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 Prosper (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 Prosper. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.
Prosper is located in Fillmore 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 Fillmore County: Howard (IA), Winneshiek (IA), Houston, Mower, Olmsted & Winona.
Below are the counties that are near Prosper. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Prosper:
- Fillmore County (The home county of Prosper)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Canton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Newburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Newburg is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
- Mabel
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Harmony
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Granger
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Granger is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granger
- Lanesboro
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Whalan
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Preston
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bratsberg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Bratsberg is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bratsberg
- Carimona
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Carimona is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carimona
- Peterson
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Rushford Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Rushford Village is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushford Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 838 people
- Fountain
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Houston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Riceford
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Riceford is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceford
- Spring Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Bee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Bee is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bee
- Yucatan
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Yucatan is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yucatan
- Willington Grove
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Willington Grove is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willington Grove
- Wilmington
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Wilmington is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
- Eitzen
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Eitzen is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eitzen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 248 people
- Caledonia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Houston
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Money Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Money Creek is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Money Creek
- Reno
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Reno is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
- Winona County
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Clyde
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Clyde is located in Winona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
- Troy
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Troy is located in Winona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
- Saratoga
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Saratoga is located in Winona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saratoga
- Wyattville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Wyattville is located in Winona County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyattville
- Allamakee County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Quandahl
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Quandahl is located in Allamakee County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quandahl
- Dorchester
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Lycurgus
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Lycurgus is located in Allamakee County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lycurgus
- Waukon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Waukon is located in Allamakee County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waukon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,600 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waukon <1>
- New Albin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Chickasaw County (IA)
- Jerico
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Jerico is located in Chickasaw County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerico
- Fayette County (IA)
- Saint Lucas
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Saint Lucas is located in Fayette County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Lucas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
- Howard County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Florenceville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Florenceville is located in Howard County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florenceville
- Cresco
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Vernon Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Vernon Springs is located in Howard County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Springs
- Forest City ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Forest City is located in Howard County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
- Lime Springs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Protivin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Davis Corners
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Davis Corners is located in Howard County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davis Corners
- Chester
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Winneshiek County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Burr Oak
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Hesper
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hesper is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hesper
- Bluffton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bluffton is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
- Kendallville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Kendallville is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendallville
- Highlandville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Highlandville is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highlandville
- Decorah
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Ridgeway
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Spillville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Calmar
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Fort Atkinson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Ossian
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Frankville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Frankville is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankville
- Festina
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Prosper, see our County-by-County Page for Prosper.
Cemeteries Near Prosper ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Prosper.
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 Prosper - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Prosper covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Prosper Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Burr Oak Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Garness Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Calvary Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Elliota Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Lenora Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Mabel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Agnes Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Metcalf Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Wilson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hesper Lutheran Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hesper Public Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hesper Public Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hesper Public Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Hesper (IA).
- The Hesper Public Cemetery has also been known as:
- Hesper Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2230000 <2>
- Continue List (309 more) ...
- Lutheran Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Newburg Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Salveson Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Prosper had a population of 50 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Prosper, with the one closest to Prosper listed first.
- Burr Oak
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Canton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Newburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Newburg is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburg
- Lenora
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lenora is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenora
- Hesper
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hesper is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hesper
- Mabel
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Henrytown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Henrytown is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrytown
- Amherst
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Amherst is located in Fillmore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Bluffton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Bluffton is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
- Harmony
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Newhouse
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Newhouse is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newhouse
- Riceford
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Riceford is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceford
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Kendallville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Kendallville is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendallville
- Locust
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Locust is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust
- Springwater
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Springwater is located in Winneshiek County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springwater
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Prosper. See our List of 1890's Communities around Prosper.
Newspapers Published in Prosper ...
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 116 newspapers that have been published in the area around Prosper.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Prosper, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Prosper.
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 Prosper:
- Websites specific to Minnesota
- Pages specific to Fillmore County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Houston County
- Winona County
- Allamakee County
- Chickasaw County
- Fayette County
- Howard County
- Winneshiek 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> | 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. |
| <3> | 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 Prosper, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Prosper) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |