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 Ontario (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 Ontario. 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.
Ontario is located in Richland 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 Richland County: Ashland, Crawford, Huron, Knox & Morrow.
Below are the counties that are near Ontario. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Ontario:
- Richland County (The home county of Ontario)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Maybee
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Maybee is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maybee
- Alta
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Alta is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
- Mansfield
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Vernon Junction
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Vernon Junction is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Junction
- Lexington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Hanley Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hanley Village is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanley Village
- Bethlehem
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bethlehem is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Shelby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Ganges
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Ganges is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
- Shenandoah
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Shenandoah is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shenandoah
- Bellville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bellville is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,935 people
- Bellville has also been known as:
- McClures Settlement
- McClure
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bellville <1>
- Lucas
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Olivesburg
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Olivesburg is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivesburg
- Ashland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Mifflin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Mifflin is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mifflin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
- Ashland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bailey Lakes
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Bailey Lakes is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 364 people
- Perrysville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hayesville
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Hayesville is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 459 people
- Savannah
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- McKay
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- McKay is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKay
- Jeromesville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Ruggles
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ruggles is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruggles
- Loudonville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Nova
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Polk
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Polk is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polk
- Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
- Rowsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Rowsburg is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowsburg
- Champaign County
- Rochester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rochester is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Crestline
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Galion
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Leesville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Leesville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Tiro
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- North Robinson
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- North Robinson is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Robinson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 198 people
- North Auburn
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- North Auburn is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Auburn
- New Washington
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Bucyrus
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Chatfield
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Chatfield is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 178 people
- Broken Sword
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Broken Sword is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broken Sword
- Broken Sword has also been known as:
- Bloody Corners
- Porterville
- Wingarts Corners
- Wingert Corners
- Wingerts Corners
- Oceola
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Oceola is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oceola
- Lemert
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Lemert is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemert
- Benton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Benton is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Delaware County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Peerless ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Peerless is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peerless
- Peerless has also been known as:
- Peerless Station
- Ashley
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Holmes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Nashville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Nashville is located in Holmes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 183 people
- Miley Crossroads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Miley Crossroads is located in Holmes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miley Crossroads
- Huron County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Delphi
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Delphi is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delphi
- Celeryville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Celeryville is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Celeryville
- Greenwich
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- New Haven
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- New Haven is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Haven
- Coble Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Coble Village is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coble Village
- Willard
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Fitchville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Fitchville is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitchville
- North Fairfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- North Fairfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Fairfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
- Steuben
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Steuben is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steuben
- New London
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Olena
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Olena is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
- Peru
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Peru is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
- Hartland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Hartland is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Batemantown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Batemantown is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batemantown
- Palmyra
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Palmyra is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmyra
- North Liberty
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- North Liberty is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Liberty
- Fredericktown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Nunda
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Nunda is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nunda
- Lucerne ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Lucerne is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucerne
- Dorema
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Dorema is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorema
- Jelloway
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jelloway is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jelloway
- Green Valley
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Green Valley is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Valley
- Amity
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Amity is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amity
- Mount Vernon
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Fleaville ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Fleaville is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleaville
- Fleaville has also been known as:
- Fleaville City
- Danville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lorain County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Rochester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Rochester is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
- Huntington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Huntington is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
- Marion County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Martel
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Martel is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martel
- Caledonia
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Logan ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Logan is located in Marion County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logan
- Marion
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Morrow County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Blooming Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Blooming Grove is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blooming Grove
- West Point
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Point is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Point
- Iberia
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Iberia is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iberia
- Mount Gilead
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Edison
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Chesterville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Cardington
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Fulton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sparta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Marengo
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Shawtown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Shawtown is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawtown
- Bloomfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Bloomfield is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Vails Corners
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Vails Corners is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vails Corners
- Seneca County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Carrothers
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Carrothers is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrothers
- Attica
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Caroline
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Caroline is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroline
- Attica Junction
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Attica Junction is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attica Junction
- Omar
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Omar is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omar
- Bloomville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Scipio
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Scipio is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipio
- Wayne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Funk
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Funk is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Funk
- Lattasburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Lattasburg is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lattasburg
- New Pittsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- New Pittsburg is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Pittsburg
- West Salem
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Jefferson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Jefferson is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Wyandot County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Wyandot
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Wyandot is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyandot
- Nevada
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Duenquat
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Duenquat is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duenquat
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Ontario, see our County-by-County Page for Ontario.
Cemeteries Near Ontario ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ontario.
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 Ontario - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Ontario covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Mansfield Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Ontario Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- New Castle Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Webster Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Springmill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springmill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Springmill Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the northwest of Mansfield.
- The Springmill Cemetery has also been known as:
- Leppo Cemetery
- Spring Mill Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2155572 <2>
- Red Squirrel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Day Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Mt. Bethel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Riblet Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Troy Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mansfield Catholic Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mansfield Catholic Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mansfield Catholic Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Mansfield.
- The Mansfield Catholic Cemetery has also been known as:
- St. Peter Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2308520 <2>
- Continue List (520 more) ...
- Mansfield Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mansfield Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mansfield Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Mansfield.
- The Mansfield Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mansfield City Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1977519 <2>
- Painter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Ohio State Reformatory Cemetery
(5 miles [8 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.<4>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Ontario had a population of 265 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Ontario had a population of 6,102 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Ontario, with the one closest to Ontario listed first.
- Spring Mill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Spring Mill is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Mill
- Toledo Junction
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Toledo Junction is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toledo Junction
- Mansfield
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Steam Corners
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Steam Corners is located in Morrow County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steam Corners
- Lexington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Vernon Junction
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Vernon Junction is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Junction
- Crestline
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Bethlehem
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bethlehem is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Shelby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Galion
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Pavonia
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Pavonia is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pavonia
- Epworth
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Epworth is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Epworth
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Ganges
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Ganges is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
- Leesville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Leesville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Bellville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bellville is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,935 people
- Bellville has also been known as:
- McClures Settlement
- McClure
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bellville <1>
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Ontario. See our List of 1890's Communities around Ontario.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Ontario ...
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 43 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ontario.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Ontario. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Ontario and those printed in the larger area surrounding Ontario.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3> of Ontario.
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 helpful 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 Ontario:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Richland County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Ashland County
- Champaign County
- Crawford County
- Delaware County
- Holmes County
- Huron County
- Knox County
- Lorain County
- Marion County
- Morrow County
- Seneca County
- Wayne County
- Wyandot 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> | 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. |
| <3> | 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- Ontario) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Ontario, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |