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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 Ostrander (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 Ostrander. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

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 south 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.

Ostrander is located in Fillmore 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 Fillmore County: Howard (IA), Winneshiek (IA), Houston, Mower, Olmsted & Winona.

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

  • Fillmore County     (The home county of Ostrander)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ostrander, with the one closest to Ostrander listed first.
    • Etna
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Spring Valley
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
      • Spring Valley is located in Fillmore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,424 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spring Valley <2>
    • York
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for York. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
      • York is located in Fillmore County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to York
      • From Ostrander to York
    • Wykoff
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wykoff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wykoff
      • Wykoff is located in Fillmore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wykoff <2>
    • Fillmore
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Carimona
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carimona. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carimona
      • Carimona is located in Fillmore County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Carimona
      • From Ostrander to Carimona
    • Granger
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Granger. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granger
      • Granger is located in Fillmore County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Granger
      • From Ostrander to Granger
    • Preston
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Fountain
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fountain have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain
      • Fountain is located in Fillmore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fountain <2>
    • Chatfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Harmony
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Lanesboro
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
  • Dodge County
  • Mower County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ostrander, with the one closest to Ostrander listed first.
    • Le Roy
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Grand Meadow
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Meadow have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Meadow
      • Grand Meadow is located in Mower County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,194 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Meadow <2>
    • Racine
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Taopi
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taopi have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taopi
      • Taopi is located in Mower County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
    • Adams
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Elkton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Dexter
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dexter have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dexter
      • Dexter is located in Mower County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 344 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dexter <2>
    • Renova ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Johnsburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Johnsburg. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsburg
      • Johnsburg is located in Mower County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Johnsburg
      • From Ostrander to Johnsburg
    • Rose Creek
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rose Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Creek
      • Rose Creek is located in Mower County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 423 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rose Creek <2>
    • Sargeant
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Brownsdale
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brownsdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsdale
      • Brownsdale is located in Mower County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 696 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brownsdale <2>
  • Olmsted County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ostrander, with the one closest to Ostrander listed first.
    • Stewartville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stewartville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartville
      • Stewartville is located in Olmsted County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,095 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stewartville <2>
    • Simpson
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Rock Dell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rock Dell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Dell
      • Rock Dell is located in Olmsted County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rock Dell
      • From Ostrander to Rock Dell
    • Eyota
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Rochester
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Shanty Town
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shanty Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanty Town
      • Shanty Town is located in Olmsted County
    • Dover
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dover have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
      • Dover is located in Olmsted County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 776 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dover <2>
  • Winona County
  • Chickasaw County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ostrander, with the one closest to Ostrander listed first.
    • Alta Vista
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alta Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta Vista
      • Alta Vista is located in Chickasaw County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 248 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alta Vista <2>
    • Jerico
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Jerico. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerico
      • Jerico is located in Chickasaw County (IA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Jerico
      • From Ostrander to Jerico
  • Howard County (IA)
  • Mitchell County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ostrander, with the one closest to Ostrander listed first.
    • McIntire
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Meyer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Little Cedar
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Cedar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Cedar
      • Little Cedar is located in Mitchell County (IA)
    • Stacyville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • New Haven
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Haven. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Haven
      • New Haven is located in Mitchell County (IA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Haven
      • From Ostrander to New Haven
    • Toeterville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toeterville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toeterville
      • Toeterville is located in Mitchell County (IA)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Toeterville <2>
    • Osage
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Ansgar
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Ansgar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Ansgar
      • Saint Ansgar is located in Mitchell County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,125 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Ansgar <2>
    • Mitchell
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Winneshiek County (IA)

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

Cemeteries Near Ostrander ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ostrander.

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

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

  • Bloomfield Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bloomfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bloomfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bloomfield Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bloomfield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bloomfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Etna Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Bethany Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethany Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethany Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Ignatius Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Ignatius Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Ignatius Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bennington Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Ostrander Lutheran Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ostrander Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ostrander Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lone Oak Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lone Oak Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lone Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bateman Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bateman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bateman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Spring Valley Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spring Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spring Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethlehem Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethlehem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Midway Lutheran Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Midway Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Midway Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (224 more) ...
    • Frankford Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Frankford Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Frankford Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Le Roy Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Le Roy Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Le Roy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • The Le Roy Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Le Roy Luthern Cemetery
    • St. Patricks Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Patricks Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Patricks Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Ostrander had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Ostrander had a population of 247 people.

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

  • Etna
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Spring Valley
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
    • Spring Valley is located in Fillmore County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,424 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spring Valley <2>
  • Cherry Grove
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherry Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Grove
    • Cherry Grove is located in Fillmore County
  • Le Roy
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Chester
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • York
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for York. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
    • York is located in Fillmore County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to York
    • From Ostrander to York
  • Grand Meadow
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Meadow have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Meadow
    • Grand Meadow is located in Mower County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,194 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Meadow <2>
  • Forestville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forestville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forestville
    • Forestville is located in Fillmore County
  • Wykoff
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wykoff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wykoff
    • Wykoff is located in Fillmore County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wykoff <2>
  • Hamilton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamilton
    • Hamilton is located in Fillmore County
  • Taopi
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Taopi have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taopi
    • Taopi is located in Mower County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 65 people
  • Racine
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Greenleafton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenleafton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenleafton
      • Greenleafton is located in Fillmore County
    • Fillmore
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Washington
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Washington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
      • Washington is located in Fillmore County

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

Newspapers Published in Ostrander ...

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 57 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ostrander.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ostrander, 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 Ostrander.

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 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 Ostrander:

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

The official website for Fillmore County: www.co.fillmore.mn.us/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Ostrander, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ostrander) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ostrander. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.6136, Longitude: -92.4279    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025