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 Wren (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 Wren. 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 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.
Wren 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 Wren. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Wren:
- Van Wert County (The home county of Wren)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Willshire
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Glenmore
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Glenmore is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
- Abanaka
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Abanaka is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abanaka
- Schumm
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Schumm is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schumm
- Ohio City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Convoy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Dixon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Dixon is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon
- Van Wert
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Elgin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Elgin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elgin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
- Venedocia
(16 miles [25.7 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
- Scott
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Middle Point
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Hoaglin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hoaglin is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoaglin
- Allen County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Landeck
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Landeck is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Landeck
- Delphos
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Southworth
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Southworth is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southworth
- Spencerville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Conant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Conant is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conant
- Scotts Crossing
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Scotts Crossing is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Crossing
- Elida
(30 miles [48.3 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
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Auglaize County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Saint Marys
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Buckland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Buckland is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 221 people
- Moulton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Moulton is located in Auglaize County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moulton
- Mercer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Rockford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Tama
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Tama is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tama
- Mercer
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mercer is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercer
- Scudder
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Scudder is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scudder
- Skeels Crossroads
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Skeels Crossroads is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skeels Crossroads
- Earley ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Earley is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earley
- Mendon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wabash
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Wabash is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabash
- Celina
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Macedon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Macedon is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macedon
- Coldwater
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Montezuma
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Montezuma is located in Mercer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Fort Recovery
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Paulding County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Batson ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Batson is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batson
- McGill ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- McGill is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGill
- Tipton ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Tipton is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton
- Folmer ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Folmer is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folmer
- Haviland
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Haviland is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haviland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 202 people
- Payne
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Worstville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Worstville is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worstville
- Dague ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Dague is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dague
- Grover Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Grover Hill is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grover Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
- Latty
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Latty is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latty
- Population from the 2020 Census: 180 people
- Broughton
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Broughton is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broughton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 115 people
- Hedges
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hedges is located in Paulding County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hedges
- Paulding
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Putnam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Ottoville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Fort Jennings
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Muntanna
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Muntanna is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muntanna
- Cloverdale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cloverdale is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 159 people
- Rimer
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Rimer is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rimer
- Dupont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hartsburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hartsburg is located in Putnam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsburg
- Adams County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Pleasant Mills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Decatur
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Monroe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Coppess Corner
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Coppess Corner is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coppess Corner
- Preble
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Berne
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Honduras
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Honduras is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honduras
- Magley
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Magley is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magley
- Geneva
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Linn Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Linn Grove is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linn Grove
- Allen County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Dixon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Dixon is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon
- Monroeville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hoagland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Zulu
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Zulu is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zulu
- Edgerton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Edgerton is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgerton
- Woodburn
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- New Haven
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Yoder
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Anthony Wayne Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Anthony Wayne Village is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anthony Wayne Village
- Hacienda Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Hacienda Village is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hacienda Village
- Fort Wayne
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Indian Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Indian Village is located in Allen County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
- Harlan
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Huntington County (IN)
- Markle
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Markle is located in Huntington County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markle
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,090 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Markle <1>
- Jay County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Jay City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Jay City is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jay City
- Trinity
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Trinity is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trinity
- Bryant
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bloomfield
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bloomfield is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
- Antiville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Antiville is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antiville
- Fiat
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Fiat is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fiat
- Portland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Pennville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Salamonia
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Salamonia is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salamonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 158 people
- Pony
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Pony is located in Jay County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pony
- Wells County (IN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Craigville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Craigville is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Craigville
- Vera Cruz
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Vera Cruz is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vera Cruz
- Population from the 2020 Census: 85 people
- Tocsin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Tocsin is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tocsin
- North Oaks
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- North Oaks is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Oaks
- Bluffton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Ossian
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Reiffsburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Reiffsburg is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reiffsburg
- Petroleum
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Petroleum is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petroleum
- Phenix
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Phenix is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phenix
- Travisville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Travisville is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Travisville
- Nottingham
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Nottingham is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nottingham
- Uniondale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Greenville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Greenville is located in Wells County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Wren, see our County-by-County Page for Wren.
Cemeteries Near Wren ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wren.
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 Wren - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Wren covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Wren Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Fletcher Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Old Mt. Tabor Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Willshire Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Evangelical Protestant Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Tabor Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Smith Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Zion Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Greenbriar Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- German Reformed Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for German Reformed Cemetery
- The German Reformed Cemetery has also been known as:
- German Cemetery
- Wittung Cemetery
- Continue List (317 more) ...
- Balyeat Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Glenn Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- McClure Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Wren had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Wren had a population of 184 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Wren, with the one closest to Wren listed first.
- Pleasant Mills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Willshire
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Rivare
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Rivare is located in Adams County (IN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rivare
- Schumm
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Schumm is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schumm
- Abanaka
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Abanaka is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abanaka
- Glenmore
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Glenmore is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
- Dull
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Dull is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dull
- Wolfcale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Wolfcale is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolfcale
- Ohio City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Convoy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Decatur
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Monroe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Richey
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Richey is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richey
- Rockford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Shasta ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Shasta is located in Van Wert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shasta
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Wren. See our List of 1890's Communities around Wren.
Newspapers Published in Wren ...
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 142 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wren.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Wren, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Wren.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Wren:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Van Wert County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Allen County
- Auglaize County
- Mercer County
- Paulding County
- Putnam County
- Adams County
- Allen County
- Huntington 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> | 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> | 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 Wren, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- Wren) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |