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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 Jefferson City (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 Jefferson City. 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 Jefferson City ...

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 occur.

The city of Jefferson City was originally named Lohman's Landing

Jefferson City has also been known as: Jeff City.

  • In past government published Postal Guides, Jefferson City was referred to as Jefferson City Courthouse.

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Jefferson City. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Jefferson City.

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.

For more information about how community names might have been affected by the Board of Geographic Names (BGN), see our page about Placename Rules.

A Few Details for Jefferson City ...

While it's still very early in our research, we found that:

  • Jefferson City was established in 1821.

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 southwest 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 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 west 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.

Jefferson City is primarily located in Cole County and is the County Seat. A portion of Jefferson City extends into Callaway 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 Cole County: Boone, Callaway, Miller, Moniteau & Osage.

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

  • Cole County     (The home county of Jefferson City)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • Scruggs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Wardsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Wardsville is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wardsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,570 people
    • Osage City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Osage City is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage City
    • Taos
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Taos is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taos
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,157 people
    • Saint Martins
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Saint Martins is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Martins
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,204 people
    • Lohman
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Centertown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Saint Thomas
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Saint Thomas is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Thomas
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
    • Russellville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Decatur
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Hickory Hill
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Teal ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Boone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • Hartsburg
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Oldham
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Ashland
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Pierpont
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Pierpont is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierpont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 77 people
    • McBaine
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • McBaine is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McBaine
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12 people
    • Columbia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Moores Switch
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Huntsdale
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Huntsdale is located in Boone County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntsdale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 35 people
  • Callaway County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • Cedar City
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Cedar City is located in Callaway County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar City
    • Holts Summit
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Lake Mykee Town
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Lake Mykee Town is located in Callaway County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Mykee Town
      • Estimated population in 2018: 351 people
    • New Bloomfield
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Tebbetts
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Tebbetts is located in Callaway County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tebbetts
    • Folsom
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Hord ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Hord is located in Callaway County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hord
    • Mokane
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Steedman
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Steedman is located in Callaway County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steedman
    • Fulton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Portland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Lindbergh
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
  • Cooper County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • Prairie Home
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Prairie Home is located in Cooper County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Home
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 280 people
    • Pisgah
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Wooldridge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Gasconade County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • Morrison
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Mount Sterling
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Mount Sterling is located in Gasconade County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sterling
  • Maries County
    • Vienna
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Miller County
  • Moniteau County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jefferson City, with the one closest to Jefferson City listed first.
    • McGirk
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • McGirk is located in Moniteau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGirk
    • Jamestown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • California
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Lupus
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Lupus is located in Moniteau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lupus
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 34 people
    • High Point
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Clarksburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Clarksburg is located in Moniteau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
    • Latham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Latham is located in Moniteau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latham
  • Morgan County
  • Osage County

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

Cemeteries Near Jefferson City ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Jefferson City.

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 Jefferson City - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Jefferson City covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

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 Jefferson City had a population of 6,742 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Jefferson City had a population of 41,972 people.

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

  • Cedar City
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Cedar City is located in Callaway County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar City
  • Scruggs
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Holts Summit
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Wardsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Wardsville is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wardsville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,570 people
  • Taos
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Taos is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taos
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,157 people
  • Osage City
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Osage City is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage City
  • Claysville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Claysville is located in Boone County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claysville
  • Honey Creek
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Honey Creek is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Creek
  • Elston
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Elston is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elston
  • Osage Bluff
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Osage Bluff is located in Cole County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osage Bluff
  • Lohman
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • New Bloomfield
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Bonnots Mill
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Folsom
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Bass
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Bass is located in Cole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bass

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Jefferson City ...

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 117 newspapers that have been published in the area around Jefferson City.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Jefferson City. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Jefferson City and those printed in the larger area surrounding Jefferson City.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<4> of Jefferson City.

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 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 Jefferson City:

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 Jefferson City, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Jefferson City) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.