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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 Skeels (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 Skeels. 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 southwest 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 south.

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 south 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.

Skeels is located in Gladwin 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 Gladwin County: Arenac, Bay, Clare, Isabella, Midland, Ogemaw & Roscommon.

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

  • Gladwin County     (The home county of Skeels)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Butman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Butman is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butman
    • Sugar Rapids
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Sugar Rapids is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Rapids
    • Gladwin
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • White Star
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • White Star is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Star
    • Wooden Shoe Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Wooden Shoe Village is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooden Shoe Village
    • Beaverton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Highwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Highwood is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highwood
    • Rhodes
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Rhodes is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
  • Arenac County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Melita
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Melita is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melita
    • Sterling
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Bay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Bentley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Bentley is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
    • Mount Forest
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Forest is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Forest
    • Nine Mile
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Nine Mile is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nine Mile
  • Clare County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Meredith
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Meredith is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meredith
    • Allendale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Allendale is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allendale
    • Harrison
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Dover
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Dover is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
    • Hatton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Hatton is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
    • Lake George
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake George is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake George
    • Clare
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Farwell
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake is located in Clare County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
      • Former name for Lake:
      • Lake Station
  • Crawford County
    • Deerheart Valley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Deerheart Valley is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deerheart Valley
  • Isabella County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Loomis
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Loomis is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loomis
    • Vernon City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Vernon City is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon City
    • Rosebush
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Jordan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Jordan is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordan
    • Brinton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Brinton is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinton
  • Midland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Edenville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Edenville is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edenville
    • Coleman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Alamando
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Alamando is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamando
    • Hope
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • North Bradley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • North Bradley is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bradley
    • Sanford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Missaukee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Merritt
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Vogel Center
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Vogel Center is located in Missaukee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vogel Center
    • Falmouth
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Star City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Star City is located in Missaukee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star City
    • Stratford ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Stratford is located in Missaukee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stratford
  • Ogemaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Ogemaw Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Ogemaw Springs is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogemaw Springs
    • West Branch
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Greenwood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Greenwood is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
    • Campbells Corners
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Campbells Corners is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbells Corners
    • Skidway Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Osceola County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Gormer ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Gormer is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gormer
    • Marion
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Chippewa Station ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Chippewa Station is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chippewa Station
    • Park Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Park Lake is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Lake
  • Roscommon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Skeels, with the one closest to Skeels listed first.
    • Prudenville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Houghton Lake
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Houghton Lake Heights
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Houghton Lake Heights is located in Roscommon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houghton Lake Heights
    • Saint Helen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Nellsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Nellsville is located in Roscommon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellsville
    • Geels
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Geels is located in Roscommon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geels
    • Hillcrest
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Hillcrest is located in Roscommon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest
    • Roscommon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Higgins Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Tent City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Tent City is located in Roscommon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tent City

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

Cemeteries Near Skeels ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Skeels.

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 Skeels - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Skeel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Garrity Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Hamilton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Meridith Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Hamilton Cedar Crest Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Butman Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • St. John's Lutheran Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Grout Twp. Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grout Twp. Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Grout Twp. Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<3> to the southwest of Gladwin.
    • The Grout Twp. Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Grout Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #656 <2>
  • Ridge Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Sacred Heart Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Nolan Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Gladwin Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (107 more) ...
    • Highland Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • McClure Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Pleasant Plains Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)

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>

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

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

  • Meredith
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Meredith is located in Clare County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meredith
  • Butman
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Butman is located in Gladwin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butman
  • McClure
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • McClure is located in Gladwin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McClure
  • Gladwin
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Harrison
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Prudenville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
  • Beaverton
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Hatton
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Hatton is located in Clare County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
  • Dover
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Dover is located in Clare County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
  • Houghton Lake
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Lake George
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake George is located in Clare County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake George
  • Clare
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Loomis
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Loomis is located in Isabella County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loomis
    • Ogemaw Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Ogemaw Springs is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogemaw Springs
    • Saint Helen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Skeels ...

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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Skeels.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Skeels, 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 Skeels.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Skeels:

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>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- Skeels) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Skeels, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.