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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 Pine Creek (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 Pine Creek. 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 Pine Creek ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Pine Creek: Pine Crk. (or less commonly used: Pine Ck. or Pine Cr.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Pine Creek. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Pine Creek.

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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

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

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

  • Ottawa County     (The home county of Pine Creek)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pine Creek, with the one closest to Pine Creek listed first.
    • Beechwood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Beechwood is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood
    • Waverly
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Waverly is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waverly
    • Holland
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Noordeloos
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Noordeloos is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noordeloos
    • Port Sheldon
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Port Sheldon is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Sheldon
    • Macatawa
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Zeeland
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • West Olive
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Agnew
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Agnew is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnew
    • Drenthe
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Drenthe is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenthe
    • Rusk
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Rusk is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
    • South Blendon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • South Blendon is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Blendon
    • Robinson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Robinson is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson
  • Allegan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pine Creek, with the one closest to Pine Creek listed first.
    • Graafschap
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Graafschap is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graafschap
    • Boyd
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Boyd is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyd
    • Fillmore
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Fillmore is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fillmore
    • Singapore ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Singapore is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Singapore
    • Saugatuck
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Hamilton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Douglas
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Diamond Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Diamond Springs is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond Springs
    • Fennville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Burnips
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Burnips is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnips
      • Former name for Burnips:
      • Burnip's Corners
    • New Salem
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • New Salem is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Salem
    • Ganges
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Ganges is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
    • Glenn
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Kent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pine Creek, with the one closest to Pine Creek listed first.
    • Grandville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • North Dorr
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • North Dorr is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Dorr
    • Byron Center
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Beverly
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Beverly is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beverly
    • Burlingame Heights
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Burlingame Heights is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame Heights
    • Burlingame
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Burlingame is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burlingame
    • Carlisle
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Carlisle is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
    • Wyoming
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Kinney
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Kinney is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kinney
    • Walker
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Clyde Park
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Clyde Park is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde Park
    • Galewood
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Galewood is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galewood
    • Urbandale
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Urbandale is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbandale
  • Muskegon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pine Creek, with the one closest to Pine Creek listed first.
    • Fruitport
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Norton Shores
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Sullivan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Sullivan is located in Muskegon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivan
    • Muskegon Heights
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Ravenna
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Roosevelt Park
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Muskegon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Morgan Corners
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Morgan Corners is located in Muskegon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan Corners
    • Wolf Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Wolf Lake is located in Muskegon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Lake
    • Slocum
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Slocum is located in Muskegon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slocum
    • North Muskegon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Van Buren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pine Creek, with the one closest to Pine Creek listed first.
    • Kibbie
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Kibbie is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kibbie
    • Lacota
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Lacota is located in Van Buren County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacota
    • Bloomingdale
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Grand Junction
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • South Haven
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Pine Creek ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pine Creek.

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 Pine Creek - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • North Holland Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Lakewood Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Pilgrim Home Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrim Home Cemetery
    • 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 Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1371 <2>
  • Ventura Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Lake Shore Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Graafschap Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Graafschap Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Roselawn Memorial Gardens
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Noordeloos Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Memorial Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • New Groningen Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • East Holland Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (191 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 Pine Creek in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Pine Creek.

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

  • Holland
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • New Holland
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • New Holland is located in Ottawa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Holland
  • Noordeloos
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Noordeloos is located in Ottawa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noordeloos
  • Graafschap
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Graafschap is located in Allegan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graafschap
  • Zeeland
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Olive Center
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Olive Center is located in Ottawa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olive Center
  • West Olive
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Borculo
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Borculo is located in Ottawa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borculo
  • Gibson
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Gibson is located in Allegan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibson
  • Fillmore
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Fillmore is located in Allegan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fillmore
  • Agnew
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Agnew is located in Ottawa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnew
  • Overisel
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Overisel is located in Allegan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Overisel
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Beaverdam
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Beaverdam is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverdam
    • East Saugatuck
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • East Saugatuck is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Saugatuck
    • Drenthe
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Drenthe is located in Ottawa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenthe

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

Newspapers Published in Pine Creek ...

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 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pine Creek.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Pine Creek, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Pine Creek.

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 Pine Creek:

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 Pine Creek, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Pine Creek) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.