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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 Villard (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 Villard. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Villard is located in Pope 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 Pope County: Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi, Stearns, Stevens, Swift & Todd.

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

  • Pope County     (The home county of Villard)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Westport
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Glenwood
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Grove Lake
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Grove Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Lake
      • Grove Lake is located in Pope County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Grove Lake
      • From Villard to Grove Lake
    • Long Beach
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Beach
      • Long Beach is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 417 people
    • Sedan
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sedan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedan
      • Sedan is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
    • Lowry
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lowry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry
      • Lowry is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 301 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lowry <1>
    • Starbuck
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Farwell
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farwell have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
      • Farwell is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
    • New Prairie ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Cyrus
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cyrus have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cyrus
      • Cyrus is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 274 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cyrus <1>
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Forada
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forada have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forada
      • Forada is located in Douglas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Forada <1>
    • Nelson
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nelson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
      • Nelson is located in Douglas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
    • Osakis
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Alexandria
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Holmes City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Carlos
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carlos have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlos
      • Carlos is located in Douglas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 490 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carlos <1>
    • Belle River
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Belle River. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle River
      • Belle River is located in Douglas County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Belle River
      • From Villard to Belle River
    • Garfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Kensington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Miltona
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Brandon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Rose City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rose City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose City
      • Rose City is located in Douglas County
  • Grant County
  • Kandiyohi County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Sunburg
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunburg have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunburg
      • Sunburg is located in Kandiyohi County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
    • Regal
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Regal have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Regal
      • Regal is located in Kandiyohi County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 35 people
  • Otter Tail County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Parkers Prairie
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Urbank
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Urbank have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urbank
      • Urbank is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
  • Stearns County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Sauk Centre
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Brooten
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brooten have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooten
      • Brooten is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 750 people
    • Elrosa
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elrosa have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elrosa
      • Elrosa is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elrosa <1>
    • Meire Grove
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meire Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meire Grove
      • Meire Grove is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
    • Greenwald
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenwald have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwald
      • Greenwald is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 224 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenwald <1>
    • Melrose
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Belgrade
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belgrade have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgrade
      • Belgrade is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 787 people
    • Spring Hill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Hill
      • Spring Hill is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 95 people
    • New Munich
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Munich have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Munich
      • New Munich is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 330 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Munich <1>
    • Saint Rosa
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Rosa have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Rosa
      • Saint Rosa is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 71 people
    • Freeport
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Freeport have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeport
      • Freeport is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 671 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Freeport <1>
    • Lake Henry
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Henry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Henry
      • Lake Henry is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 113 people
  • Stevens County
  • Swift County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • Swift Falls
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Swift Falls. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swift Falls
      • Swift Falls is located in Swift County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Swift Falls
      • From Villard to Swift Falls
    • Clontarf
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clontarf have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clontarf
      • Clontarf is located in Swift County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clontarf <1>
  • Todd County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Villard, with the one closest to Villard listed first.
    • West Union
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Union have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Union
      • West Union is located in Todd County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 123 people
    • Clotho
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Grey Eagle
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Long Prairie
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Prairie have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Prairie
      • Long Prairie is located in Todd County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,297 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Long Prairie <1>
    • Burtrum
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)

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

Cemeteries Near Villard ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Villard.

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

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

  • Lake Leven Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Leven Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Leven Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Calvary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lake Amelia Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Amelia Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Amelia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Lake Amelia Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Lake Amelia Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Lake Amelia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • English Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the English Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the English Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Calvary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Calvary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Glenwood City Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Lake Reno Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Reno Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Reno Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lake Ann Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lake Ann Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lake Ann Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Grove Lake Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grove Lake Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grove Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hudson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hudson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hudson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (175 more) ...

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 Villard had a population of 203 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Villard had a population of 253 people.

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

  • Westport
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Glenwood
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Grove Lake
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Grove Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Lake
    • Grove Lake is located in Pope County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Grove Lake
    • From Villard to Grove Lake
  • West Union
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Union have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Union
    • West Union is located in Todd County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 123 people
  • Nelson
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nelson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
    • Nelson is located in Douglas County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
  • Lowry
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lowry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowry
    • Lowry is located in Pope County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 301 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lowry <1>
  • Alexandria
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Osakis
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Starbuck
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Terrace
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Terrace have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terrace
    • Terrace is located in Pope County
  • Sauk Centre
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
  • Holmes City
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Brooten
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brooten have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooten
      • Brooten is located in Stearns County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 750 people
    • Farwell
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farwell have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farwell
      • Farwell is located in Pope County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 52 people
    • Little Sauk
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Sauk have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Sauk
      • Little Sauk is located in Todd County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Villard ...

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 67 newspapers that have been published in the area around Villard.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Villard. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Villard and those printed in the larger area surrounding Villard.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6> of Villard.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Villard:

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

The official website for Pope County: www.mncounties3.org/pope/

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

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>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.
<3>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.
<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 Villard, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Villard) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Villard. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.7129, Longitude: -95.2691    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025