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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 Beardsley (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 Beardsley. 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.

Beardsley is located in Hutchinson County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Hutchinson County: Bon Homme, Charles Mix, Davison, Douglas, Hanson, McCook, Turner & Yankton.

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

  • Hutchinson County     (The home county of Beardsley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Tripp
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Tripp is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tripp
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 614 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tripp <1>
    • Parkston
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Kaylor
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Dimock
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Milltown
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Milltown is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milltown
      • Estimated population in 2014: 115 people
    • Olivet
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Tschetter Colony
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Tschetter Colony is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tschetter Colony
      • Estimated population in 2014: 80 people
    • New Elm Springs Colony
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • New Elm Springs Colony is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Elm Springs Colony
      • Estimated population in 2014: 600 people
    • Wolf Creek
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Wolf Creek is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Creek
      • Estimated population in 2014: 195 people
    • Menno
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Menno is located in Hutchinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menno
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 615 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menno <1>
    • Freeman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Aurora County
    • Stickney
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Bon Homme County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Scotland
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Avon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Avon is located in Bon Homme County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 584 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Avon <1>
    • Tyndall
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Kingsburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Kingsburg is located in Bon Homme County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsburg
      • Estimated population in 2014: 697 people
    • Perkins
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Perkins is located in Bon Homme County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perkins
    • Tabor
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Tabor is located in Bon Homme County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 398 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tabor <1>
    • Springfield
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Charles Mix County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Dante
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Dante is located in Charles Mix County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dante
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dante <1>
    • Wagner
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Wagner is located in Charles Mix County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wagner
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,537 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wagner <1>
    • Ravinia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake Andes
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Marty
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Marty is located in Charles Mix County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marty
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 402 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marty <1>
  • Davison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Ethan
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Mitchell
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • River Bluff Addition
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • River Bluff Addition is located in Davison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Bluff Addition
      • Estimated population in 2014: 13 people
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Delmont
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Hillside
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Hillside is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillside
      • Estimated population in 2014: 31 people
    • Douglas City ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Douglas City is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douglas City
    • Armour
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Corsica
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Harrison
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Hanson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Rockport Colony
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Rockport Colony is located in Hanson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockport Colony
      • Estimated population in 2014: 32 people
    • Alexandria
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Emery
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Fulton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • McCook County
    • Bridgewater
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Yankton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beardsley, with the one closest to Beardsley listed first.
    • Lesterville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jamesville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jamesville is located in Yankton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamesville
      • Estimated population in 2014: 232 people

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

Cemeteries Near Beardsley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Beardsley.

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 Beardsley - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Pietz Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Lake Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Rosenfeld Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Hoffnungberg Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Bethel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Elgenfield Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Dakota City Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Friedens Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Grace Hill Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grace Hill Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Grace Hill Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the south of Tripp.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #97046 <2>
  • Holy Rosary Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (115 more) ...
    • Dennewitz Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Sacred Heart Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Parkston Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 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>

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

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

  • Tripp
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Tripp is located in Hutchinson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tripp
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 614 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tripp <1>
  • Parkston
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Delmont
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Milltown
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Milltown is located in Hutchinson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milltown
    • Estimated population in 2014: 115 people
  • Olivet
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
  • Scotland
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Ethan
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
  • Armour
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Avon
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Avon is located in Bon Homme County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avon
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 584 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Avon <1>
  • Menno
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Menno is located in Hutchinson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menno
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 615 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Menno <1>
  • Grandview ‑ Historic
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Grandview is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
  • Tyndall
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (9 more) ...
    • Lesterville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Alexandria
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Freeman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)

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

Newspapers Published in Beardsley ...

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 70 newspapers that have been published in the area around Beardsley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Beardsley, 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 Beardsley.

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 Beardsley:

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 Beardsley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Beardsley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.