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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 Hewitt (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 Hewitt. 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.

Hewitt is located in Todd 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 Todd County: Douglas, Morrison, Otter Tail, Stearns & Wadena.

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

  • Todd County     (The home county of Hewitt)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Bertha
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Eagle Bend
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Staples
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Clarissa
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Philbrook
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Philbrook is located in Todd County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philbrook
    • Browerville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Browerville is located in Todd County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browerville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
    • Clotho
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Clotho is located in Todd County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clotho
    • Long Prairie
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Ellis
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Ellis is located in Cass County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellis
    • Pillager
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Rose City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Rose City is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose City
    • Miltona
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Belle River
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Belle River is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle River
    • Carlos
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Millerville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Millerville is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 103 people
  • Morrison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Motley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Lincoln
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Lincoln is located in Morrison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
    • Cushing
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Otter Tail County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Wadena
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>
    • Deer Creek
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Deer Creek is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
    • Bluffton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
    • Parkers Prairie
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Henning
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Leaf City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Leaf City is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaf City
    • New York Mills
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Davies
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Davies is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davies
    • Vining
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Nirvana
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Nirvana is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nirvana
    • Ottertail
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Urbank
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Urbank is located in Otter Tail County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbank
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
    • Clitherall
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
  • Wadena County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hewitt, with the one closest to Hewitt listed first.
    • Verndale
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Aldrich
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Aldrich is located in Wadena County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
    • Sebeka
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Nimrod
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Menahga
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)

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

Cemeteries Near Hewitt ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hewitt.

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

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

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

  • Hewitt Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Trinity Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Mt. Nebo Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Oak Ridge Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Zion & St. Johns Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Peace Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Immanuel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Greenlawn Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Fredericks Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Wrightstown Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Balsamlund Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (155 more) ...
    • Bonar Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Scandinavian Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Zoar Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 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.<2>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Hewitt had railroad service and no post office. In 2020, Hewitt had a population of 260 people.

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

  • Bertha
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Wrightstown
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Wrightstown is located in Otter Tail County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wrightstown
  • Verndale
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Wadena
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>
  • Aldrich
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Aldrich is located in Wadena County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 46 people
  • Eagle Bend
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Deer Creek
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Deer Creek is located in Otter Tail County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
  • Bluffton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
  • Staples
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Clarissa
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Parkers Prairie
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Henning
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Philbrook
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Philbrook is located in Todd County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philbrook
    • New York Mills
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Browerville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Browerville is located in Todd County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browerville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Hewitt ...

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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hewitt.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Hewitt. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Hewitt and those printed in the larger area surrounding Hewitt.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3> of Hewitt.

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 Hewitt:

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