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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 Butler (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 Butler. 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 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.

Butler is located in Otter Tail County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Otter Tail County: Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Todd, Wadena & Wilkin.

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

  • Otter Tail County     (The home county of Butler)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butler, with the one closest to Butler listed first.
    • New York Mills
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Perham
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Perham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perham
      • Perham is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,638 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Perham <1>
    • Bluffton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
      • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
    • Richville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richville
      • Richville is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Richville <1>
    • Wadena
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wadena have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
      • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>
    • Dent
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dent have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dent
      • Dent is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 185 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dent <1>
    • Deer Creek
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek
      • Deer Creek is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
    • Leaf City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leaf City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaf City
      • Leaf City is located in Otter Tail County
    • Ottertail
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ottertail have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottertail
      • Ottertail is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 660 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ottertail <1>
    • Vergas
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vergas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vergas
      • Vergas is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 354 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vergas <1>
    • Henning
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Henning have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henning
      • Henning is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 806 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Henning <1>
    • Amor
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Amor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amor
      • Amor is located in Otter Tail County
  • Becker County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butler, with the one closest to Butler listed first.
    • Evergreen
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
      • Evergreen is located in Becker County
    • Wolf Lake
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wolf Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Lake
      • Wolf Lake is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
    • Osage
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Osage have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage
      • Osage is located in Becker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Osage <1>
    • Frazee
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frazee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazee
      • Frazee is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,381 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frazee <1>
    • Ponsford
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ponsford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponsford
      • Ponsford is located in Becker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ponsford <1>
    • Rochert
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rochert have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochert
      • Rochert is located in Becker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rochert <1>
    • Pine Point
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Point
      • Pine Point is located in Becker County
    • Detroit Lakes
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Detroit Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Detroit Lakes
      • Detroit Lakes is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,255 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Detroit Lakes <1>
    • Two Inlets
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Two Inlets
      • Two Inlets is located in Becker County
    • Bucks Mill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bucks Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucks Mill
      • Bucks Mill is located in Becker County
    • Richwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richwood
      • Richwood is located in Becker County
  • Hubbard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butler, with the one closest to Butler listed first.
    • Park Rapids
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Dorset
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorset
      • Dorset is located in Hubbard County
    • Nevis
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nevis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevis
      • Nevis is located in Hubbard County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 416 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nevis <1>
  • Todd County
    • Hewitt
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hewitt have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hewitt
      • Hewitt is located in Todd County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
  • Wadena County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Butler, with the one closest to Butler listed first.
    • Menahga
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Menahga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menahga
      • Menahga is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,307 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menahga <1>
    • Sebeka
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sebeka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebeka
      • Sebeka is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 668 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebeka <1>
    • Nimrod
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Verndale
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Verndale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verndale
      • Verndale is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 576 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Verndale <1>
    • Aldrich
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aldrich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich
      • Aldrich is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people

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

Newspapers Published in Butler ...

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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around Butler.

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

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 Butler:

Cemeteries Near Butler ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Butler.

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 Butler covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Cross Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Cross Cemetery
  • Spruce Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spruce Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spruce Grove Cemetery
  • Red Eye Valley Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Red Eye Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Red Eye Valley Cemetery
  • St. John's Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. John's Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. John's Cemetery
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethlehem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethlehem Cemetery
  • Paddock - Bethel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Paddock - Bethel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Paddock - Bethel Cemetery
  • Nazareth Lutheran Church Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nazareth Lutheran Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nazareth Lutheran Church Cemetery
  • Bethany Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethany Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethany Cemetery
  • Pickett Family Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pickett Family Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pickett Family Cemetery
  • Wolf Lake Community Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wolf Lake Community Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wolf Lake Community Cemetery
  • Bethania Lutheran Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethania Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethania Lutheran Cemetery
  • Grace Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grace Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grace Cemetery
  • Continue List   (151 more) ...
    • St. Paul's Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Paul's Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Paul's Cemetery
    • Historic Pine Lake Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Historic Pine Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Historic Pine Lake Cemetery
    • Hay Creek Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hay Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hay Creek 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.<4>

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

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

  • Davies
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Davies have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davies
    • Davies is located in Otter Tail County
  • New York Mills
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Perham
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Perham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perham
    • Perham is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,638 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Perham <1>
  • Menahga
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Menahga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menahga
    • Menahga is located in Wadena County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,307 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menahga <1>
  • Sebeka
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sebeka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebeka
    • Sebeka is located in Wadena County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 668 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebeka <1>
  • Luce
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luce have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luce
    • Luce is located in Otter Tail County
  • Bluffton
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
    • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
  • Osage
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Osage have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage
    • Osage is located in Becker County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Osage <1>
  • Frazee
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frazee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazee
    • Frazee is located in Becker County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,381 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frazee <1>
  • Wadena
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wadena have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
    • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>
  • Hubbard
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hubbard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard
    • Hubbard is located in Hubbard County
  • Ottertail
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ottertail have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottertail
    • Ottertail is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 660 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ottertail <1>
  • Continue List   (12 more) ...
    • Deer Creek
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek
      • Deer Creek is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
    • Park Rapids
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Nimrod
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)

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

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

The official website for Otter Tail County: www.co.otter-tail.mn.us/

The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.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- Butler) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Butler. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.6880, Longitude: -95.3531       In this case, the coordinates for Butler have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Butler, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024