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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 Sterling (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 Sterling. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and 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.

Sterling is located in Madison County.

To see how the shape of Montana's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Madison County: Fremont (ID), Beaverhead, Gallatin, Jefferson & Silver Bow.

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

  • Madison County     (The home county of Sterling)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sterling, with the one closest to Sterling listed first.
    • Norris
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Red Bluff
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Red Bluff. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bluff
      • Red Bluff is located in Madison County
    • McAllister
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Harrison
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Pony ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Strawberry ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Strawberry. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strawberry
      • Strawberry is located in Madison County
    • Mammoth
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mammoth
      • Mammoth is located in Madison County
    • Ennis
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ennis have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennis
      • Ennis is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,042 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ennis <1>
    • Central City ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Central City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central City
      • Central City is located in Madison County
    • Nevada City ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Virginia City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia City
      • Virginia City is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
      • Former names for Virginia City:
      • Varina
      • Verina
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Virginia City <1>
    • Jefferson Island
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Island
      • Jefferson Island is located in Madison County
  • Broadwater County
    • Copper City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Copper City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copper City
      • Copper City is located in Broadwater County
  • Gallatin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sterling, with the one closest to Sterling listed first.
    • Willow Creek
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Arnold
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
      • Arnold is located in Gallatin County
    • Three Forks
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Three Forks have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Forks
      • Three Forks is located in Gallatin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,043 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Three Forks <1>
    • Amsterdam - Churchill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amsterdam - Churchill
      • Amsterdam - Churchill is located in Gallatin County
    • Amsterdam
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Churchill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churchill
      • Churchill is located in Gallatin County
    • Gallatin Gateway
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Big Sky
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Sky have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sky
      • Big Sky is located in Gallatin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Big Sky <1>
    • Four Corners
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
      • Four Corners is located in Gallatin County
    • Manhattan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Manhattan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manhattan
      • Manhattan is located in Gallatin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,917 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manhattan <1>
    • Big Sky Meadow Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Sky Meadow Village have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Sky Meadow Village
      • Big Sky Meadow Village is located in Gallatin County
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sterling, with the one closest to Sterling listed first.
    • Cardwell
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cardwell have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardwell
      • Cardwell is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cardwell <1>
    • Piedmont
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piedmont
      • Piedmont is located in Jefferson County
    • Whitehall
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitehall have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
      • Whitehall is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,160 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitehall <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Sterling ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sterling.

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

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

  • Red Bluff Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • McAllister Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the McAllister Cemetery
    • The McAllister Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Meadow Creek Cemetery
  • Valley View Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley View Cemetery
    • The Valley View Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Pony Cemetery
  • Harrison Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Harrison Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Harrison Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Black Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Black Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Black Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Evans Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Sappington Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sappington Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sappington Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ennis Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ennis Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ennis Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Madison Valley Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Madison Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Madison Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Stateler Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Stateler Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Stateler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • South Boulder Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the South Boulder Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the South Boulder Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Green Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Green Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Mt. Green Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the north of Willow Creek.
    • The Mt. Green Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Willow Creek Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #21006 <4>
  • Continue List   (22 more) ...
    • Nevada City Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nevada City Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nevada City Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Boothill Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Boothill Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Boothill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Virginia City Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Virginia City Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Virginia City Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> 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.<5>

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

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

  • Norris
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Red Bluff
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Red Bluff. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bluff
    • Red Bluff is located in Madison County
  • Pony ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Harrison
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Ennis
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ennis have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ennis
    • Ennis is located in Madison County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,042 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ennis <1>
  • Willow Creek
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
  • Virginia City
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia City
    • Virginia City is located in Madison County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
    • Former names for Virginia City:
    • Varina
    • Verina
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Virginia City <1>
  • Jefferson Island
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Island
    • Jefferson Island is located in Madison County
  • Sheridan
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sheridan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
    • Sheridan is located in Madison County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 771 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sheridan <1>
  • Laurin ‑ Historic
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Laurin. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurin
    • Laurin is located in Madison County
  • Three Forks
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Three Forks have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Forks
    • Three Forks is located in Gallatin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,043 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Three Forks <1>
  • Cameron
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Whitehall
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitehall have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
      • Whitehall is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,160 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitehall <1>
    • Silver Star
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Logan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Logan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logan
      • Logan is located in Gallatin County

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

Newspapers Published in Sterling ...

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 32 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sterling.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sterling, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sterling.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 Sterling:

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

The official website for State of Montana: https://mt.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>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.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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 Sterling, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 from Point A (ie- Sterling) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sterling. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.5652, Longitude: -111.7594       In this case, the coordinates for Sterling have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025