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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 Kempton (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 Kempton. 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 and 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.

Kempton is located in Grand Forks County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Grand Forks County: Polk (MN), Nelson, Steele, Traill & Walsh.

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

  • Grand Forks County     (The home county of Kempton)
  • Nelson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kempton, with the one closest to Kempton listed first.
    • Aneta
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Petersburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Petersburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
      • Petersburg is located in Nelson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Petersburg <1>
    • McVille
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McVille have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
      • McVille is located in Nelson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 313 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for McVille <1>
    • Michigan City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Michigan City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michigan City
      • Michigan City is located in Nelson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 260 people
    • Michigan
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Steele County
  • Traill County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kempton, with the one closest to Kempton listed first.
    • Hatton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hatton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
      • Hatton is located in Traill County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 731 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hatton <1>
    • Portland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Mayville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Roseville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Buxton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buxton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buxton
      • Buxton is located in Traill County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buxton <1>
  • Walsh County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Kempton, with the one closest to Kempton listed first.
    • Conway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Conway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conway
      • Conway is located in Walsh County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21 people
    • Fordville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fordville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordville
      • Fordville is located in Walsh County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 194 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fordville <1>
    • Forest River
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Ardoch
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ardoch have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardoch
      • Ardoch is located in Walsh County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 80 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ardoch <1>
  • Polk County (MN)

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

Cemeteries Near Kempton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Kempton.

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

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

  • Gran Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Northwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Northwood Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Northwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bethania Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethania Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethania Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bellevue Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Herlickson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Herlickson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Herlickson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Washington Lutheran Church Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • EUB Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the EUB Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the EUB Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Logan Center Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Logan Center Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Logan Center Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lutheran Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Swenson Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Swenson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Swenson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Arvilla Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Arvilla Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Arvilla Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Union Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Union Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (67 more) ...

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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Kempton had a population of 64 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Northwood
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Northwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northwood
    • Northwood is located in Grand Forks County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 884 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Northwood <1>
  • Larimore
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Arvilla
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Shawnee
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shawnee have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawnee
    • Shawnee is located in Grand Forks County
  • McCanna
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Hatton
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hatton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
    • Hatton is located in Traill County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 731 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hatton <1>
  • Holmes
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Holmes. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmes
    • Holmes is located in Grand Forks County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Holmes
    • From Kempton to Holmes
  • Ojata ‑ Historic
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ojata have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ojata
    • Ojata is located in Grand Forks County
  • Mekinock
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Niagara
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Aneta
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Kelly
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kelly. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelly
    • Kelly is located in Grand Forks County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Kelly
    • From Kempton to Kelly
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Kempton ...

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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Kempton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

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

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 Kempton:

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

The official website for Grand Forks County: www.grandforkscountygov.com/

The official website for State of North Dakota: https://www.nd.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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Kempton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Kempton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.8188, Longitude: -97.6136    
<5>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.
<6>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 Kempton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025