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 Jonestown (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 Jonestown. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.
Jonestown is located in Van Wert 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 Van Wert County: Adams (IN), Allen (IN), Allen, Auglaize, Mercer, Paulding & Putnam.
Below are the counties that are near Jonestown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Jonestown:
- Van Wert County (The home county of Jonestown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Elgin
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Elgin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
- Venedocia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Venedocia is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Venedocia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 118 people
- Converse
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Converse is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Converse
- Converse Station
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Converse Station is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Converse Station
- Ohio City
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Middle Point
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Monticello
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Monticello is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello
- Van Wert
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Abanaka
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Abanaka is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abanaka
- Glenmore
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Glenmore is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
- Schumm
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Schumm is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schumm
- Hoaglin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Hoaglin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoaglin
- Wren
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Allen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Landeck
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Landeck is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landeck
- Southworth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Southworth is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southworth
- Spencerville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Delphos
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Conant
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Conant is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conant
- Scotts Crossing
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Scotts Crossing is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Crossing
- Elida
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Elida is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elida
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,810 people
- Gomer
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Fort Shawnee
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Fort Shawnee is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Shawnee
- Estimated population in 2012: 3,643 people
- Lima
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Cairo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Cairo is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 520 people
- West Cairo
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- West Cairo is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Cairo
- Beaverdam
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Auglaize County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Buckland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Buckland is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 221 people
- Saint Marys
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Moulton
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Moulton is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moulton
- Cridersville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pusheta Town ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pusheta Town is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pusheta Town
- New Knoxville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- New Knoxville is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Knoxville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 862 people
- Wapakoneta
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- New Bremen
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Uniopolis
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Uniopolis is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uniopolis
- Estimated population in 2016: 220 people
- Fryburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Fryburg is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fryburg
- Saint Johns
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Saint Johns is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
- Minster
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Waynesfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Waynesfield is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynesfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 815 people
- Darke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Osgood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- New Weston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Yorkshire
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Mendon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Mercer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Mercer is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercer
- Rockford
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Earley ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Earley is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earley
- Tama
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Tama is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tama
- Celina
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Scudder
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Scudder is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scudder
- Montezuma
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Montezuma is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Skeels Crossroads
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Skeels Crossroads is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skeels Crossroads
- Wabash
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Wabash is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabash
- Coldwater
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Chickasaw
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Macedon
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Macedon is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedon
- Paulding County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Grover Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Grover Hill is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grover Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
- Haviland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Haviland is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haviland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 202 people
- Folmer ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Folmer is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folmer
- Mandale
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Mandale is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandale
- Tipton ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Tipton is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Dague ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Dague is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dague
- Murat ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Murat is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murat
- Former names for Murat:
- Hipp's Lock
- Timberville
- Batson ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Batson is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batson
- Broughton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Broughton is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broughton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 115 people
- McGill ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- McGill is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGill
- Hedges
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Hedges is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hedges
- Latty
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Latty is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 180 people
- Melrose
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Melrose is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Population from the 2020 Census: 259 people
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Fort Jennings
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Ottoville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Muntanna
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Muntanna is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muntanna
- Rimer
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Rimer is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rimer
- Jones City
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Jones City is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones City
- Cloverdale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Cloverdale is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 159 people
- Dupont
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Kalida
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hartsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hartsburg is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsburg
- Columbus Grove
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Continental
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Kieferville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Kieferville is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kieferville
- Glandorf
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Kettlersville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Botkins
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lehmkuhl Landing
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lehmkuhl Landing is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lehmkuhl Landing
- Filburns Island
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Filburns Island is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filburns Island
- Fort Laramie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Adams County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Pleasant Mills
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Decatur
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Monroe
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Coppess Corner
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Coppess Corner is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coppess Corner
- Berne
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Geneva
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Preble
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Honduras
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Honduras is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honduras
- Linn Grove
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Linn Grove is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linn Grove
- Magley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Magley is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magley
- Allen County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Dixon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Dixon is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon
- Monroeville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Edgerton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Edgerton is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgerton
- Hoagland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Zulu
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Zulu is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zulu
- Woodburn
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Jay County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Jay City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Jay City is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jay City
- Trinity
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Trinity is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trinity
- Bryant
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Antiville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Antiville is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antiville
- Bloomfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bloomfield is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Wells County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Vera Cruz
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Vera Cruz is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vera Cruz
- Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
- Craigville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Craigville is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Craigville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Jonestown, see our County-by-County Page for Jonestown.
Cemeteries Near Jonestown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Jonestown.
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 Jonestown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Jonestown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Venedocia Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Walnut Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Tomlinson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomlinson Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Tomlinson Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the northeast of Rockford.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #43755 <3>
- Goodwin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Wallick Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Wright Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Horeb Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Frisinger Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Coil Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Fryer Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mendon Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Woodlawn Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (410 more) ...
- Mt. Olive Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Coil Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Sherer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Jonestown had railroad service and no post office.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Jonestown, with the one closest to Jonestown listed first.
- Elgin
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Elgin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
- Venedocia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Venedocia is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Venedocia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 118 people
- Shasta ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Shasta is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shasta
- Converse
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Converse is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Converse
- Ohio City
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Mendon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Monticello
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Monticello is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello
- Landeck
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Landeck is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landeck
- Middle Point
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Van Wert
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dull
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Dull is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dull
- Rockford
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Mercer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Mercer is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercer
- Spencerville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Southworth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Southworth is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southworth
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Jonestown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Jonestown.
Newspapers Published in Jonestown ...
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 111 newspapers that have been published in the area around Jonestown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Jonestown, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Jonestown.
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 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 Jonestown:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Van Wert County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allen County
- Auglaize County
- Darke County
- Mercer County
- Paulding County
- Putnam County
- Shelby County
- Adams County
- Allen County
- Jay County
- Wells 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Jonestown) 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 Jonestown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |