RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Minnesota >> Pope County >> Cyrus >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Cyrus (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 Cyrus. 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 southeast 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 south.

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 south 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.

Cyrus is located in Pope 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 Pope County: Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi, Stearns, Stevens, Swift & Todd.

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

  • Pope County     (The home county of Cyrus)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cyrus, with the one closest to Cyrus listed first.
    • New Prairie ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • New Prairie is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Prairie
    • Starbuck
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Farwell
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Farwell is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
    • Lowry
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Long Beach
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Long Beach is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Beach
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 417 people
    • Glenwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Sedan
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Sedan is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
    • Villard
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Grove Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Grove Lake is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Lake
    • Westport
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Westport is located in Pope County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 61 people
  • Big Stone County
    • Johnson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Johnson is located in Big Stone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 27 people
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cyrus, with the one closest to Cyrus listed first.
    • Kensington
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Holmes City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Holmes City is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmes City
    • Forada
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Brandon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Alexandria
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Garfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Evansville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Nelson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Nelson is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
  • Grant County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cyrus, with the one closest to Cyrus listed first.
    • Hoffman
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Barrett
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Barrett is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrett
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 414 people
    • Herman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Herman is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 445 people
    • Erdahl
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Erdahl is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erdahl
    • Thorsborg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Thorsborg is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorsborg
    • Elbow Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Norcross
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Norcross is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norcross
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 71 people
  • Kandiyohi County
    • Sunburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Sunburg is located in Kandiyohi County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
  • Stevens County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cyrus, with the one closest to Cyrus listed first.
    • Hancock
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Morris
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Donnelly
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Donnelly is located in Stevens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnelly
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
    • Alberta
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Alberta is located in Stevens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberta
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
    • Chokio
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
  • Swift County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Cyrus, with the one closest to Cyrus listed first.
    • Clontarf
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Benson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Swift Falls
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Swift Falls is located in Swift County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls
    • Danvers
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Danvers is located in Swift County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danvers
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
    • Holloway
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Holloway is located in Swift County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holloway
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
    • De Graff
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • De Graff is located in Swift County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Graff
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people

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

Cemeteries Near Cyrus ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Cyrus.

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 Cyrus - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Cyrus Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • St. Petri Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Scandia Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Kirkegaarden Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • St. John's Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Lake Emily Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Lakeside Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Nora Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Summit Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Aeneas Lutheran Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Bethany Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (153 more) ...
    • Emmanuel Lutheran Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • West Zion Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Minnewaska Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)

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.<2>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Cyrus had a population of 150 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Cyrus had a population of 274 people.

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

  • Morris
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Hancock
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Starbuck
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Farwell
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Farwell is located in Pope County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
  • Kensington
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Lowry
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Donnelly
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Donnelly is located in Stevens County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnelly
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
  • Hoffman
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Clontarf
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Glenwood
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
  • Holmes City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Holmes City is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmes City
  • Fairfield
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Fairfield is located in Swift County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Benson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Barrett
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Barrett is located in Grant County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrett
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 414 people
    • Swift Falls
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Swift Falls is located in Swift County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Cyrus ...

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 65 newspapers that have been published in the area around Cyrus.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Cyrus. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Cyrus and those printed in the larger area surrounding Cyrus.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<3> of Cyrus.

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 Cyrus:

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>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 Cyrus, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Cyrus) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.