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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 Coney Island (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 Coney Island. 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 Coney Island ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Coney Island: Coney Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Coney Island. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Coney Island.

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 northeast 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 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 east 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.

Coney Island is located in Carver 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 Carver County: Hennepin, McLeod, Scott, Sibley & Wright.

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

  • Carver County     (The home county of Coney Island)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Waconia
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Hydes Lake
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Hydes Lake is located in Carver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hydes Lake
    • Victoria
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Cologne
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Dahlgren
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Dahlgren is located in Carver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dahlgren
    • Mayer
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Hazeltine
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Hazeltine is located in Carver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazeltine
    • Watertown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Young America
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Gotha
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Gotha is located in Carver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gotha
    • Carver
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Chaska
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Anoka County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Columbia Heights
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Hilltop
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Hilltop is located in Anoka County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltop
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 764 people
    • Fridley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Anoka
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Coon Creek
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Coon Creek is located in Anoka County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coon Creek
    • Spring Lake Park
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Dakota County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Burnsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Nicols
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Nicols is located in Dakota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicols
    • Apple Valley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Eagan
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Eagan is located in Dakota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 65,975 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eagan <1>
    • Mendota
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Lakeville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Mendota Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Hennepin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Saint Bonifacius
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Minnetrista
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Mound
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Mound is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,404 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mound <1>
    • Spring Park
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Tonka Bay
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Tonka Bay is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tonka Bay
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,551 people
    • Excelsior
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Greenwood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Greenwood is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 937 people
    • Minnetonka Beach
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Minnetonka Beach is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnetonka Beach
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 584 people
    • Shorewood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Independence
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Independence is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,786 people
    • Crystal Bay
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Crystal Bay is located in Hennepin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Bay
    • Maple Plain
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Le Sueur County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Saint Thomas
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Saint Thomas is located in Le Sueur County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Thomas
    • Heidelberg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Heidelberg is located in Le Sueur County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heidelberg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 122 people
    • Le Sueur
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Lexington
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Lexington is located in Le Sueur County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
    • Montgomery
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • McLeod County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Lester Prairie
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Plato
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Winsted
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Glencoe
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Silver Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Biscay
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Biscay is located in McLeod County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biscay
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
    • Sumter
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Sumter is located in McLeod County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumter
    • Hutchinson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Brownton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Ramsey County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Lauderdale
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Lauderdale is located in Ramsey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lauderdale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,484 people
    • Falcon Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • New Brighton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Rice County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Lonsdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Webster
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Wheatland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Wheatland is located in Rice County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland
  • Scott County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Jordan
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Marystown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Marystown is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marystown
    • Shakopee
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Belle Plaine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Prior Lake
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Savage
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Union Hill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Union Hill is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Hill
    • Credit River
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Credit River is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Credit River
    • Saint Patrick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Saint Patrick is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Patrick
    • New Prague
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Cedar Lake
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Cedar Lake is located in Scott County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Lake
    • New Market
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Sibley County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Green Isle
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Henderson
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Arlington
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • New Auburn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Gaylord
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Wright County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island listed first.
    • Delano
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Rockford
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Montrose
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Waverly
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Howard Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Hanover
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Buffalo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Rassat
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Rassat is located in Wright County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rassat
    • Smith Lake
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Smith Lake is located in Wright County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Lake
    • Saint Michael
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Albright
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Albright is located in Wright County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albright
    • Cokato
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Coney Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coney Island.

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 Coney Island - one of the links might be able to help.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Coney Island, with the one closest to Coney Island 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 in 1895, Coney Island had railroad service and no post office.

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

  • Waconia
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint Bonifacius
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Augusta
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Augusta is located in Carver County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Augusta
  • Victoria
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Minnetrista
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Cologne
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Dahlgren
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Dahlgren is located in Carver County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dahlgren
  • Mayer
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Hazeltine
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Hazeltine is located in Carver County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazeltine
  • Young America
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Watertown
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Spring Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Gotha
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Gotha is located in Carver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gotha
    • Carver
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Chaska
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Coney Island ...

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 156 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coney Island.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coney Island, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coney Island.

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 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 Coney Island:

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