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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 Hancock (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 Hancock. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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.

Hancock is located in Stevens 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 Stevens County: Big Stone, Douglas, Grant, Pope, Swift & Traverse.

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

  • Stevens County     (The home county of Hancock)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Morris
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Alberta
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberta
      • Alberta is located in Stevens County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
    • Donnelly
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Donnelly have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnelly
      • Donnelly is located in Stevens County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
    • Chokio
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chokio have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chokio
      • Chokio is located in Stevens County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 385 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chokio <1>
  • Big Stone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Johnson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnson
      • Johnson is located in Big Stone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 27 people
    • Correll
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Correll have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Correll
      • Correll is located in Big Stone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 31 people
    • Odessa
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Odessa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odessa
      • Odessa is located in Big Stone County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 131 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Odessa <1>
  • Chippewa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Big Bend City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Bend City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bend City
      • Big Bend City is located in Chippewa County
    • Milan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Kensington
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Holmes City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmes City
      • Holmes City is located in Douglas County
    • Forada
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forada have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forada
      • Forada is located in Douglas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Forada <1>
  • Grant County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Hoffman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Herman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Herman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herman
      • Herman is located in Grant County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 445 people
    • Barrett
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barrett have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrett
      • Barrett is located in Grant County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 414 people
  • Kandiyohi County
    • Sunburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunburg
      • Sunburg is located in Kandiyohi County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
  • Lac qui Parle County
    • Louisburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Louisburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louisburg
      • Louisburg is located in Lac qui Parle County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 43 people
  • Pope County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Cyrus
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cyrus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cyrus
      • Cyrus is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 274 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cyrus <1>
    • New Prairie ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Prairie
      • New Prairie is located in Pope County
    • Starbuck
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Farwell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
      • Farwell is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
    • Lowry
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lowry have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry
      • Lowry is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 301 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lowry <1>
    • Long Beach
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Beach
      • Long Beach is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 417 people
    • Glenwood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Sedan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sedan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedan
      • Sedan is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
    • Villard
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Swift County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hancock, with the one closest to Hancock listed first.
    • Clontarf
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clontarf have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clontarf
      • Clontarf is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clontarf <1>
    • Danvers
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Danvers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danvers
      • Danvers is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
    • Benson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Holloway
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holloway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holloway
      • Holloway is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
    • Swift Falls
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls
      • Swift Falls is located in Swift County
    • De Graff
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Graff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Graff
      • De Graff is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
    • Appleton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Appleton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleton
      • Appleton is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,311 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Appleton <1>
    • Murdock
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murdock
      • Murdock is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Hancock ...

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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hancock.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Hancock. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Hancock and those printed in the larger area surrounding Hancock.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Hancock.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Hancock:

Cemeteries Near Hancock ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hancock.

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

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

  • Lakeside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakeside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakeside Cemetery
  • Zion Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Cemetery
  • Lake Emily Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Emily Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Emily Cemetery
  • Apostolic Christian Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Apostolic Christian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Apostolic Christian Cemetery
  • West Zion Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Zion Cemetery
  • Cyrus Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cyrus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cyrus Cemetery
  • St. Petri Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Petri Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Petri Cemetery
  • Summit Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Summit Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Summit Cemetery
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Calvary Cemetery
  • St. Malachy Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Malachy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Malachy Cemetery
  • Bethany Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • 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
  • Kirkegaarden Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kirkegaarden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kirkegaarden Cemetery
  • Continue List   (151 more) ...
    • Scandia Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Scandia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Scandia Cemetery
    • Erickson Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Erickson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Erickson Cemetery
    • Trinity Lutheran Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trinity Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trinity Lutheran 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Hancock had a population of 218 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Hancock had a population of 744 people.

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

  • Cyrus
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cyrus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cyrus
    • Cyrus is located in Pope County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 274 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cyrus <1>
  • Morris
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Clontarf
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clontarf have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clontarf
    • Clontarf is located in Swift County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clontarf <1>
  • Fairfield
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
    • Fairfield is located in Swift County
  • Danvers
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Danvers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danvers
    • Danvers is located in Swift County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
  • Benson
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Starbuck
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Donnelly
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Donnelly have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnelly
    • Donnelly is located in Stevens County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
  • Holloway
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holloway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holloway
    • Holloway is located in Swift County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
  • Swift Falls
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swift Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls
    • Swift Falls is located in Swift County
  • Lowry
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lowry have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry
    • Lowry is located in Pope County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 301 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lowry <1>
  • Farwell
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
    • Farwell is located in Pope County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Chokio
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chokio have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chokio
      • Chokio is located in Stevens County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 385 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chokio <1>
    • Kensington
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • De Graff
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Graff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Graff
      • De Graff is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people

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

The official website for Hancock: www.hancock.govoffice.com/

The official website for Stevens County: www.co.stevens.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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Hancock) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Hancock. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.4969, Longitude: -95.7965    
<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 Hancock, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024