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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 Wolf Lake (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 Wolf Lake. 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 Wolf Lake ...

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 Wolf Lake: Wolf Lk.

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Wolf Lake is located in Becker 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 Becker County: Clay, Clearwater, Hubbard, Mahnomen, Norman, Otter Tail & Wadena.

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

  • Becker County     (The home county of Wolf Lake)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wolf Lake, with the one closest to Wolf Lake listed first.
    • Evergreen
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
      • Evergreen is located in Becker County
    • Osage
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Pine Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Point
      • Pine Point is located in Becker County
    • Ponsford
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ponsford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponsford
      • Ponsford is located in Becker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ponsford <1>
    • Rochert
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rochert have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochert
      • Rochert is located in Becker County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rochert <1>
    • Two Inlets
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Two Inlets
      • Two Inlets is located in Becker County
    • Frazee
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frazee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazee
      • Frazee is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,381 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frazee <1>
    • Detroit Lakes
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Detroit Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Detroit Lakes
      • Detroit Lakes is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,255 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Detroit Lakes <1>
    • Elbow Lake
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elbow Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elbow Lake
      • Elbow Lake is located in Becker County
    • Richwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richwood
      • Richwood is located in Becker County
    • Bucks Mill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bucks Mill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucks Mill
      • Bucks Mill is located in Becker County
    • Callaway
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Callaway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callaway
      • Callaway is located in Becker County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 227 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Callaway <1>
    • Audubon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Clearwater County
    • Long Lost Lake
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Lost Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lost Lake
      • Long Lost Lake is located in Clearwater County
      • Estimated population in 2015: 44 people
  • Hubbard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wolf Lake, with the one closest to Wolf Lake listed first.
    • Park Rapids
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Dorset
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorset
      • Dorset is located in Hubbard County
    • Nevis
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nevis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevis
      • Nevis is located in Hubbard County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 416 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nevis <1>
  • Otter Tail County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wolf Lake, with the one closest to Wolf Lake listed first.
    • Davies
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Davies. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davies
      • Davies is located in Otter Tail County
    • Perham
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Perham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perham
      • Perham is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,638 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Perham <1>
    • New York Mills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Vergas
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vergas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vergas
      • Vergas is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 354 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vergas <1>
    • Bluffton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
      • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
    • Dent
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dent have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dent
      • Dent is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 185 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dent <1>
    • Richville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richville
      • Richville is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Richville <1>
    • Wadena
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
      • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>
    • Deer Creek
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek
      • Deer Creek is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
    • Leaf City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leaf City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaf City
      • Leaf City is located in Otter Tail County
    • Ottertail
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ottertail have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottertail
      • Ottertail is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 660 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ottertail <1>
  • Wadena County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Wolf Lake, with the one closest to Wolf Lake listed first.
    • Menahga
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Menahga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menahga
      • Menahga is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,307 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menahga <1>
    • Sebeka
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sebeka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebeka
      • Sebeka is located in Wadena County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 668 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebeka <1>
    • Nimrod
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Wolf Lake ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wolf Lake.

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

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

  • Wolf Lake Community Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wolf Lake Community Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wolf Lake Community Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Palm Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Palm Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Palm Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethany Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • 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.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pickerel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pickerel Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pickerel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Spruce Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spruce Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spruce Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pickett Family Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pickett Family Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pickett Family Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Snellman Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Snellman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Snellman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Zion Lutheran Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zion Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Green Valley Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Paul's Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Paul's Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Paul's Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Cross Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Cross Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Red Eye Valley Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Red Eye Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Red Eye Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (130 more) ...
    • Alajoki Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Alajoki Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Alajoki Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Osage Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Osage Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Osage Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Linnel Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Linnel Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Linnel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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.<4>

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

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

  • Osage
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Menahga
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Menahga have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menahga
    • Menahga is located in Wadena County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,307 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menahga <1>
  • Davies
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Davies. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davies
    • Davies is located in Otter Tail County
  • Park Rapids
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Hubbard
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hubbard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard
    • Hubbard is located in Hubbard County
  • Frazee
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frazee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazee
    • Frazee is located in Becker County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,381 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Frazee <1>
  • Luce
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luce have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luce
    • Luce is located in Otter Tail County
  • Perham
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Perham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perham
    • Perham is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,638 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Perham <1>
  • Sebeka
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sebeka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebeka
    • Sebeka is located in Wadena County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 668 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebeka <1>
  • New York Mills
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
  • Bluffton
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
    • Bluffton is located in Otter Tail County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 216 people
  • Nimrod
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (5 more) ...
    • Richwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richwood
      • Richwood is located in Becker County
    • Bucks Mill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bucks Mill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucks Mill
      • Bucks Mill is located in Becker County
    • Wadena
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadena
      • Wadena is located in Otter Tail County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,121 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wadena <1>

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

Newspapers Published in Wolf Lake ...

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 54 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wolf Lake.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Wolf Lake, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Wolf Lake.

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 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 Wolf Lake:

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

The official website for Becker County: www.co.becker.mn.us/

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>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.
<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>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 Wolf Lake, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Wolf Lake) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Wolf Lake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.8099, Longitude: -95.3507       In this case, the coordinates for Wolf Lake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025