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 Saint James (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 Saint James. 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.
Name Variations for Saint James ...
When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Saint James: St. James
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Saint James. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Saint James.
If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.
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.
Saint James is located in Cedar County.
To see how the shape of Nebraska's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Cedar County: Dixon, Knox, Pierce, Wayne, Clay (SD) & Yankton (SD).
Below are the counties that are near Saint James. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Saint James:
- Cedar County (The home county of Saint James)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Wynot
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Bow Valley
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Bow Valley is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow Valley
- Saint Helena
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Obert
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Obert is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obert
- Population from the 2020 Census: 22 people
- Hartington
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Fordyce
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Constance
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Constance is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Constance
- Aten
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Aten is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aten
- Coleridge
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Laurel
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Belden
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Magnet
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Randolph
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dixon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Maskell
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Maskell is located in Dixon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maskell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 68 people
- Newcastle
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Martinsburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Martinsburg is located in Dixon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 87 people
- Dixon
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Concord
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Ponca
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Allen
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Waterbury
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Crofton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Wausa
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bloomfield
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Lindy
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Lindy is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lindy
- Tewsville ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Tewsville is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tewsville
- Pierce County
- McLean
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Wayne County
- Sholes
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Sholes is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sholes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 20 people
- Plymouth County (IA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Westfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Akron
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Akron is located in Plymouth County (IA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akron
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,454 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Akron <1>
- Bon Homme County (SD)
- Tabor
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Tabor is located in Bon Homme County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
- Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tabor <1>
- Clay County (SD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Meckling
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Vermillion
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Westreville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Westreville is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westreville
- Population from the 2010 Census: 208 people
- Burbank
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Bloomingdale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bloomingdale is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
- Wakonda
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Greenfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Greenfield is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
- Estimated population in 2014: 40 people
- Lodi
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Lodi is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
- Estimated population in 2014: 82 people
- Hub City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hub City is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hub City
- Riverside ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Riverside is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Alsen
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Alsen is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alsen
- Komstad ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Komstad is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Komstad
- Estimated population in 2014: 12 people
- Glenwood ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Glenwood is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- Estimated population in 2014: 103 people
- Turner County (SD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Irene
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Centerville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Viborg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Union County (SD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Junction City
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Junction City is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
- Spink
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Spink is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spink
- Estimated population in 2014: 237 people
- Elk Point
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Richland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Richland is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Estimated population in 2014: 215 people
- Emmet
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Emmet is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmet
- Estimated population in 2014: 231 people
- Nora
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Nora is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nora
- Estimated population in 2014: 240 people
- Beresford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Beresford is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,043 people
- Former name for Beresford:
- Paris
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Beresford <1>
- Big Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Big Springs is located in Union County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Springs
- Yankton County (SD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Gayville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Mission Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Volin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Yankton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Valleyview
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Valleyview is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valleyview
- Fairview Heights
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fairview Heights is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Heights
- Estimated population in 2014: 77 people
- Oak Hills Addition
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Hills Addition is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hills Addition
- Estimated population in 2014: 23 people
- Utica
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Mayfield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Mayfield is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayfield
- Estimated population in 2014: 208 people
- Midway
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Midway is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Jamesville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Jamesville is located in Yankton County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamesville
- Estimated population in 2014: 232 people
- Lesterville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Saint James, see our County-by-County Page for Saint James.
Cemeteries Near Saint James ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Saint James.
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.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Saint James - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Saint James covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Wynot Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Paragon Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Danisi Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Meckling Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- St. Helena Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Obert Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Taylor Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Maskell Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Hartington Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Lime Creek Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- St. Michaels Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (108 more) ...
- Gayville Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fordyce Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Clay Creek Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Saint James had a population of 177 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
- Bow Valley
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Bow Valley is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow Valley
- Saint Helena
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Meckling
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Hartington
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Lime Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lime Grove is located in Dixon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lime Grove
- Gayville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Vermillion
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Menominee
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Menominee is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menominee
- Constance
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Constance is located in Cedar County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Constance
- Newcastle
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Yankton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Volin
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Coleridge
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Burbank
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Bloomingdale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bloomingdale is located in Clay County (SD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Saint James. See our List of 1890's Communities around Saint James.
Newspapers Published in Saint James ...
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 105 newspapers that have been published in the area around Saint James.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Saint James, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Saint James.
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 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 Saint James:
- Websites specific to Nebraska
- Pages specific to Cedar County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Dixon County
- Knox County
- Pierce County
- Wayne County
- Plymouth County
- Bon Homme County
- Clay County
- Turner County
- Union County
- Yankton County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Nebraska
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> | 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- Saint James) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Saint James, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |