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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 Wagner Beach (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 Wagner Beach. 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 Wagner Beach ...

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 Wagner Beach: Wagner Bch.

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.

Wagner Beach is located in Arenac 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 Arenac County: Bay, Gladwin, Iosco & Ogemaw.

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

  • Arenac County     (The home county of Wagner Beach)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wagner Beach, with the one closest to Wagner Beach listed first.
    • Harmon City Heights
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Harmon City Heights is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmon City Heights
    • Au Gres
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Turner
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Turner is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turner
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
    • Twining
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Twining is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twining
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
    • Omer
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Omer is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
    • Arenac
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Arenac is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
    • Maple Ridge
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Maple Ridge is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
    • Pine River
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Pine River is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
    • Whites Beach
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Whites Beach is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites Beach
    • Saganing
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Saganing is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saganing
    • Standish
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Melita
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Melita is also located in Arenac County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melita
  • Bay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wagner Beach, with the one closest to Wagner Beach listed first.
    • Pinconning
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Woodville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Woodville is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
    • Nine Mile
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Nine Mile is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nine Mile
    • Bentley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Bentley is located in Bay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bentley
  • Huron County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wagner Beach, with the one closest to Wagner Beach listed first.
    • Caseville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Bay Port
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ora Labora
      (20 miles [32.2 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
    • Valley Island
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Valley Island is located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Island
    • Berne
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Berne is located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berne
    • Pigeon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Port Crescent ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Port Crescent was located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Crescent
    • Sebewaing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Kilmanagh
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Kilmanagh is located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kilmanagh
    • Pinnebog
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Pinnebog is located in Huron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinnebog
    • Port Austin
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Elkton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Iosco County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wagner Beach, with the one closest to Wagner Beach listed first.
    • Tawas City
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • National City
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • White Rock ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • White Rock was located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Rock
    • East Tawas
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Whittemore
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Wilber
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Wilber is located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilber
    • Hale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Foote Site Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Foote Site Village is located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foote Site Village
    • Sid Town
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Sid Town is located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sid Town
    • Au Sable
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Au Sable is located in Iosco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Au Sable
    • Oscoda
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Long Lake
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Ogemaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wagner Beach, with the one closest to Wagner Beach listed first.
    • Prescott
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Skidway Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • South Branch
      (29 miles [46.7 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

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

Cemeteries Near Wagner Beach ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wagner Beach.

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 Wagner Beach - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Whitney Sims Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Sims Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Alabaster Twp. Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Linwood Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Indian Burial Ground
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Emmanuel Lutheran Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Immaculate Heart of Mary's Catholic Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Memory Gardens Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Pine Top Rest Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Poor Farm Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • American Legion Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (75 more) ...
    • Greenwood Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • St. Joseph's Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Johnson Creek Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)

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 Wagner Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Wagner Beach.

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

  • Alabaster
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Alabaster is located in Iosco County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabaster
  • Au Gres
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • McIvor
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • McIvor is located in Iosco County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McIvor
  • Tawas City
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • East Tawas
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Whittemore
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Omer
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Omer is also located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omer
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
  • Arenac
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Arenac is also located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arenac
  • Maple Ridge
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Maple Ridge is also located in Arenac County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
  • Caseville
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
  • Prescott
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Wilber
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Wilber is located in Iosco County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilber
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Bay Port
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Standish
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Hale
      (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 Wagner Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around Wagner Beach.

Newspapers Published in Wagner Beach ...

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 26 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wagner Beach.

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

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Wagner Beach:

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