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 Cold Spring (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 Cold Spring. 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 Cold Spring ...
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 occur.
Another variation: Cold Springs.
- A typical abbreviation for Cold Spring: Cold Spg. (or less commonly used: Cold Spng. or Cold Sprng.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Cold Spring. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Cold Spring.
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 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.
Cold Spring is located in Stearns County.
To see how the shape of Minnesota's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Stearns County: Benton, Douglas, Kandiyohi, Meeker, Morrison, Pope, Sherburne, Todd & Wright.
Below are the counties that are near Cold Spring. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Cold Spring:
- Stearns County (The home county of Cold Spring)
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Richmond
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Rockville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Lake
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Lake is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Lake
- Collegeville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Saint Joseph
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Avon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Roscoe
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Saint Augusta
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Saint Augusta is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Augusta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,900 people
- Kimball Prairie
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Kimball Prairie is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimball Prairie
- Kimball
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Saint Martin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Waite Park
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Benton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Sauk Rapids
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Evergreen Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Evergreen Village is located in Benton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen Village
- Watab
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Watab is located in Benton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watab
- Rice
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Duelm
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Duelm is located in Benton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duelm
- Foley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Gilman
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Kandiyohi County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Hawick
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Hawick is located in Kandiyohi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawick
- Regal
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Regal is located in Kandiyohi County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Regal
- Population from the 2020 Census: 35 people
- Atwater
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- New London
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Spicer
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Meeker County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Watkins
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Eden Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Manannah
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Manannah is located in Meeker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manannah
- Forest City
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Forest City is located in Meeker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
- Kingston
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Kingston is located in Meeker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 162 people
- Litchfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Grove City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Darwin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Dassel
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Morrison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- North Prairie
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- North Prairie is located in Morrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Prairie
- Bowlus
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Upsala
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Elmdale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Elmdale is located in Morrison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Royalton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Sherburne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Cable
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Cable is located in Sherburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cable
- Clear Lake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Becker
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Salida
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Salida is located in Sherburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salida
- Santiago
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Santiago is located in Sherburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santiago
- Todd County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Grey Eagle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Burtrum
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wright County
- The following are listed by their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- South Haven
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Clearwater
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Annandale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hasty
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Hasty is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hasty
- Silver Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Silver Creek is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Creek
- Maple Lake
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Albion Center
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Albion Center is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion Center
- Albright
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Albright is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albright
- Cokato
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Rassat
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rassat is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rassat
- Smith Lake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Smith Lake is located in Wright County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Lake
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Cold Spring, see our County-by-County Page for Cold Spring.
Cemeteries Near Cold Spring ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Cold Spring.
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 Cold Spring - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Cold Spring covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- St. Boniface Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Jacobs Prairie Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. James Catholic Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Old St. Nicholas Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Calvary Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St.s Peter & Paul Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- St. Nicholas Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Staples Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Old Eden Lake Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- St. Wendelin Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Monastic Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- St. Joseph Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (192 more) ...
- St. Johns Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- St. Catherine's Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Maine Prairie Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
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 Cold Spring had a population of 290 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Cold Spring had a population of 4,350 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Cold Spring, with the one closest to Cold Spring listed first.
- Richmond
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Saint Nicholas
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Saint Nicholas is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Nicholas
- Rockville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Luxemburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Luxemburg is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luxemburg
- Watkins
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Saint Joseph
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Collegeville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Farming
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Farming is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farming
- Eden Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Avon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Roscoe
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Kimball Prairie
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Kimball Prairie is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimball Prairie
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Saint Augusta
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Saint Augusta is located in Stearns County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Augusta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,900 people
- Saint Martin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Albany
(13 miles [20.9 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 Cold Spring. See our List of 1890's Communities around Cold Spring.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Cold Spring ...
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 108 newspapers that have been published in the area around Cold Spring.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Cold Spring. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Cold Spring and those printed in the larger area surrounding Cold Spring.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4> of Cold Spring.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Cold Spring:
- Websites specific to Minnesota
- Pages specific to Stearns County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Benton County
- Kandiyohi County
- Meeker County
- Morrison County
- Sherburne County
- Todd County
- Wright County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Minnesota
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 Cold Spring, 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 from Point A (ie- Cold Spring) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |