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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 Fox Valley (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 Fox Valley. 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.

Name Variations for Fox Valley ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Fox Valley: Fox Vly. (or less commonly used: Fox Vally. or Fox Vlly.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Fox Valley is located in Linn County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Linn County: Benton, Deschutes, Jefferson, Lane, Marion & Polk.

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

  • Linn County     (The home county of Fox Valley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fox Valley, with the one closest to Fox Valley listed first.
    • Mill City
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mill City. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill City
      • Mill City is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,983 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mill City <2>
    • Lyons
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Gates
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gates have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gates
      • Gates is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 515 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gates <2>
    • Jordan
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordan
      • Jordan is located in Linn County
    • Bryant City ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bryant City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryant City
      • Bryant City is located in Linn County
    • Lacomb
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacomb
      • Lacomb is located in Linn County
    • Scio
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • West Scio
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for West Scio. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Scio
      • West Scio is located in Linn County
    • Crabtree
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Waterloo
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waterloo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterloo
      • Waterloo is located in Linn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
    • Idanha
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • New Idanha
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Lebanon
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
  • Benton County
    • North Albany
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Albany have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Albany
      • North Albany is located in Benton County
  • Clackamas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fox Valley, with the one closest to Fox Valley listed first.
    • Wilhoit
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilhoit. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilhoit
      • Wilhoit is located in Clackamas County
    • Molalla
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Glen Avon
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Avon
      • Glen Avon is located in Clackamas County
    • Colton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Liberal
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberal
      • Liberal is located in Clackamas County
    • Needy ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needy
      • Needy is located in Clackamas County
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fox Valley, with the one closest to Fox Valley listed first.
    • Mehama
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Silver Falls City
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Falls City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Falls City
      • Silver Falls City is located in Marion County
    • Drake Crossing
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drake Crossing
      • Drake Crossing is located in Marion County
    • Stayton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stayton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stayton
      • Stayton is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,256 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stayton <2>
    • Sublimity
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sublimity have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sublimity
      • Sublimity is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,784 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sublimity <2>
    • West Stayton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Aumsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Detroit
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Macleay
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Macleay. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macleay
      • Macleay is located in Marion County
    • Marion
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Scotts Mills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotts Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Mills
      • Scotts Mills is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 396 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Scotts Mills <2>
    • Silverton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silverton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverton
      • Silverton is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,617 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silverton <2>
    • Turner
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Turner have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turner
      • Turner is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,130 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Turner <2>
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fox Valley, with the one closest to Fox Valley listed first.
    • Salemtowne
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salemtowne
      • Salemtowne is located in Polk County
    • Buena Vista
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Buena Vista. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
      • Buena Vista is located in Polk County
    • Eola
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eola have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eola
      • Eola is located in Polk County

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

Cemeteries Near Fox Valley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fox Valley.

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 Fox Valley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Fox Valley Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fox Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fox Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • John Shelton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the John Shelton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the John Shelton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fairview Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fairview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Humphrey Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Humphrey Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Humphrey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jordan Catholic Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jordan Catholic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jordan Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pietrock Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pietrock Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pietrock Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bilyeu Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bilyeu Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bilyeu Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Wisner Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wisner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wisner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hobson - Whitney Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hobson - Whitney Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hobson - Whitney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Campbell - Grier Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Campbell - Grier Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Campbell - Grier Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (117 more) ...
    • Mountain View Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mountain View Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mountain View Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Union Hill Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Hill Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Boniface Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Boniface Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Boniface Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 Fox Valley had a population of 163 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Mill City
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mill City. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill City
    • Mill City is located in Linn County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,983 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mill City <2>
  • Lyons
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Gates
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gates have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gates
    • Gates is located in Linn County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 515 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gates <2>
  • Jordan
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jordan
    • Jordan is located in Linn County
  • Hullt ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hullt have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hullt
    • Hullt is located in Marion County
  • Niagara
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Niagara have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Niagara
    • Niagara is located in Marion County
  • Kingston
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingston have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
    • Kingston is located in Linn County
  • Sublimity
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sublimity have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sublimity
    • Sublimity is located in Marion County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,784 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sublimity <2>
  • Stayton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stayton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stayton
    • Stayton is located in Marion County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,256 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stayton <2>
  • Ale ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ale have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ale
    • Ale is located in Marion County
  • Scio
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • Lacomb
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacomb
    • Lacomb is located in Linn County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Clymer ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clymer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clymer
      • Clymer is located in Marion County
    • West Stayton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Shelburn ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelburn have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelburn
      • Shelburn is located in Linn County

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

Newspapers Published in Fox Valley ...

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 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fox Valley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fox Valley, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fox Valley.

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 professional and volunteer 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 Fox Valley:

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

The official website for Linn County: www.co.linn.or.us/

The official website for State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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 Fox Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Fox Valley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Fox Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.7596, Longitude: -122.5518       In this case, the coordinates for Fox Valley have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025