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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 South Mitchell (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 South Mitchell. 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 South Mitchell ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for South Mitchell: S. Mitchell

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 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.

South Mitchell is located in Scotts Bluff 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 Scotts Bluff County: Banner, Box Butte, Morrill, Sioux & Goshen (WY).

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

  • Scotts Bluff County     (The home county of South Mitchell)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Mitchell, with the one closest to South Mitchell listed first.
    • Mitchell
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Haig
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haig
      • Haig is located in Scotts Bluff County
    • Morrill
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morrill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrill
      • Morrill is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 873 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Morrill <1>
    • Stegall
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stegall. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stegall
      • Stegall is located in Scotts Bluff County
    • Scottsbluff
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Scoville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Scoville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scoville
      • Scoville is located in Scotts Bluff County
    • Terrytown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terrytown
      • Terrytown is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,163 people
    • Gering
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gering have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gering
      • Gering is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,061 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gering <1>
    • Hillerage
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillerage
      • Hillerage is located in Scotts Bluff County
    • Lyman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyman
      • Lyman is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 321 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyman <1>
    • Melbeta
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Melbeta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melbeta
      • Melbeta is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Melbeta <1>
    • Minatare
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • McGrew
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McGrew have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGrew
      • McGrew is located in Scotts Bluff County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 101 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for McGrew <1>
  • Banner County
  • Furnas County
    • Henry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Morrill County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Mitchell, with the one closest to South Mitchell listed first.
    • Craft
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Craft. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Craft
      • Craft is located in Morrill County
    • Bayard
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Goshen County (WY)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Mitchell, with the one closest to South Mitchell listed first.
    • Huntley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Torrington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hawk Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Yoder
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yoder
      • Yoder is located in Goshen County (WY)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Yoder <1>
    • La Grange
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Veteran
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near South Mitchell ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of South Mitchell.

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

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

  • Mitchell Valley Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Mitchell Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mitchell Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Mitchell Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northwest of Mitchell.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #100980 <5>
  • Sunset Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Pioneer Graves
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pioneer Graves
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Pioneer Graves. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Pioneer Graves is located 9 miles [14.5 km]<4> to the northeast of Scottsbluff.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2152212 <5>
  • Forest Lawn Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Caldwell Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • West Lawn Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Lawn Cemetery
    • The West Lawn Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Gering West Lawn Cemetery
    • Westlawn Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #101612 <5>
  • Pierre Didier Papin Gravesite
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • East Lawn Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
  • Sheep Creek Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Creighton Valley Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (12 more) ...
    • Pleasant Hill Cemetery
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Valley View Cemetery
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Gabe Rock Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)

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>

While we didn't find South Mitchell in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of South Mitchell.

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

  • Caldwell ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Caldwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caldwell
    • Caldwell is located in Scotts Bluff County
  • Gering
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gering have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gering
    • Gering is located in Scotts Bluff County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,061 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gering <1>
  • Minatare
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Torrington
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Harrisburg
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
  • La Grange
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in South Mitchell ...

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 51 newspapers that have been published in the area around South Mitchell.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of South Mitchell, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for South Mitchell.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 South Mitchell:

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

The official website for Scotts Bluff County: www.scottsbluffcounty.org/

The official website for State of Nebraska: https://www.nebraska.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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- South Mitchell) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in South Mitchell. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.9111, Longitude: -103.8133       In this case, the coordinates for South Mitchell have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 South Mitchell, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025