RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Michigan >> Van Buren County >> West Bangor >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Michigan

The Commemorative Quarter for Michigan





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 West Bangor (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 West Bangor. 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 West Bangor ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for West Bangor: W. Bangor

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 and doctors 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.

West Bangor is located in Van Buren County.

To see how the shape of Michigan's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Van Buren County: Allegan, Berrien, Cass, Kalamazoo & Saint Joseph.

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

  • Van Buren County     (The home county of West Bangor)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Bangor, with the one closest to West Bangor listed first.
    • Bangor
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bangor
      • Bangor is located in Van Buren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,808 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bangor <1>
    • Covert
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Breedsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Fish Corners
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fish Corners
      • Fish Corners is located in Van Buren County
    • Kibbie
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kibbie
      • Kibbie is located in Van Buren County
    • Lacota
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacota
      • Lacota is located in Van Buren County
    • South Haven
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Hartford
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Bloomingdale
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Grand Junction
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Lawrence
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Glendale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
      • Glendale is located in Van Buren County
    • Gobles
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
  • Allegan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Bangor, with the one closest to West Bangor listed first.
    • Mount Pleasant
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Allegan County
    • South Haven Highlands
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Hawkhead
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawkhead
      • Hawkhead is located in Allegan County
    • Leisure
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure
      • Leisure is located in Allegan County
      • Leisure has also been known as:
      • East Casco
    • Miami Park
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miami Park
      • Miami Park is located in Allegan County
      • Miami Park has also been known as:
      • Miami Park Beach
      • Miomi Park Beach
    • Cedar Bluff
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Bluff
      • Cedar Bluff is located in Allegan County
    • Glenn Haven Shores
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenn Haven Shores
      • Glenn Haven Shores is located in Allegan County
      • Glenn Haven Shores has also been known as:
      • Hollywood
    • Glenn Shores
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenn Shores
      • Glenn Shores is located in Allegan County
      • Glenn Shores has also been known as:
      • Glenn Stores
    • Pullman
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pullman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pullman
      • Pullman is located in Allegan County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pullman <1>
    • Spring Grove
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Grove
      • Spring Grove is located in Allegan County
    • Glenn
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Ganges
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
      • Ganges is located in Allegan County
    • Fennville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Berrien County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Bangor, with the one closest to West Bangor listed first.
    • Paw Paw Lake
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paw Paw Lake
      • Paw Paw Lake is located in Berrien County
    • Watervliet
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Coloma
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coloma have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
      • Coloma is located in Berrien County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,402 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coloma <1>
    • Lake Michigan Beach
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Michigan Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Michigan Beach
      • Lake Michigan Beach is located in Berrien County
    • Riverside
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverside have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
      • Riverside is located in Berrien County
    • Benton Heights
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Benton Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Heights
      • Benton Heights is located in Berrien County
    • Mizpah Park
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mizpah Park
      • Mizpah Park is located in Berrien County
    • Benton Harbor
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Shanghai Corners
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanghai Corners
      • Shanghai Corners is located in Berrien County
    • Fair Plain
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fair Plain have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Plain
      • Fair Plain is located in Berrien County
    • Sodus
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sodus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sodus
      • Sodus is located in Berrien County
    • Hartman
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartman
      • Hartman is located in Berrien County
    • Saint Joseph
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Bangor, with the one closest to West Bangor listed first.
    • Dowagiac
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • La Grange
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Grange
      • La Grange is located in Cass County
    • Pokagon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pokagon
      • Pokagon is located in Cass County
    • Sumnerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumnerville
      • Sumnerville is located in Cass County
    • Marcellus
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Penn
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penn
      • Penn is located in Cass County
    • Wakelee
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wakelee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakelee
      • Wakelee is located in Cass County
    • Cassopolis
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cassopolis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassopolis
      • Cassopolis is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,698 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cassopolis <1>
    • Vandalia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vandalia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandalia
      • Vandalia is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 281 people
  • Kalamazoo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Bangor, with the one closest to West Bangor listed first.
    • Alamo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamo
      • Alamo is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Oshtemo
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oshtemo have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oshtemo
      • Oshtemo is located in Kalamazoo County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oshtemo <1>
    • Westwood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
      • Westwood is located in Kalamazoo County
    • Kalamazoo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Saint Joseph County
    • Chamberlain
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamberlain
      • Chamberlain is located in Saint Joseph County

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

Newspapers Published in West Bangor ...

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 134 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Bangor.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Bangor, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Bangor.

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 helpful 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 West Bangor:

Cemeteries Near West Bangor ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Bangor.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

  • Thomas Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Taylor Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Taylor Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Taylor Cemetery
  • Covert Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Van Auken Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Van Auken Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Van Auken Cemetery
  • Monk Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Monk Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Monk Cemetery
  • Arlington Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Emmanuel Home Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Emmanuel Home Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Emmanuel Home Cemetery
  • Rush Lake Catholic Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rush Lake Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rush Lake Catholic Cemetery
  • Southard Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Southard Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Southard Cemetery
  • Hoppin Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hoppin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hoppin Cemetery
  • Fish Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fish Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fish Cemetery
  • Coburn Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coburn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coburn Cemetery
  • Continue List   (203 more) ...
    • Breedsville Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Breedsville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Breedsville Cemetery
    • Chambers Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Fairview Memorial Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairview Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairview Memorial Cemetery

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.<5>

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

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

  • Covert
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Toquin
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toquin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toquin
    • Toquin is located in Van Buren County
  • McDonald
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McDonald have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald
    • McDonald is located in Van Buren County
  • Bangor
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bangor
    • Bangor is located in Van Buren County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,808 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bangor <1>
  • Breedsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Kibbie
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kibbie
    • Kibbie is located in Van Buren County
  • Hartford
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Lacota
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacota
    • Lacota is located in Van Buren County
  • South Haven
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Bloomingdale
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Grand Junction
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Watervliet
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Lawrence
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Coloma
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coloma have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
      • Coloma is located in Berrien County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,402 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coloma <1>
    • Glendale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
      • Glendale is located in Van Buren County

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

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Bangor. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Van Buren County: www.vbco.org/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/

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 location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>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- West Bangor) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Bangor. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.3078, Longitude: -86.1867       In this case, the coordinates for West Bangor have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>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.
<5>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 West Bangor, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024