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 Benson (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 Benson. 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 doctors 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.
Benson is located in Linn County.
To see how the shape of Missouri's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Linn County: Adair, Chariton, Grundy, Livingston, Macon & Sullivan.
Below are the counties that are near Benson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Benson:
- Linn County (The home county of Benson)
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- New Boston
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- New Boston is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Boston
- Bucklin
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bucklin is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
- Marceline
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Brookfield
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Purdin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Purdin is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 176 people
- Linneus
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Linneus is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linneus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 258 people
- Browning
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Browning is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browning
- Population from the 2020 Census: 243 people
- Laclede
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Forker
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Forker is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forker
- Meadville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Meadville is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 425 people
- Haseville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Haseville is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haseville
- Fountain Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fountain Grove is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Grove
- Adair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Nind ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Nind is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nind
- Yarrow ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Yarrow is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yarrow
- Tipperary ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Tipperary is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipperary
- Millard
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Millard is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millard
- Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
- Danforth ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Danforth is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danforth
- Novinger
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Novinger is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Novinger
- Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
- Kirksville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bullion ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bullion is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullion
- Gibbs
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wilson
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wilson is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Brashear
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Brashear is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brashear
- Population from the 2020 Census: 259 people
- Chariton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Rothville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Rothville is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rothville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
- Mendon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mendon is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 160 people
- Chraneville ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Chraneville is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chraneville
- Sumner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Livingston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Wheeling
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Wheeling is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 263 people
- Bedford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bedford is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedford
- Macon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Hart
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hart is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hart
- Ethel
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Goldsberry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Goldsberry is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldsberry
- Lingo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Lingo is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lingo
- New Cambria
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Elmer
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Elmer is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 77 people
- South Gifford
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- South Gifford is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gifford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
- Barnesville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Barnesville is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnesville
- Callao
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bloomington
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bloomington is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomington
- Bevier
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Atlanta
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Atlanta is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlanta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 384 people
- Love Lake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Love Lake is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Love Lake
- Randolph County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Darksville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Darksville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darksville
- Thomas Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Thomas Hill is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Hill
- Jacksonville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jacksonville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
- Sullivan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Winigan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Winigan is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winigan
- Owasco
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Owasco is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owasco
- Sticklerville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Sticklerville is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sticklerville
- Green City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Green City is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 582 people
- Greencastle
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Milan
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Boynton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Boynton is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boynton
- Humphreys
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Humphreys is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Humphreys
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Benson, see our County-by-County Page for Benson.
Cemeteries Near Benson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Benson.
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 Benson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Benson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- Pleasant Grove Baptist Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- White Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Baker Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Brush Creek Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Wyant Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Dowell Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Bell Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Baugher Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Pleasant View Baptist Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Cash Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash Cemetery
- The Cash Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #30395 <2>
- Baker Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Tuttle Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (206 more) ...
- Glasston Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Pulliam Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Price Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
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>
While we didn't find Benson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Benson.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Benson, with the one closest to Benson listed first.
- New Boston
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- New Boston is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Boston
- Hart
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hart is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hart
- Ethel
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Goldsberry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Goldsberry is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldsberry
- Hybrid ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Hybrid is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hybrid
- Bucklin
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bucklin is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
- Sedgwick
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Sedgwick is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sedgwick
- Lingo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Lingo is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lingo
- Walnut
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Walnut is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Shelby
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Shelby is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
- Saint Catharine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Saint Catharine is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Catharine
- Winigan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Winigan is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winigan
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- New Cambria
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Elmer
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Elmer is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmer
- Population from the 2020 Census: 77 people
- North Salem
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- North Salem is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Salem
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Benson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Benson.
Newspapers Published in Benson ...
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 82 newspapers that have been published in the area around Benson.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Benson, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Benson.
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 Benson:
- Websites specific to Missouri
- Pages specific to Linn County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adair County
- Chariton County
- Livingston County
- Macon County
- Randolph County
- Sullivan County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Missouri
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 Benson, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Benson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |