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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 Tower City (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 Tower City. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.

Tower City is primarily located in Cass County. A portion of Tower City extends into Barnes 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 Cass County: Clay (MN), Norman (MN), Barnes, Ransom, Richland, Steele & Traill.

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

  • Cass County     (The home county of Tower City)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tower City, with the one closest to Tower City listed first.
    • Buffalo
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buffalo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
      • Buffalo is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buffalo <2>
    • Ayr
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ayr have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayr
      • Ayr is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ayr <2>
    • Alice
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alice
      • Alice is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 40 people
    • Absaraka
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Wheatland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheatland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland
      • Wheatland is located in Cass County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wheatland <2>
    • Nolan ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nolan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nolan
      • Nolan is located in Cass County
    • Page
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Page have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Page
      • Page is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Page <2>
    • Erie
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Erie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
      • Erie is located in Cass County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Erie <2>
    • Chaffee
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Casselton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Amenia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Arthur
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Durbin
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Durbin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durbin
      • Durbin is located in Cass County
  • Barnes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tower City, with the one closest to Tower City listed first.
    • Oriska
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oriska have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oriska
      • Oriska is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oriska <2>
    • Fingal
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fingal have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fingal
      • Fingal is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fingal <2>
    • North Valley City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Valley City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Valley City
      • North Valley City is located in Barnes County
    • Valley City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Nome
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Pillsbury
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pillsbury have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pillsbury
      • Pillsbury is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11 people
    • Kathryn
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Sibley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sibley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sibley
      • Sibley is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 28 people
    • Sanborn
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Rogers
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rogers have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
      • Rogers is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 42 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rogers <2>
    • Dazey
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dazey have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dazey
      • Dazey is located in Barnes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dazey <2>
    • Litchville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Ransom County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tower City, with the one closest to Tower City listed first.
    • Enderlin
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Sheldon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Fort Ransom
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Steele County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tower City, with the one closest to Tower City listed first.
    • Luverne
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luverne have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luverne
      • Luverne is located in Steele County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Luverne <2>
    • Hope
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hope have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hope
      • Hope is located in Steele County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hope <2>
  • Traill County
    • Galesburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Galesburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galesburg
      • Galesburg is located in Traill County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 101 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Galesburg <2>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Tower City ...

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 82 newspapers that have been published in the area around Tower City.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Tower City. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Tower City and those printed in the larger area surrounding Tower City.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Tower City.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Tower City:

Cemeteries Near Tower City ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Tower City.

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

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

  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
  • St. Bernards Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Bernards Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Bernards Cemetery
  • Oriska Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oriska Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oriska Cemetery
  • Holy Trinity Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Trinity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Trinity Cemetery
  • Memory Gardens Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Memory Gardens Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Memory Gardens Cemetery
  • Prairie Rest Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Prairie Rest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prairie Rest Cemetery
  • Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Holy Trinity Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Trinity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Trinity Cemetery
  • Hill Side Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Morton Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morton Cemetery
  • St. Johannes Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johannes Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johannes Cemetery
  • Tabor Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tabor Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tabor Cemetery
  • Continue List   (49 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Tower City had a population of 309 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Tower City had a population of 268 people.

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

  • Buffalo
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buffalo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo
    • Buffalo is located in Cass County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buffalo <2>
  • Oriska
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oriska have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oriska
    • Oriska is located in Barnes County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oriska <2>
  • Cuba
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cuba have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
    • Cuba is located in Barnes County
  • Magnolia
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Magnolia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
    • Magnolia is located in Cass County
  • Ayr
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ayr have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayr
    • Ayr is located in Cass County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 16 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ayr <2>
  • Fingal
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fingal have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fingal
    • Fingal is located in Barnes County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fingal <2>
  • Absaraka
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
  • Lucca
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lucca have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucca
    • Lucca is located in Barnes County
  • Wheatland
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheatland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland
    • Wheatland is located in Cass County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wheatland <2>
  • Valley City
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • Page
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Page have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Page
    • Page is located in Cass County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Page <2>
  • Berea
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berea have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berea
    • Berea is located in Barnes County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Daily
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Daily have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daily
      • Daily is located in Barnes County
    • Casselton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Amenia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)

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

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

The official website for Cass County: www.co.cass.nd.us/

The official website for State of North Dakota: www.nd.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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- Tower City) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Tower City. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.9245, Longitude: -97.6740    
<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 Tower City, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024