wood Shores.
Newspapers Published in Oak Wood Shores ...
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 17 newspapers that have been published in the area around Oak Wood Shores.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Oak Wood Shores, 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 Oak Wood Shores.
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 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 Oak Wood Shores:
- Websites specific to Michigan
- Pages specific to Iosco County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alcona County
- Arenac County
- Huron County
- Ogemaw 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 Oak Wood Shores, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 from Point A (ie- Oak Wood Shores) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |