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 Goodnight (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 Goodnight. 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 Goodnight ...
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.
Goodnight has also been known as: Goodnight village.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Goodnight. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Goodnight.
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 northeast 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 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.
Goodnight is located in Polk 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 Polk County: Cedar, Dade, Dallas, Greene, Hickory & Saint Clair.
Below are the counties that are near Goodnight. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Goodnight:
- Polk County (The home county of Goodnight)
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Tin Town
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Tin Town is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tin Town
- Pleasant Hope
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Brighton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Morrisville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Halfway
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Halfway is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway
- Population from the 2020 Census: 179 people
- Wishart
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Wishart is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wishart
- Bolivar
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Graydon Springs
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Graydon Springs is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graydon Springs
- Eudora
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Eudora is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eudora
- Goodson
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Goodson is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodson
- Aldrich
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Aldrich is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich
- Population from the 2020 Census: 81 people
- Polk
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Polk is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polk
- Fair Play
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Christian County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Cassidy
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Cassidy is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassidy
- Fremont Hills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Fremont Hills is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont Hills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 936 people
- Pembina
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Pembina is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pembina
- Republic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Linden
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Linden is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
- Nixa
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Nixa is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nixa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23,330 people
- Former name for Nixa:
- Faught
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nixa <1>
- Ozark
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Dade County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Bona
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Bona is located in Dade County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bona
- Dadeville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Everton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Corry
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Corry is located in Dade County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corry
- Pilgrim
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Pilgrim is located in Dade County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrim
- Dallas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Charity ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Charity is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charity
- Buffalo
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Long Lane
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Long Lane is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Lane
- Louisburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Louisburg is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louisburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Windyville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Windyville is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windyville
- Urbana
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Tunas
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Tunas is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunas
- Leadmine
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Leadmine is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leadmine
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Fair Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Strafford
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Willard
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Springfield
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Phenix ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Phenix is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phenix
- Phenix has also been known as:
- Phenix Quarry
- Walnut Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Langston
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Langston is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langston
- Mumford
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Mumford is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mumford
- Turners
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Turners is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turners
- Bois D'Arc
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Sequiota
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Sequiota is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sequiota
- Ash Grove
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Brookline Station
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Brookline Station is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Station
- Hickory County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Pittsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Elkton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Elkton is located in Hickory County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkton
- Nemo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Nemo is located in Hickory County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nemo
- Laclede County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Conway
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Phillipsburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Brush Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Brush Creek is located in Laclede County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brush Creek
- Lawrence County
- Halltown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Webster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Elkland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Elkland is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkland
- Conklin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Conklin is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conklin
- Northview
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Northview is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northview
- Marshfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Crown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Crown is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown
- Niangua
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Niangua is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Niangua
- Population from the 2020 Census: 424 people
- Fordland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rogersville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rader
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Rader is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rader
- Diggins
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Diggins is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diggins
- Population from the 2020 Census: 326 people
- Olga
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Olga is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olga
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Goodnight, see our County-by-County Page for Goodnight.
Cemeteries Near Goodnight ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Goodnight.
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 Goodnight - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Goodnight covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Tiller Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Glover Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- New Life Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Hope Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- New Hope Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Mallard Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Ankrom Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Case Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Salem Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Brighton Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Viles Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Mt. Olive Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Continue List (281 more) ...
- Church Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Slagle Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slagle Cemetery
- The Slagle Cemetery has also been known as:
- Slagle Baptist Church Cemetery
- Slagle Creek MB Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1984712 <2>
- Liberty Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Liberty Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 9 miles [14.5 km]<3> to the northeast of Springfield.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #245971 <2>
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Goodnight had a post office and no railroad service. In 2019, Goodnight had a population of 18 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Goodnight, with the one closest to Goodnight listed first.
- Pleasant Hope
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Redtop
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Redtop is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redtop
- Fair Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Olive
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Olive is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olive
- Brighton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Hickory Barren
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Hickory Barren is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Barren
- Schofield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Schofield is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schofield
- Ebenezer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Ebenezer is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ebenezer
- Sunset
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sunset is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset
- Gresham ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Gresham is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gresham
- March
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- March is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for March
- Slagle
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Slagle is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slagle
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Elkland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Elkland is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkland
- Morrisville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Sacville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Sacville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sacville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Goodnight. See our List of 1890's Communities around Goodnight.
Newspapers Published in Goodnight ...
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 92 newspapers that have been published in the area around Goodnight.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Goodnight, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Goodnight.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Goodnight:
- Websites specific to Missouri
- Pages specific to Polk County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Christian County
- Dade County
- Dallas County
- Greene County
- Hickory County
- Laclede County
- Lawrence County
- Webster 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> | 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- Goodnight) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Goodnight, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |