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 Mountain Iron (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 Mountain Iron. 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 Mountain Iron ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Mountain Iron: Mtn. Iron

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.

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.

Mountain Iron is located in Saint Louis 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 Saint Louis County: Aitkin, Carlton, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake & Douglas (WI).

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

• Saint Louis County     (The home county of Mountain Iron)
  • The following are listed by their distance from Mountain Iron, with the one closest to Mountain Iron listed first.
  • Virginia
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia
    • Virginia is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,299 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Virginia <1>
  • Franklin
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Franklin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
    • Franklin is located in Saint Louis County
  • Kinney
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kinney have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kinney
    • Kinney is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 144 people
  • Leonidas
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leonidas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leonidas
    • Leonidas is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
  • Eveleth
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eveleth
    • Eveleth is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,536 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eveleth <1>
  • Genoa
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Genoa
    • Genoa is located in Saint Louis County
  • Gilbert
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilbert have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbert
    • Gilbert is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,761 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilbert <1>
  • Iron Junction
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Junction
    • Iron Junction is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 87 people
  • Ramshaw
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramshaw
    • Ramshaw is located in Saint Louis County
  • Buhl
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buhl have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buhl
    • Buhl is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 969 people
  • Britt
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Britt have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Britt
    • Britt is located in Saint Louis County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Britt <1>
  • McKinley
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McKinley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKinley
    • McKinley is located in Saint Louis County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 122 people
  • Belgrade
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belgrade have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgrade
    • Belgrade is located in Saint Louis County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Belgrade <1>
• Itasca County
  • The following are listed by their distance from Mountain Iron, with the one closest to Mountain Iron listed first.
  • Keewatin
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keewatin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keewatin
    • Keewatin is located in Itasca County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,010 people
  • Nashwauk
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nashwauk have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashwauk
    • Nashwauk is located in Itasca County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 951 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nashwauk <1>
  • Pengilly
    (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pengilly have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pengilly
    • Pengilly is located in Itasca County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pengilly <1>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Mountain Iron ...

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 66 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mountain Iron.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

• A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Mountain Iron. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Mountain Iron and those printed in the larger area surrounding Mountain Iron.
• An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<3> of Mountain Iron.

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 websites either 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 Mountain Iron:

• Websites specific to Minnesota
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Website for the Minnesota State Archives

• Pages specific to Saint Louis County
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Genealogy information for nearby counties
  • Itasca County
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Cemetery Information and Directories for Minnesota
  • Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of Minnesota
  • Cyndi's List
  • Cemeteries of Minnesota
  • Cemeteries of Saint Louis County
  • FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of Minnesota
  • Find-A-Grave: Home Page
  • Interment.net
  • Cemeteries of Minnesota
  • Cemeteries of Saint Louis County

Cemeteries Near Mountain Iron ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mountain Iron.

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

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

• Greenwood Cemetery
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
• Eveleth Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eveleth Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1994495 <4>
• Lake View Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • The Lake View Cemetery has also been known as:
  • Lakeview Cemetery
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake View Cemetery
• Gilbert Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gilbert Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gilbert Cemetery
• Bethel Cemetery
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethel Cemetery
• Florenton Cemetery
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Florenton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Florenton Cemetery
• Sandy Cemetery
  (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sandy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sandy Cemetery
• Forbes Cemetery
  (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Forbes Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #82322 <4>
• West Pike Cemetery
  (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Pike Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Pike Cemetery
• Idington Cemetery
  (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Idington Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Idington Cemetery
• Chisholm Cemetery
  (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • The Chisholm Cemetery has also been known as:
  • Calvary Cemetery
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chisholm Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1576546 <4>
• Grandview Memorial Garden
  (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Memorial Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Memorial Garden
• Continue List   (32 more) ...
  • Pike River Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pike River Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pike River Cemetery
  • Hibbing Park Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hibbing Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hibbing Park Cemetery
  • Zim Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zim Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zim 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.<5>

While we didn't find Mountain Iron in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Mountain Iron.

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

• Midway
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
  • Midway is located in Saint Louis County
• Hinsdale
  (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hinsdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinsdale
  • Hinsdale is located in Saint Louis County
• Tower
  (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower
  • Tower is located in Saint Louis County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 477 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tower <1>
• Tower Junction
  (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tower Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tower Junction
  • Tower Junction is located in Saint Louis County
• Soudan
  (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Soudan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soudan
  • Soudan is located in Saint Louis County
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Soudan <1>

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

Off-the-Road Links ...

The official website for Mountain Iron: www.mtniron.com/

The official website for Saint Louis County: www.co.st-louis.mn.us/

The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.gov/