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 Timber Lake (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 Timber Lake. 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 Timber Lake ...

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 Timber Lake: Timber Lk.

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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Timber Lake is located in Dewey County and is the County Seat.

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 Dewey County: Corson, Potter, Stanley, Sully, Walworth & Ziebach.

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

• Dewey County     (The home county of Timber Lake)
  • The following are listed by their distance from Timber Lake, with the one closest to Timber Lake listed first.
  • Glencross
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glencross
    • Glencross is located in Dewey County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glencross <1>
  • Firesteel
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Firesteel
    • Firesteel is located in Dewey County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Firesteel <1>
  • Whitehorse
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whitehorse have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehorse
    • Whitehorse is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 276 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whitehorse <1>
  • Isabel
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Isabel have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isabel
    • Isabel is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 150 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Isabel <1>
  • Green Grass
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Grass have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Grass
    • Green Grass is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 35 people
  • Parade
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parade
    • Parade is located in Dewey County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 34 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Parade <1>
  • Ridgeview
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ridgeview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeview
    • Ridgeview is located in Dewey County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 47 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ridgeview <1>
  • Virginia
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Virginia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia
    • Virginia is located in Dewey County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 261 people
  • La Plant
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Plant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Plant
    • La Plant is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 171 people
  • Eagle Butte
    (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Butte have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Butte
    • Eagle Butte is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,418 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eagle Butte <1>
  • North Eagle Butte
    (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Eagle Butte have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Eagle Butte
    • North Eagle Butte is located in Dewey County
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 1,954 people
• Corson County
  • The following are listed by their distance from Timber Lake, with the one closest to Timber Lake listed first.
  • Trail City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trail City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trail City
    • Trail City is located in Corson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Trail City <1>
  • Little Eagle
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Eagle have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Eagle
    • Little Eagle is located in Corson County
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 319 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Little Eagle <1>
  • Bullhead
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bullhead have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullhead
    • Bullhead is located in Corson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bullhead <1>
  • Mahto
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahto
    • Mahto is located in Corson County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mahto <1>
  • McLaughlin
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McLaughlin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLaughlin
    • McLaughlin is located in Corson County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 642 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for McLaughlin <1>
  • Wakpala
    (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakpala
    • Wakpala is located in Corson County
    • Estimated population in 2014: 312 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wakpala <1>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Timber Lake ...

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 9 newspapers that have been published in the area around Timber Lake.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

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

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 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 Timber Lake:

• Websites specific to South Dakota
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Website for the South Dakota State Archives

• Pages specific to Dewey County
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Genealogy information for nearby counties
  • Corson County
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Cemetery Information and Directories for South Dakota
  • Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of South Dakota
  • Cyndi's List
  • Cemeteries of South Dakota
  • Cemeteries of Dewey County
  • FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of South Dakota
  • Find-A-Grave: Home Page
  • Interment.net
  • Cemeteries of South Dakota

Cemeteries Near Timber Lake ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Timber Lake.

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

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

• Holy Cross Cemetery
  (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Cross Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Cross Cemetery
• Sacred Heart Cemetery
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sacred Heart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
• Our Savior Cemetery
  (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Our Savior Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Our Savior Cemetery
• Emmanuel Cemetery
  (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Emmanuel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Emmanuel Cemetery
• On-a-Tree Cemetery
  (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the On-a-Tree Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the On-a-Tree Cemetery
• Trail City Cemetery
  (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trail City Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trail City Cemetery
• Hillview Cemetery
  (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillview Cemetery
• Green Grass Cemetery
  (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Grass Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Grass Cemetery
• St. Pauls Cemetery
  (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Pauls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Pauls Cemetery
• St. Johns Cemetery
  (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Johns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Cemetery
• Sacred Heart Cemetery
  (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sacred Heart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
• Long Hill Cemetery
  (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Long Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Long Hill Cemetery
• Continue List   (7 more) ...
  • St. Josephs Cemetery
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Josephs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Josephs Cemetery
  • Rushs Enemy Cemetery
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rushs Enemy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rushs Enemy Cemetery
  • St. Pauls Episcopal Cemetery
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Pauls Episcopal Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2160730 <4>

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

Off-the-Road Links ...

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

The official website for State of South Dakota: sd.gov/