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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 Vista (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 Vista. 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 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.

Vista is located in Lewis and Clark 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 Lewis and Clark County: Broadwater, Cascade, Flathead, Jefferson, Meagher, Powell & Teton.

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

  • Lewis and Clark County     (The home county of Vista)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Vista, with the one closest to Vista listed first.
    • Cavetown
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavetown
      • Cavetown is located in Lewis and Clark County
    • East Helena
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Helena
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helena
      • Helena is located in Lewis and Clark County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 33,737 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Helena <1>
    • Craig
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Fort Harrison
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Wolf Creek
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Birdseye
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdseye
      • Birdseye is located in Lewis and Clark County
    • Silver City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
      • Silver City is located in Lewis and Clark County
    • Park City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park City
      • Park City is located in Lewis and Clark County
    • Canyon Creek
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Broadwater County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Vista, with the one closest to Vista listed first.
    • Whites City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whites City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whites City
      • Whites City is located in Broadwater County
    • Diamond City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Diamond City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond City
      • Diamond City is located in Broadwater County
    • Winston
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Cascade County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Vista, with the one closest to Vista listed first.
    • Millegan
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Millegan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millegan
      • Millegan is located in Cascade County
    • Mid Canon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mid Canon
      • Mid Canon is located in Cascade County
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Vista, with the one closest to Vista listed first.
    • Montana City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montana City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montana City
      • Montana City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montana City <1>
    • Clancy
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Alhambra
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alhambra. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alhambra
      • Alhambra is located in Jefferson County
  • Meagher County
    • Fort Logan
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fort Logan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Logan
      • Fort Logan is located in Meagher County

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

Cemeteries Near Vista ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Vista.

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

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

  • York Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the York Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the York Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cemetery Island / Canyon Ferry Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cemetery Island / Canyon Ferry Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cemetery Island / Canyon Ferry Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hardgrove Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hardgrove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hardgrove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Diamond City Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Diamond City Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Diamond City Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Beaver Creek Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beaver Creek Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beaver Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • East Helena Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Helena Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Helena Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Anns Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Anns Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Anns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Serbian Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Serbian Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Serbian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Winston Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
  • Sunset Memorial Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunset Memorial Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunset Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Turner Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Turner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Turner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Forestvale Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • IOOF Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the IOOF Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Lewis & Clark County Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lewis & Clark County Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lewis & Clark County Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Lewis & Clark County Poor Farm Cemetery
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lewis & Clark County Poor Farm Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lewis & Clark County Poor Farm Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 Vista in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Vista.

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

  • Clasoil
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clasoil have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clasoil
    • Clasoil is located in Jefferson County
  • East Helena
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Millegan
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Millegan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millegan
    • Millegan is located in Cascade County
  • Iron
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iron have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron
    • Iron is located in Lewis and Clark County
  • Montana City
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montana City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montana City
    • Montana City is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montana City <1>
  • Fort Logan
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fort Logan. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Logan
    • Fort Logan is located in Meagher County
  • Helena
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helena
    • Helena is located in Lewis and Clark County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 33,737 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Helena <1>
  • Craig
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Birdseye
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdseye
    • Birdseye is located in Lewis and Clark County
  • Canton
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
    • Canton is located in Broadwater County
  • Wolf Creek
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Mid Canon
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mid Canon
    • Mid Canon is located in Cascade County
  • Clancy
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Alhambra
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alhambra. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alhambra
    • Alhambra is located in Jefferson County

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

Newspapers Published in Vista ...

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 106 newspapers that have been published in the area around Vista.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Vista, 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 Vista.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Vista:

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

The official website for Lewis and Clark County: www.co.lewis-clark.mt.us/

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>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.
<3>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.
<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 Vista, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Vista) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Vista. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.7872, Longitude: -111.6161       In this case, the coordinates for Vista have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025