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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 Standish (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 Standish. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Standish is located in Arenac County and is the County Seat.

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 Arenac County: Bay, Gladwin, Iosco & Ogemaw.

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

  • Arenac County     (The home county of Standish)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Pine River
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Pine River is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
    • Sterling
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Saganing
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Saganing is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saganing
    • Arenac
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Arenac is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
    • Whites Beach
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Whites Beach is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites Beach
    • Omer
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Omer is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
    • Melita
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Melita is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melita
    • Maple Ridge
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Maple Ridge is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
    • Twining
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Twining is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twining
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
    • Au Gres
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Turner
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Turner is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turner
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
    • Harmon City Heights
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Harmon City Heights is located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmon City Heights
  • Bay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Pinconning
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Woodville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Woodville is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
    • Nine Mile
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Nine Mile is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nine Mile
    • Bentley
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Bentley is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
    • Mount Forest
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Mount Forest is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Forest
    • Linwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Brissette Beach
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Brissette Beach is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brissette Beach
    • Duel
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Duel is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duel
    • Seidlers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Seidlers is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seidlers
    • Kawkawlin
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Willard
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Willard is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willard
    • Wenona Beach ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Wenona Beach is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona Beach
    • Banks ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Banks is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banks
      • Banks has also been known as:
      • Bangor
      • Bank City
  • Gladwin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Rhodes
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Rhodes is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
    • Highwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Highwood is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highwood
    • White Star
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • White Star is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Star
    • Wooden Shoe Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Wooden Shoe Village is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooden Shoe Village
    • Sugar Rapids
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Sugar Rapids is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Rapids
    • Beaverton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Gladwin
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Butman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Butman is located in Gladwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butman
  • Huron County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Valley Island
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Valley Island is located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Island
    • Bay Port
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Sebewaing
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Iosco County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Whittemore
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • National City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • White Rock ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • White Rock is located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
    • Hale
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Tawas City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Long Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Midland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Hope
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Edenville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Edenville is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edenville
    • Midland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Averill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Averill is located in Midland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Averill
    • Sanford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Ogemaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Standish, with the one closest to Standish listed first.
    • Prescott
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Skidway Lake
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Greenwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Greenwood is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
    • Campbells Corners
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Campbells Corners is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbells Corners
    • West Branch
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Ogemaw Springs
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Ogemaw Springs is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogemaw Springs
    • Fayettes Corner ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Fayettes Corner is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayettes Corner
  • Tuscola County
    • Bay Park
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Bay Park is located in Tuscola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Park

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

Cemeteries Near Standish ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Standish.

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

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

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

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Standish had a population of 611 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Standish had a population of 1,388 people.

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

  • Worth
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Worth is located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worth
  • Sterling
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Arenac
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Arenac is located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
  • Omer
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Omer is located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
  • Nine Mile
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Nine Mile is located in Bay County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nine Mile
  • Pinconning
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Mount Forest
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Mount Forest is located in Bay County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Forest
  • Melita
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Melita is located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melita
  • Rhodes
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Rhodes is located in Gladwin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodes
  • Maple Ridge
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Maple Ridge is located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
  • Alger
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Au Gres
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Prescott
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Linwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Greenwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Greenwood is located in Ogemaw County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Standish ...

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 114 newspapers that have been published in the area around Standish.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Standish. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Standish and those printed in the larger area surrounding Standish.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4> of Standish.

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 Standish:

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 Standish, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Standish) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.