RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Oklahoma >> Major County >> Chester >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Oklahoma

The Commemorative Quarter for Oklahoma





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 Chester (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 Chester. 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 doctors and hospitals 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.

Chester is located in Major County.

To see how the shape of Oklahoma's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Major County: Alfalfa, Blaine, Dewey, Garfield, Kingfisher, Woods & Woodward.

Below are the counties that are near Chester. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Chester:

  • Major County     (The home county of Chester)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
    • Phroso ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phroso
      • Phroso is located in Major County
    • Fairview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Orienta
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Cleo Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cleo Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleo Springs
      • Cleo Springs is located in Major County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cleo Springs <1>
  • Blaine County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
    • Cantonment ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cantonment. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cantonment
      • Cantonment is located in Blaine County
    • Longdale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Canton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Eagle City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle City
      • Eagle City is located in Blaine County
    • Southard
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Dewey County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
    • Seiling
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Taloga
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Vici
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Oakwood
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Camargo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Putnam
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
  • Woods County
    • Waynoka
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waynoka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynoka
      • Waynoka is located in Woods County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 902 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waynoka <1>
  • Woodward County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.
    • Richmond
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richmond have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
      • Richmond is located in Woodward County
    • Mutual
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Quinlan
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Quinlan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinlan
      • Quinlan is located in Woodward County
    • Curtis
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis
      • Curtis is located in Woodward County
    • Mooreland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Sharon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Woodward
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Chester, see our County-by-County Page for Chester.

Newspapers Published in Chester ...

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 76 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chester.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chester, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chester.

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 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 Chester:

Cemeteries Near Chester ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chester.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Chester covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.

  • Chester Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chester Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chester Cemetery
  • Brumfield Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brumfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brumfield Cemetery
  • Elm Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Richmond Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Hope Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hope Cemetery
  • Orion Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Orion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Orion Cemetery
  • Golden Lodge Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Golden Lodge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Golden Lodge Cemetery
  • Cedardale Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Cemetery
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Antioch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Antioch Cemetery
  • Liberty Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Liberty Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Liberty Cemetery
  • Dunlap Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (79 more) ...
    • Miller Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Riley Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Munice Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Munice Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Munice Cemetery

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.<6>

While we didn't find Chester in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Chester.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Chester, with the one closest to Chester listed first.

  • Richmond
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Richmond have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
    • Richmond is located in Woodward County
  • Taloga
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Cantonment ‑ Historic
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cantonment. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cantonment
    • Cantonment is located in Blaine County
  • Curtis
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis
    • Curtis is located in Woodward County
  • Heman
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heman
    • Heman is located in Woods County
  • Camargo
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Fairview
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
  • Waynoka
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waynoka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynoka
    • Waynoka is located in Woods County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 902 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waynoka <1>
  • Alston
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alston
    • Alston is located in Woodward County
  • Homestead
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homestead have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homestead
    • Homestead is located in Blaine County

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Chester. See our List of 1890's Communities around Chester.

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Chester. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Oklahoma: https://www.ok.gov/

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 location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Chester) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Chester. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.2166, Longitude: -98.9208    
<5>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.
<6>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 Chester, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024