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 Rockford (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 Rockford. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors 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.
Rockford is located in Chariton 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 Chariton County: Carroll, Howard, Linn, Livingston, Macon, Randolph & Saline.
Below are the counties that are near Rockford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rockford:
- Chariton County (The home county of Rockford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Oil City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Oil City is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
- Namrash ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Namrash is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Namrash
- Dalton
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Dalton is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16 people
- Keytesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Lewis Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lewis Mill is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewis Mill
- Salisbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Grand River City ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Grand River City is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand River City
- Missouri Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Missouri Village is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Missouri Village
- Chraneville ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Chraneville is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chraneville
- Brunswick
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Triplett
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Triplett is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Triplett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 37 people
- Mendon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mendon is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mendon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 160 people
- Boone County
- Harrisburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- De Witt
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- De Witt is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Witt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 113 people
- Bosworth
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Bosworth is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bosworth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 286 people
- Wakenda
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Wakenda is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakenda
- Hale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hale is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 391 people
- Cooper County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Blackwater
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Boonville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lamine
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lamine is located in Cooper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamine
- Windsor Place village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Windsor Place village is located in Cooper County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor Place village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 330 people
- Windsor Place village has also been known as:
- Windsor Place village
- Howard County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Glasgow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Steinmetz
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Steinmetz is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steinmetz
- Armstrong
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Armstrong is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong
- Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
- Lisbon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Lisbon is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
- Burton
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Burton is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burton
- Fayette
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Franklin
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- New Franklin
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Sebree
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Sebree is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebree
- Linn County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Marceline
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Forker
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Forker is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forker
- Bucklin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Bucklin is located in Linn County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucklin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 431 people
- Macon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Kaseyville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Kaseyville is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kaseyville
- Ardmore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Ardmore is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardmore
- Lingo
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Lingo is located in Macon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lingo
- New Cambria
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Excello
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Randolph County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Clifton Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Clifton Hill is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Yates
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Yates is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates
- Thomas Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Thomas Hill is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas Hill
- Huntsville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Higbee
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Darksville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Darksville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darksville
- Moberly
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Renick
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Renick is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Renick
- Population from the 2020 Census: 174 people
- Cairo
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cairo is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 273 people
- Jacksonville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Jacksonville is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 145 people
- Clark
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Clark is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- Saline County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- West Glasgow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- West Glasgow is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Glasgow
- Gilliam
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Gilliam is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilliam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 191 people
- Slater
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Saline City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Saline City is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saline City
- Miami
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Fairville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Fairville is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairville
- Arrow Rock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Marshall
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Blosser ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Blosser is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blosser
- Napton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Napton is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Napton
- Nelson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Nelson is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 185 people
- Malta Bend
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rockford, see our County-by-County Page for Rockford.
Cemeteries Near Rockford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rockford.
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 Rockford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rockford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Porter Chapel Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Asbury Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Shulte Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Hopewell School Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- New Hope Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Brown Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Henning Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Bailey Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Dalton Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Sleyster Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- New Frankfort Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Good Hope Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (183 more) ...
- Keytesville City Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Cambridge Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Heryford Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
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 Rockford in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rockford.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rockford, with the one closest to Rockford listed first.
- Shannondale
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Shannondale is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shannondale
- Namrash ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Namrash is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Namrash
- New Frankfort
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- New Frankfort is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Frankfort
- Dalton
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Dalton is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16 people
- Keytesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Cambridge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Cambridge is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge
- Lewis Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lewis Mill is located in Chariton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewis Mill
- Salisbury
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Gilliam
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Gilliam is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilliam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 191 people
- West Glasgow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- West Glasgow is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Glasgow
- Glasgow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Slater
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Steinmetz
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Steinmetz is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steinmetz
- Armstrong
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Armstrong is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong
- Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
- Roanoke
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Roanoke is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roanoke
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rockford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rockford.
Newspapers Published in Rockford ...
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 81 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rockford.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rockford, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rockford.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Rockford:
- Websites specific to Missouri
- Pages specific to Chariton County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Boone County
- Carroll County
- Cooper County
- Howard County
- Linn County
- Macon County
- Randolph County
- Saline 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Rockford) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Rockford, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |