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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 Altona (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 Altona. 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.

Altona is located in Wayne County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Wayne County: Cedar, Cuming, Dixon, Madison, Pierce, Stanton & Thurston.

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

  • Wayne County     (The home county of Altona)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Wayne
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wayne have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne
      • Wayne is located in Wayne County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,758 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wayne <2>
    • Winside
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Carroll
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carroll have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
      • Carroll is located in Wayne County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carroll <2>
    • Hoskins
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Sholes
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sholes
      • Sholes is located in Wayne County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 20 people
  • Burt County
    • Lyons
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyons have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
      • Lyons is located in Burt County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 800 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyons <2>
  • Cedar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Laurel
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Belden
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Randolph
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Coleridge
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coleridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coleridge
      • Coleridge is located in Cedar County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 452 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coleridge <2>
  • Colfax County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Howells
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Howells have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howells
      • Howells is located in Colfax County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 557 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Howells <2>
    • Clarkson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarkson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarkson
      • Clarkson is located in Colfax County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 630 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clarkson <2>
    • Leigh
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Cuming County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Wisner
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Beemer
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Aloys
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aloys
      • Aloys is located in Cuming County
    • Bancroft
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Monterey
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
      • Monterey is located in Cuming County
    • West Point
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
      • West Point is located in Cuming County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,237 people
      • West Point has also been known as:
      • Westpoint
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Point <2>
  • Dakota County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Hubbard
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Homer
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Dixon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Wakefield
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Emerson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emerson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerson
      • Emerson is located in Dixon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 789 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emerson <2>
    • Concord
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Concord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
      • Concord is located in Dixon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 151 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Concord <2>
    • Dixon
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Allen
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Waterbury
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Martinsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsburg
      • Martinsburg is located in Dixon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 87 people
  • Dodge County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Dodge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dodge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodge
      • Dodge is located in Dodge County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 582 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dodge <2>
    • Snyder
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snyder have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snyder
      • Snyder is located in Dodge County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 280 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Snyder <2>
    • Crowell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crowell
      • Crowell is located in Dodge County
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Norfolk
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Warnerville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warnerville
      • Warnerville is located in Madison County
    • Madison
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
      • Madison is located in Madison County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,343 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madison <2>
  • Pierce County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Hadar
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Wee Town
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wee Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wee Town
      • Wee Town is located in Pierce County
    • Pierce
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pierce have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierce
      • Pierce is located in Pierce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,734 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pierce <2>
  • Stanton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Pilger
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Stanton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Thurston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Altona, with the one closest to Altona listed first.
    • Pender
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Thurston
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thurston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thurston
      • Thurston is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thurston <2>
    • Rosalie
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rosalie have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosalie
      • Rosalie is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 159 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rosalie <2>
    • Walthill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Walthill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walthill
      • Walthill is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 836 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Walthill <2>
    • Winnebago
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winnebago have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winnebago
      • Winnebago is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 924 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Winnebago <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Altona ...

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 186 newspapers that have been published in the area around Altona.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Altona, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Altona.

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 either 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 Altona:

Cemeteries Near Altona ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Altona.

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

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

  • St. Paul Lutheran Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Carter Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Pilger Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Norwegian Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Norwegian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Norwegian Cemetery
  • LaPorte Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the LaPorte Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the LaPorte Cemetery
  • Pleasant Valley Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • 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
  • Wisner Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wisner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wisner Cemetery
  • St. Peters Lutheran Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Pleasant View Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant View Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant View Cemetery
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bethlehem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bethlehem Cemetery
  • Zander Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zander Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zander Cemetery
  • Continue List   (91 more) ...
    • Koch Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Koch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Koch Cemetery
    • Schwedt Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Salem Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Salem Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Salem Cemetery

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 Altona in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Altona.

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

  • Pilger
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Wisner
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Wayne
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wayne have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne
    • Wayne is located in Wayne County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,758 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wayne <2>
  • Winside
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Wakefield
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Bismarck ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bismarck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bismarck
    • Bismarck is located in Cuming County
  • Pender
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Stanton
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Beemer
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Carroll
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carroll have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
    • Carroll is located in Wayne County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 212 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carroll <2>
  • Hoskins
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Emerson
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emerson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerson
    • Emerson is located in Dixon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 789 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Emerson <2>
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Concord
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Concord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
      • Concord is located in Dixon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 151 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Concord <2>
    • Dixon
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Norfolk
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)

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

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

The official website for Wayne County: www.county.waynene.org/

The official website for State of Nebraska: www.nebraska.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- Altona) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Altona. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.1050, Longitude: -96.9923       In this case, the coordinates for Altona have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Altona, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024