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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 Merida (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 Merida. 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 doctors and hospitals 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.

Merida is located in McLean 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 McLean County: Burleigh, Dunn, McHenry, Mercer, Mountrail, Oliver, Sheridan & Ward.

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

  • McLean County     (The home county of Merida)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Merida, with the one closest to Merida listed first.
    • Washburn
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Wilton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
      • Wilton is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 712 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilton <1>
    • Underwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Underwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Underwood
      • Underwood is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 729 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Underwood <1>
    • Turtle Lake
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Mercer
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mercer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercer
      • Mercer is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mercer <1>
    • Riverdale Junction
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale Junction
      • Riverdale Junction is located in McLean County
    • Coleharbor
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coleharbor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleharbor
      • Coleharbor is located in McLean County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 87 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coleharbor <1>
    • Riverdale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Burleigh County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Merida, with the one closest to Merida listed first.
    • Regan
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Regan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Regan
      • Regan is located in Burleigh County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 43 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Regan <1>
    • Double Ditch Indian Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Double Ditch Indian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Ditch Indian Village
      • Double Ditch Indian Village is located in Burleigh County
  • Mercer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Merida, with the one closest to Merida listed first.
    • Knife River Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Knife River Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knife River Village
      • Knife River Village is located in Mercer County
    • Stanton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Pick City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pick City
      • Pick City is located in Mercer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
  • Morton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Merida, with the one closest to Merida listed first.
    • Mandan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mandan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandan
      • Mandan is located in Morton County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 22,857 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mandan <1>
    • Twin City Estates
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Twin City Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin City Estates
      • Twin City Estates is located in Morton County
    • Lyons
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Sweet Briar
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sweet Briar. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweet Briar
      • Sweet Briar is located in Morton County
  • Oliver County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Merida, with the one closest to Merida listed first.
    • Sanger
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanger
      • Sanger is located in Oliver County
    • Hensler
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hensler
      • Hensler is located in Oliver County
    • Center
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Hannover
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hannover
      • Hannover is located in Oliver County
  • Sheridan County
    • McClusky
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Merida ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Merida.

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

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

  • Wing Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wing Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wing Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bagnell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bagnell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bagnell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gaines Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gaines Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gaines Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Riverview Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sanger Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sanger Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sanger Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hensler Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hensler Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hensler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Riverview Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sacred Heart Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sacred Heart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Nicholas Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Nicholas Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Nicholas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St.s Peter & Paul Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St.s Peter & Paul Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St.s Peter & Paul Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sverdrup Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (47 more) ...
    • Bethel Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Yucca Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Yucca Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Yucca Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Rosehill Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rosehill Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rosehill 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 Merida in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Merida.

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

  • Sanger
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanger
    • Sanger is located in Oliver County
  • Washburn
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Hensler
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hensler
    • Hensler is located in Oliver County
  • Wogansport
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wogansport have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wogansport
    • Wogansport is located in Burleigh County
  • Turtle Lake
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
  • Stanton
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
  • Hannover
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hannover
    • Hannover is located in Oliver County
  • Mandan
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mandan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandan
    • Mandan is located in Morton County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 22,857 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mandan <1>

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

Newspapers Published in Merida ...

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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Merida.

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

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Merida:

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

The official website for McLean County: www.visitmcleancounty.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>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 Merida, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Merida) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Merida. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.2428, Longitude: -100.9293       In this case, the coordinates for Merida have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025