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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 Hecla (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 Hecla. 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 hospitals and 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.

Hecla is located in Brown 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 Brown County: Dickey (ND), Sargent (ND), Day, Edmunds, Faulk, Marshall, McPherson & Spink.

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

  • Brown County     (The home county of Hecla)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hecla, with the one closest to Hecla listed first.
    • Houghton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Claremont
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Frederick
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Winship
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winship have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winship
      • Winship is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 2,862 people
    • Huffton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Huffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffton
      • Huffton is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 316 people
    • Columbia
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Columbia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia
      • Columbia is located in Brown County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 138 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Columbia <1>
    • Barnard
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Putney
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Putney
      • Putney is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 104 people
    • Tacoma Park
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacoma Park
      • Tacoma Park is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 413 people
    • Westport
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westport have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport
      • Westport is located in Brown County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 132 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Westport <1>
    • Ordway
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ordway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ordway
      • Ordway is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 306 people
    • James
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for James have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for James
      • James is located in Brown County
    • Prairie Wood Village Addition
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prairie Wood Village Addition have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Wood Village Addition
      • Prairie Wood Village Addition is located in Brown County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 276 people
  • Day County
    • Pierpont
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pierpont have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierpont
      • Pierpont is located in Day County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pierpont <1>
  • Marshall County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hecla, with the one closest to Hecla listed first.
    • Amherst
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • West Britton ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Britton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Britton
      • West Britton is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 1,368 people
    • Newark
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
      • Newark is located in Marshall County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 109 people
    • Britton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Britton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Britton
      • Britton is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,256 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Britton <1>
    • Kidder
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kidder
      • Kidder is located in Marshall County
      • Estimated population in 2014: 77 people
    • Spain
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spain have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spain
      • Spain is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 989 people
    • Langford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Dickey County (ND)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hecla, with the one closest to Hecla listed first.
    • Ludden
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ludden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ludden
      • Ludden is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24 people
    • Guelph
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guelph
      • Guelph is located in Dickey County (ND)
    • Norway
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norway
      • Norway is located in Dickey County (ND)
    • Oakes
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakes
      • Oakes is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,657 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakes <1>
    • Ellendale
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ellendale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellendale
      • Ellendale is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,179 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ellendale <1>
    • Fullerton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fullerton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fullerton
      • Fullerton is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 51 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fullerton <1>
    • Glover
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glover
      • Glover is located in Dickey County (ND)
    • Monango
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Monango have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monango
      • Monango is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 36 people
    • Forbes
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forbes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forbes
      • Forbes is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 43 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Forbes <1>
  • Sargent County (ND)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hecla, with the one closest to Hecla listed first.
    • Straubville ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straubville
      • Straubville is located in Sargent County (ND)
    • Brampton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brampton
      • Brampton is located in Sargent County (ND)
    • Cogswell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cogswell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cogswell
      • Cogswell is located in Sargent County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cogswell <1>
    • Havana
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana
      • Havana is located in Sargent County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 73 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Havana <1>
    • Stirum
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stirum
      • Stirum is located in Sargent County (ND)
    • Forman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forman
      • Forman is located in Sargent County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 501 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Forman <1>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Hecla ...

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 Hecla.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Hecla. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Hecla and those printed in the larger area surrounding Hecla.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Hecla.

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 Hecla:

Cemeteries Near Hecla ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hecla.

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

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

  • Hecla City Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • The Hecla City Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hecla Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hecla City Cemetery
  • Peace Lutheran Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Peace Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Peace Lutheran Cemetery
  • Detroit Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Detroit Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Detroit Cemetery
  • Ludden Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ludden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ludden Cemetery
  • Houghton Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Houghton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Houghton Cemetery
  • Savo Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Amherst Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Frederick Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Frederick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Frederick Cemetery
  • Free Mission Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Free Mission Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Free Mission Cemetery
  • Britton Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
  • Oakes View Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakes View Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakes View Cemetery
  • Norwegian Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Norwegian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Norwegian Cemetery
  • Continue List   (22 more) ...
    • Brampton Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brampton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brampton Cemetery
    • Nicholson Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nicholson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nicholson Cemetery
    • Augustana Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Augustana Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Augustana 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Hecla had a population of 457 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Hecla had a population of 217 people.

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

  • Houghton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Ludden
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ludden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ludden
    • Ludden is located in Dickey County (ND)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 24 people
  • Port Emma ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Port Emma have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Emma
    • Port Emma is located in Dickey County (ND)
  • Guelph
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guelph
    • Guelph is located in Dickey County (ND)
  • Amherst
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Silverleaf
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silverleaf have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverleaf
    • Silverleaf is located in Dickey County (ND)
  • Claremont
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Straubville ‑ Historic
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straubville
    • Straubville is located in Sargent County (ND)
  • Frederick
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Newark
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
    • Newark is located in Marshall County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 109 people
  • Winship
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winship have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winship
    • Winship is located in Brown County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 2,862 people
  • Huffton
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Huffton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffton
    • Huffton is located in Brown County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 316 people
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Oakes
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oakes have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakes
      • Oakes is located in Dickey County (ND)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,657 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakes <1>
    • Clement
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clement have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clement
      • Clement is located in Dickey County (ND)
    • Columbia
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Columbia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia
      • Columbia is located in Brown County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 138 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Columbia <1>

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

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

The official website for Brown County: www.brown.sd.us/

The official website for State of South Dakota: sd.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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Hecla) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Hecla. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.8819, Longitude: -98.1518       In this case, the coordinates for Hecla have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>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.
<5>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 Hecla, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 10 Mar 2024