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 Big Plain (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 Big Plain. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Big Plain is located in Madison County.
To see how the shape of Ohio's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Madison County: Champaign, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Pickaway & Union.
Below are the counties that are near Big Plain. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Big Plain:
- Madison County (The home county of Big Plain)
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Chrisman
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Chrisman is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chrisman
- Jefferson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Jefferson is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- West Jefferson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- West Jefferson is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Jefferson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,482 people
- Mount Sterling
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- London
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Gillivan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Gillivan is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillivan
- Range
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Range is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Range
- Summerford
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Summerford is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerford
- Midway
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Choctaw Lake
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Choctaw Lake is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Choctaw Lake
- Deer Creek Village ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Deer Creek Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek Village
- Plumwood
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Plumwood is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumwood
- Champaign County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Mechanicsburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mutual
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Mutual is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mutual
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Powhattan
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Powhattan is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powhattan
- Woodstock
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Woodstock is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodstock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
- North Lewisburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Urbana
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Clark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Lisbon
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Lisbon is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
- South Charleston
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- South Vienna
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Catawba
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Catawba is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catawba
- Population from the 2020 Census: 275 people
- Cortsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cortsville is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortsville
- New Moorefield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- New Moorefield is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Moorefield
- Kenwood Heights
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Kenwood Heights is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenwood Heights
- Villa
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Villa is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa
- Northridge
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Northridge is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northridge
- Oakwood Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Oakwood Village is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood Village
- Shawnee Acres
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Shawnee Acres is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawnee Acres
- Green Hedges
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Green Hedges is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hedges
- Clinton County
- Sabina
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Delaware County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Shawnee Hills
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Powell
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hills Grove ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Hills Grove is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Grove
- Rathbone ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rathbone is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rathbone
- Scioto Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Scioto Village is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scioto Village
- White Sulphur Springs ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cutlers Corners ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Cutlers Corners is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cutlers Corners
- Liberty Church ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Liberty Church is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Church
- Liberty Church has also been known as:
- Union
- Orange Station ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Orange Station is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Station
- Williamsville ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Williamsville is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
- Hyatts
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Hyatts is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hyatts
- Hyatts has also been known as:
- Hyattsville
- Lewis Center
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Fairfield County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Lithopolis
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Cedar Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Cedar Hill is located in Fairfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Hill
- Jefferson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Jefferson is located in Fairfield County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Pickerington
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Stoutsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Cook
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Cook is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook
- Cook has also been known as:
- Cook Station
- Yatesville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Yatesville is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yatesville
- Bloomingburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Jeffersonville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hagler
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hagler is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagler
- Washington Court House
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Washington
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Washington is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washington
- Milledgeville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Milledgeville is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milledgeville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 108 people
- Octa
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Octa is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Octa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 59 people
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Darbydale
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Darbydale is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darbydale
- Darby Park ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Darby Park is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darby Park
- Harrisburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Corners
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Corners is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Corners
- Lake Darby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Lake Darby is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Darby
- Galloway
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Alton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Alton is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alton
- Ridpath ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Ridpath is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridpath
- Grove City Country Club
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Grove City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Lincoln Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lincoln Village is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Village
- New Rome
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- New Rome is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Rome
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Grape Grove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Grape Grove is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grape Grove
- Jamestown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Cedarville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Clifton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Bowersville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bowersville is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowersville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 332 people
- Shawnee Hills
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Shawnee Hills is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawnee Hills
- New Jasper
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- New Jasper is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Jasper
- Licking County
- Summit Station
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Summit Station is located in Licking County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit Station
- Summit Station has also been known as:
- Summit
- Pickaway County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Orient
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Matville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Matville is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matville
- Commercial Point
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Darbyville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Darbyville is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darbyville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 232 people
- Grange Hall
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Grange Hall is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grange Hall
- Pherson
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Pherson is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pherson
- Duvall
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Duvall is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duvall
- South Bloomfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- South Bloomfield is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Bloomfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,977 people
- New Holland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Ashville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Fox
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Fox is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox
- Williamsport
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ross County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Clarksburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Clarksburg is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 441 people
- Austin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Austin is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austin
- Yellowbud
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Yellowbud is located in Ross County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellowbud
- Frankfort
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Unionville Center
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Unionville Center is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unionville Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 229 people
- New California
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- New California is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New California
- Jerome
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Jerome is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerome
- Milford Center
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Marysville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- New Dover
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- New Dover is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Dover
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Big Plain, see our County-by-County Page for Big Plain.
Cemeteries Near Big Plain ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Big Plain.
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 Big Plain - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Big Plain covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Big Plain Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Dennison Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Fitzgerald Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jackson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Timmons Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Graham Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Little Pennsylvania Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Lower Glade Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Johnston - McClimans Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- McDonald Family Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mt. Calvary Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Continue List (476 more) ...
- Old Johnston Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Cemetery
- The Pleasant Cemetery has also been known as:
- Alkire Cemetery
- Orient Feeble Minded Institute Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
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.<2>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Big Plain had a population of 174 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Big Plain, with the one closest to Big Plain listed first.
- Kiousville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Kiousville is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kiousville
- Lilly Chapel
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Lilly Chapel is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lilly Chapel
- Nioga ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Nioga is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nioga
- Georgesville
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Georgesville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgesville
- Derby
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Derby is located in Pickaway County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derby
- Harrisburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Orient
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- West Jefferson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- West Jefferson is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Jefferson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,482 people
- Chenoweth
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Chenoweth is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chenoweth
- Mount Sterling
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Corners
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Pleasant Corners is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Corners
- Galloway
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (20 more) ...
- Alton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Alton is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alton
- Lafayette
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lafayette is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lafayette
- London
(9 miles [14.5 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 Big Plain. See our List of 1890's Communities around Big Plain.
Newspapers Published in Big Plain ...
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 347 newspapers that have been published in the area around Big Plain.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Big Plain, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Big Plain.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Big Plain:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Madison County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Champaign County
- Clark County
- Clinton County
- Delaware County
- Fairfield County
- Fayette County
- Franklin County
- Greene County
- Licking County
- Pickaway County
- Ross County
- Union County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Ohio
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> | 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 Big Plain, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 drawn from Point A (ie- Big Plain) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |