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 Pontiac (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 Pontiac. 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 southwest 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 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 west 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.
Pontiac is located in Huron 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 Huron County: Ashland, Crawford, Erie, Lorain, Richland, Sandusky & Seneca.
Below are the counties that are near Pontiac. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Pontiac:
- Huron County (The home county of Pontiac)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Monroeville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Hunts Corners
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hunts Corners is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunts Corners
- Hunts Corners has also been known as:
- Moorehead
- Peru
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Peru is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
- Norwalk
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Steuben
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Steuben is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steuben
- North Fairfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- North Fairfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Fairfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
- Olena
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Olena is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
- Willard
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Coble Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Coble Village is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coble Village
- New Haven
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- New Haven is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Haven
- Celeryville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Celeryville is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Celeryville
- Collins
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Collins is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
- Ashland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Ruggles
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ruggles is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruggles
- Nova
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Savannah
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bailey Lakes
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bailey Lakes is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 364 people
- Ashland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Champaign County
- Rochester
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rochester is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- North Auburn
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- North Auburn is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Auburn
- New Washington
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Tiro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Chatfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Chatfield is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 178 people
- Broken Sword
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- 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
- Benton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Benton is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Crestline
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Leesville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Leesville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- North Robinson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- North Robinson is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Robinson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 198 people
- Lemert
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lemert is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemert
- Bucyrus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Oceola
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Oceola is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oceola
- Erie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Milan
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- North Milan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- North Milan is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Milan
- Avery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Avery is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery
- Berlinville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Berlinville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlinville
- Bogart
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Bogart is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bogart
- Castalia
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Berlin Heights
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Shinrock
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Shinrock is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shinrock
- Fairview Lanes
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Fairview Lanes is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Lanes
- Huron
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Venice
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Venice is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Venice
- Florence
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Florence is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Lorain County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Brighton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Brighton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- Kipton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Kipton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kipton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
- Rochester
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rochester is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
- Henrietta
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Henrietta is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrietta
- Vermilion
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Huntington
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Huntington is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
- Wellington
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Vermilion-on-the-Lake
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Oberlin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Brownhelm Station
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Brownhelm Station is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownhelm Station
- South Amherst
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- South Amherst is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Amherst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,663 people
- Amherst
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ottawa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Danbury
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Danbury is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danbury
- Gypsum
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Marblehead
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Violet ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Violet is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Violet
- Port Clinton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Catawba Island
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Catawba Island is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catawba Island
- Lacarne
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lacarne is located in Ottawa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacarne
- Oak Harbor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Richland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Plymouth
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Plymouth is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,789 people
- Forest ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Forest is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
- Shiloh
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Shelby
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Ganges
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ganges is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
- Shenandoah
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Shenandoah is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shenandoah
- Vernon Junction
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Vernon Junction is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Junction
- Bethlehem
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Bethlehem is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Olivesburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Olivesburg is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivesburg
- Maybee
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Maybee is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maybee
- Ontario
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Sandusky County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Bellevue
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Clyde
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Teemes ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Teemes is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teemes
- Vickery
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Vickery is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vickery
- Erlin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Erlin is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erlin
- Green Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Green Creek is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Creek
- Ballville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Ballville is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballville
- Fremont
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Shorewood Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Shorewood Village is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shorewood Village
- Stony Prairie
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Stony Prairie is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Prairie
- Kingsway
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Kingsway is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsway
- Gabels Corner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Gabels Corner is located in Sandusky County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gabels Corner
- Seneca County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Flat Rock
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Flat Rock is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Omar
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Omar is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omar
- Attica Junction
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Attica Junction is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attica Junction
- West Lodi
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- West Lodi is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lodi
- Attica
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Caroline
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Caroline is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroline
- Scipio
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Scipio is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipio
- Republic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Carrothers
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Carrothers is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrothers
- Bloomville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Green Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Watson
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Watson is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watson
- Watson has also been known as:
- Watson Station
- Watsons Station
- Wyandot County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Duenquat
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Duenquat is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duenquat
- Mexico
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mexico is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexico
- Sycamore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sycamore is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 811 people
- Belle Vernon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Belle Vernon is located in Wyandot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Vernon
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Pontiac, see our County-by-County Page for Pontiac.
Cemeteries Near Pontiac ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pontiac.
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 Pontiac - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pontiac covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Pontiac Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Peru Center Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru Center Cemetery
- The Peru Center Cemetery has also been known as:
- Old School Cemetery
- School House Cemetery
- St. Joseph Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Heyman Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- St. Sebastian Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Lyme Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Riverside Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Bronson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Alphonsus Catholic Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Joseph Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Jones Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Boughton Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (415 more) ...
- Hester Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hester Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Hester Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 5 miles [8 km]<2> to the south of Norwalk.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #41379 <3>
- Trinity Episcopal Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Axe Factory 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 in 1895, Pontiac had railroad service and no post office.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Pontiac, with the one closest to Pontiac listed first.
- Bismarck
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bismarck is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bismarck
- Havana
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Havana is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
- Monroeville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Peru
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Peru is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
- Weavers Corners
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Weavers Corners is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weavers Corners
- North Monroeville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- North Monroeville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Monroeville
- Reedtown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Reedtown is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedtown
- Steuben
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Steuben is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steuben
- Norwalk
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Frank
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Frank is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frank
- Lyme ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lyme is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyme
- Flat Rock
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Flat Rock is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Omar
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Omar is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omar
- Relief ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Relief is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Relief
- North Fairfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- North Fairfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Fairfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Pontiac. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pontiac.
Newspapers Published in Pontiac ...
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 84 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pontiac.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Pontiac, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Pontiac.
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 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 Pontiac:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Huron County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Ashland County
- Champaign County
- Crawford County
- Erie County
- Lorain County
- Ottawa County
- Richland County
- Sandusky County
- Seneca 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> | 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 from Point A (ie- Pontiac) 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 Pontiac, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |