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 Madelia (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 Madelia. 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 Madelia ...
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.
In past government published Postal Guides, Madelia was referred to as Madelia Courthouse.
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.
For more information about how community names might have been affected by the Board of Geographic Names (BGN), see our page about Placename Rules.
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.
Madelia is located in Watonwan 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 Watonwan County: Blue Earth, Brown, Cottonwood, Jackson & Martin.
Below are the counties that are near Madelia. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Madelia:
- Watonwan County (The home county of Madelia)
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Grogan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Grogan is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grogan
- La Salle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- La Salle is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Salle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
- Lewisville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Lewisville is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 244 people
- Saint James
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Godahl
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Godahl is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Godahl
- Butterfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Butterfield is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butterfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 582 people
- Odin
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Odin is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 104 people
- Darfur
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Darfur is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darfur
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Blue Earth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Lake Crystal
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Garden City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Garden City is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Willow Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Willow Creek is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
- Vernon Center
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Vernon Center is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 313 people
- Judson
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Judson is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Good Thunder
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Rapidan
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Rapidan is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rapidan
- Amboy
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Skyline
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Skyline is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skyline
- Population from the 2020 Census: 299 people
- Beauford
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Beauford is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauford
- Mankato
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Mapleton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Hanska
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Searles
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Searles is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searles
- New Ulm
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Iberia
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Iberia is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iberia
- Essig
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Leavenworth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Leavenworth is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leavenworth
- Sleepy Eye
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Comfrey
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Cobden
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cobden is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobden
- Population from the 2020 Census: 35 people
- Evan
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Evan is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 84 people
- Springfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Cottonwood County
- Mountain Lake
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Faribault County
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Huntley
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Huntley is located in Faribault County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntley
- Winnebago
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Delavan
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Delavan is located in Faribault County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delavan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 166 people
- Le Sueur County
- Kasota
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Martin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Truman
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Truman is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truman
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,028 people
- Ormsby
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Ormsby is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ormsby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 121 people
- Northrop
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Granada
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Trimont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fairmont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Welcome
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Nicollet County
- The following are listed by their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Courtland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Nicollet
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- North Mankato
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Oshawa
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Oshawa is located in Nicollet County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oshawa
- Lafayette
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- New Sweden
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- New Sweden is located in Nicollet County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Sweden
- Saint Peter
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Madelia, see our County-by-County Page for Madelia.
Cemeteries Near Madelia ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Madelia.
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 Madelia - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Madelia covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Riverside Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Old Catholic Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Calvary Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Madelia Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Old Faith Lutheran Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- North Lincoln Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Rosendale Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Linden Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Trinity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ohio Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Pisgah Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lincoln Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Continue List (187 more) ...
- Our Saviors Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Hanska Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- La Salle Lutheran Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
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 Madelia had a population of 852 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Madelia had a population of 2,226 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Madelia, with the one closest to Madelia listed first.
- Grogan
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Grogan is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grogan
- Hanska
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Linden
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Linden is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
- Lake Crystal
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Saint James
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Willow Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Willow Creek is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
- Garden City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Garden City is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- South Branch
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- South Branch is located in Watonwan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Branch
- Vernon Center
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Vernon Center is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 313 people
- Nashville Center
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Nashville Center is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashville Center
- Judson
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Judson is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judson
- Courtland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Amboy
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Good Thunder
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Rapidan
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Rapidan is located in Blue Earth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rapidan
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Madelia. See our List of 1890's Communities around Madelia.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Madelia ...
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 112 newspapers that have been published in the area around Madelia.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Madelia. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Madelia and those printed in the larger area surrounding Madelia.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Madelia.
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 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 Madelia:
- Websites specific to Minnesota
- Pages specific to Watonwan County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blue Earth County
- Brown County
- Cottonwood County
- Faribault County
- Le Sueur County
- Martin County
- Nicollet County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Minnesota
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 Madelia, 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 from Point A (ie- Madelia) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |