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 Bruce (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 Bruce. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors 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.
Bruce is located in Brookings County.
To see how the shape of South Dakota's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Brookings County: Lincoln (MN), Deuel, Hamlin, Kingsbury, Lake & Moody.
Below are the counties that are near Bruce. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bruce:
- Brookings County (The home county of Bruce)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- North Grove Addition
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Grove Addition have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Grove Addition
- North Grove Addition is located in Brookings County
- Estimated population in 2014: 471 people
- Volga
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Sunnyview
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnyview
- Sunnyview is located in Brookings County
- Estimated population in 2014: 17 people
- Brookings
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- White
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
- White is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 487 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for White <2>
- Aurora
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aurora have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurora
- Aurora is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 866 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Aurora <2>
- Bushnell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Bushnell is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Sinai
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sinai have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinai
- Sinai is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 125 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sinai <2>
- Medary
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Medary have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medary
- Medary is located in Brookings County
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,442 people
- Elkton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Codington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Appleby
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleby
- Appleby is located in Codington County
- Kranzburg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kranzburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kranzburg
- Kranzburg is located in Codington County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 176 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kranzburg <2>
- Deuel County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Johnsonville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsonville
- Johnsonville is located in Deuel County
- Toronto
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Astoria
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Astoria have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Astoria
- Astoria is located in Deuel County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 134 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Astoria <2>
- Brandt
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brandt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandt
- Brandt is located in Deuel County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brandt <2>
- Clear Lake
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bemis
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bemis
- Bemis is located in Deuel County
- Altamont
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altamont have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altamont
- Altamont is located in Deuel County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 34 people
- Goodwin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goodwin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodwin
- Goodwin is located in Deuel County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 150 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Goodwin <2>
- Hamlin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Estelline
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Estelline have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelline
- Estelline is located in Hamlin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Estelline <2>
- Dempster
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dempster
- Dempster is located in Hamlin County
- Stone Bridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stone Bridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone Bridge
- Stone Bridge is located in Hamlin County
- Estimated population in 2014: 105 people
- Alsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alsville
- Alsville is located in Hamlin County
- Lake Norden
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Castlewood
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Hayti
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hayti have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayti
- Hayti is located in Hamlin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 381 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hayti <2>
- Kones Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kones Corner
- Kones Corner is located in Hamlin County
- Thomas
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
- Thomas is located in Hamlin County
- Estimated population in 2014: 290 people
- Bryant
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Kingsbury County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Arlington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arlington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Arlington is located in Kingsbury County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 872 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Arlington <2>
- Badger
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Hetland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Lake Preston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Oldham
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oldham have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oldham
- Oldham is located in Kingsbury County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oldham <2>
- Erwin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Erwin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erwin
- Erwin is located in Kingsbury County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 45 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Erwin <2>
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Nunda
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nunda have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nunda
- Nunda is located in Lake County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nunda <2>
- Rutland
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Ramona
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ramona have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramona
- Ramona is located in Lake County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 202 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ramona <2>
- Wentworth
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Moody County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Dyce ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Dyce. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyce
- Dyce is located in Moody County
- Ward
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ward have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
- Ward is located in Moody County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ward <2>
- Flandreau
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flandreau have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flandreau
- Flandreau is located in Moody County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,293 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Flandreau <2>
- Lincoln County (MN)
- Hendricks
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bruce, see our County-by-County Page for Bruce.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bruce ...
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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bruce.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Bruce. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Bruce and those printed in the larger area surrounding Bruce.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4> of Bruce.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Bruce:
- Websites specific to South Dakota
- Pages specific to Brookings County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Codington County
- Deuel County
- Hamlin County
- Kingsbury County
- Lake County
- Moody County
- Lincoln County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for South Dakota
Cemeteries Near Bruce ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bruce.
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 Bruce covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Elmwood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Elmwood Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the east of Bruce.
- The Elmwood Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bruce Cemetery
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elmwood Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2151790 <5>
- Deer Creek Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Deer Creek Cemetery is located outside and to the southeast of Bruce.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Deer Creek Cemetery
- St. Petri Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Petri Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Petri Cemetery
- Oakwood Zion Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakwood Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakwood Zion Cemetery
- Hillside Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillside Cemetery
- St. John Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Cemetery
- Trinity Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- First Lutheran Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the First Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the First Lutheran Cemetery
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Pauls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Pauls Cemetery
- Trasta Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trasta Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trasta Cemetery
- Lutheran Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lutheran Cemetery
- Continue List (96 more) ...
- Greenwood Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Greenwood Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southwest of Brookings.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #97065 <5>
- St. Thomas More Catholic Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Thomas More Catholic Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southwest of Brookings.
- The St. Thomas More Catholic Cemetery has also been known as:
- Calvary Cemetery
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Thomas More Catholic Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2136600 <5>
- Bethania Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Bruce had a population of 152 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Bruce had a population of 205 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bruce, with the one closest to Bruce listed first.
- Volga
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Estelline
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Estelline have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelline
- Estelline is located in Hamlin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Estelline <2>
- Brookings
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- White
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
- White is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 487 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for White <2>
- Arlington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arlington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Arlington is located in Kingsbury County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 872 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Arlington <2>
- Dempster
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dempster
- Dempster is located in Hamlin County
- Aurora
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aurora have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurora
- Aurora is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 866 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Aurora <2>
- Bushnell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnell
- Bushnell is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
- Sinai
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sinai have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinai
- Sinai is located in Brookings County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 125 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sinai <2>
- Toronto
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Hetland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Castlewood
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Brandt
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brandt have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandt
- Brandt is located in Deuel County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 107 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brandt <2>
- Prairie Queen ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prairie Queen have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Queen
- Prairie Queen is located in Lake County
- Hayti
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hayti have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayti
- Hayti is located in Hamlin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 381 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hayti <2>
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bruce. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bruce.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bruce. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Brookings County: www.brookingscountysd.gov/
The official website for State of South Dakota: https://www.sd.gov/
Footnotes ...
<1> | 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. |
<2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
<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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Bruce) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bruce. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.4382, Longitude: -96.8903 |
<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 Bruce, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |