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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 Debs (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 Debs. 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 doctors and hospitals 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.

Debs is located in Beltrami 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 Beltrami County: Cass, Clearwater, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake of the Woods, Marshall, Pennington & Roseau.

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

  • Beltrami County     (The home county of Debs)
  • Clearwater County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Debs, with the one closest to Debs listed first.
    • Leonard
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leonard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leonard
      • Leonard is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Leonard <1>
    • Clearbrook
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clearbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearbrook
      • Clearbrook is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 535 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clearbrook <1>
    • Shevlin
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shevlin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shevlin
      • Shevlin is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 179 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shevlin <1>
    • Gonvick
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gonvick have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gonvick
      • Gonvick is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gonvick <1>
    • Bagley
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bagley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagley
      • Bagley is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,439 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bagley <1>
    • Minerva
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Rice Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rice Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rice Lake
      • Rice Lake is located in Clearwater County
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Debs, with the one closest to Debs listed first.
    • Gully
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gully have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gully
      • Gully is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 66 people
    • Trail
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trail have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trail
      • Trail is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
    • Lengby
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lengby have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lengby
      • Lengby is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
    • Fosston
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Debs ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Debs.

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

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

  • Roosevelt Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Trinity Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trinity Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trinity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sinclair Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sinclair Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sinclair Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Buzzle Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Buzzle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Buzzle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Clover Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Clover Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Clover Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • East Zion Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Zion Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Island Lake Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Island Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Island Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • East Seljord Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Seljord Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Seljord Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dudley Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dudley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dudley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pinewood Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Seljord Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Seljord Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Seljord Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Norway Lake Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Norway Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Norway Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (95 more) ...
    • Trinity Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trinity Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trinity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Red Lake Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Red Lake Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Red Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Friendship Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Friendship Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Friendship Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 Debs in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Debs.

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

  • Red Lake
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Olga
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Olga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olga
    • Olga is located in Polk County

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

Newspapers Published in Debs ...

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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Debs.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Debs, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Debs.

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 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 Debs:

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

The official website for Beltrami County: www.co.beltrami.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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<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 Debs, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Debs) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Debs. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.7312, Longitude: -95.1288    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025