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 Willowdell (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 Willowdell. 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.
Willowdell is located in Darke 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 Darke County: Jay (IN), Randolph (IN), Wayne (IN), Mercer, Miami, Montgomery, Preble & Shelby.
Below are the counties that are near Willowdell. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Willowdell:
- Darke County (The home county of Willowdell)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Yorkshire
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Osgood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Frenchtown
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Frenchtown is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchtown
- Versailles
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Brock
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Brock is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brock
- North Star
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Dawn
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Dawn is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawn
- Rossburg
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- New Weston
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Ansonia
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ansonia is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ansonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,120 people
- Stelvideo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Stelvideo is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stelvideo
- Pikeville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pikeville is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pikeville
- Gettysburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Gettysburg is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gettysburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 809 people
- Allen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Spencerville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Conant
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Conant is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conant
- Fort Shawnee
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Shawnee is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Shawnee
- Estimated population in 2012: 3,643 people
- Auglaize County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Minster
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- New Bremen
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- New Knoxville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- New Knoxville is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Knoxville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 862 people
- Saint Marys
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Moulton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Moulton is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moulton
- Fryburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Fryburg is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fryburg
- Pusheta Town ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Pusheta Town is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pusheta Town
- Wapakoneta
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Buckland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Buckland is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 221 people
- Saint Johns
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Saint Johns is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns
- Santa Fe
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Santa Fe is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Fe
- Cridersville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Uniopolis
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Uniopolis is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uniopolis
- Estimated population in 2016: 220 people
- Champaign County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Carysville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Carysville is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carysville
- Christiansburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Saint Paris
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Millerstown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Millerstown is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerstown
- Logan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Quincy
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Logansville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Logansville is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logansville
- De Graff
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Lakeview
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Chickasaw
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Burkettsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Saint Henry
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Montezuma
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Montezuma is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Wendelin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Wendelin is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wendelin
- Coldwater
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Celina
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Fort Recovery
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Macedon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Macedon is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedon
- Earley ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Earley is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earley
- Wabash
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Wabash is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabash
- Tama
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Tama is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tama
- Scudder
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Scudder is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scudder
- Miami County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Bloomer
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Bloomer is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomer
- Polo
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Polo is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polo
- Bradford
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- West Covington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- West Covington is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Covington
- Covington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Piqua
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Laura
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Fletcher
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Fletcher is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher
- Population from the 2020 Census: 486 people
- Ludlow Falls
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Ludlow Falls is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ludlow Falls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Troy
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Potsdam
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Potsdam is located in Miami County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potsdam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 295 people
- Casstown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Phillipsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Phillipsburg is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 550 people
- Union
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Wengerlawn
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Wengerlawn is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wengerlawn
- Arlington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Arlington is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Clayton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Preble County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Verona
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- West Manchester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Eldorado
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Eldorado is located in Preble County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldorado
- Population from the 2020 Census: 490 people
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Fort Laramie
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Russia
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Filburns Island
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Filburns Island is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Filburns Island
- Dawson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Dawson is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
- Lehmkuhl Landing
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lehmkuhl Landing is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lehmkuhl Landing
- Hardin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Hardin is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardin
- Kettlersville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Lockington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Lockington is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 133 people
- Sidney
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Anna
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Botkins
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Pasco
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Pasco is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasco
- Port Jefferson
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Van Wert County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Monticello
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Monticello is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello
- Converse Station
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Converse Station is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Converse Station
- Converse
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Converse is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Converse
- Elgin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Elgin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
- Jay County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Salamonia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Salamonia is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salamonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Boundary City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Boundary City is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boundary City
- Trinity
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Trinity is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trinity
- Jay City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Jay City is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jay City
- Bluff Point
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bluff Point is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Point
- Portland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Collett
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Collett is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collett
- Antiville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Antiville is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antiville
- Bloomfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bloomfield is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Randolph County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Union City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Haysville Corner
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Haysville Corner is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haysville Corner
- New Pittsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- New Pittsburg is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Pittsburg
- Saratoga
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Spartanburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Spartanburg is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spartanburg
- Arba
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Arba is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arba
- Winchester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Rural
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Rural is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural
- Snow Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Snow Hill is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow Hill
- Ridgeville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Ridgeville is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 734 people
- Stone
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Stone is located in Randolph County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Willowdell, see our County-by-County Page for Willowdell.
Cemeteries Near Willowdell ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willowdell.
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 Willowdell - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willowdell covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Willowdell Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Speelman Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- St. Martins Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mendenhall Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Yoder Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- English Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Walkup Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- St. Valberts Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- St. Peter & St. Paul Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Cynthian Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- St. Michaels New Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- St. Michael Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (474 more) ...
- St. Louis Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Teacup Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- St. Paul Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
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 in 1895, Willowdell had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Willowdell, with the one closest to Willowdell listed first.
- Yorkshire
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Strakers ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Strakers is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strakers
- Osgood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Steinman ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Steinman is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steinman
- Delvin ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Delvin is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delvin
- Russia
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Brock
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Brock is located in Darke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brock
- Versailles
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- North Star
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Maria Stein
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Houston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Houston is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Dawson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Dawson is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Saint Rosa
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Rosa is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Rosa
- Oran
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Oran is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oran
- Minster
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Willowdell. See our List of 1890's Communities around Willowdell.
Newspapers Published in Willowdell ...
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 68 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willowdell.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willowdell, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Willowdell.
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 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 Willowdell:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Darke County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allen County
- Auglaize County
- Champaign County
- Logan County
- Mercer County
- Miami County
- Montgomery County
- Preble County
- Shelby County
- Van Wert County
- Jay County
- Randolph 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 Willowdell, 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 from Point A (ie- Willowdell) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |