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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 Illinois Bend (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 Illinois Bend. 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 Illinois Bend ...

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 Illinois Bend: Illinois Bnd.

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 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.

Illinois Bend is primarily located in Montague County. A portion of Illinois Bend extends into Cooke County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Montague County: Jefferson (OK), Love (OK), Clay, Cooke, Jack & Wise.

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

  • Montague County     (The home county of Illinois Bend)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Illinois Bend, with the one closest to Illinois Bend listed first.
    • Spanish Fort
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spanish Fort
      • Spanish Fort is located in Montague County
    • Bonita
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonita have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonita
      • Bonita is located in Montague County
    • Rowland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowland
      • Rowland is located in Montague County
    • Saint Jo
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Jo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Jo
      • Saint Jo is located in Montague County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,032 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Jo <2>
    • Hynds City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hynds City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hynds City
      • Hynds City is located in Montague County
    • Nocona
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Montague
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montague have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montague
      • Montague is located in Montague County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montague <2>
    • Belcherville ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belcherville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belcherville
      • Belcherville is located in Montague County
    • Hardy
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardy
      • Hardy is located in Montague County
    • Forestburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Ringgold
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Salona
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salona
      • Salona is located in Montague County
  • Cooke County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Illinois Bend, with the one closest to Illinois Bend listed first.
    • Marysville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marysville
      • Marysville is located in Cooke County
    • Muenster
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Myra
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Lindsay
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Hood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hood
      • Hood is located in Cooke County
    • Gainesville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gainesville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gainesville
      • Gainesville is located in Cooke County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,876 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gainesville <2>
    • Rosston
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Custer City ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Custer City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer City
      • Custer City is located in Cooke County
    • Era
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Dexter
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dexter
      • Dexter is located in Cooke County
    • Callisburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Callisburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callisburg
      • Callisburg is located in Cooke County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 367 people
    • Oak Ridge
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Ridge
      • Oak Ridge is located in Cooke County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 255 people
  • Carter County (OK)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Illinois Bend, with the one closest to Illinois Bend listed first.
    • Wilson
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
      • Wilson is located in Carter County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,707 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilson <2>
    • Brock
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brock
      • Brock is located in Carter County (OK)
    • Healdton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Lone Grove
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Oil City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
      • Oil City is located in Carter County (OK)
    • Ardmore
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardmore
      • Ardmore is located in Carter County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 24,769 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ardmore <2>
  • Jefferson County (OK)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Illinois Bend, with the one closest to Illinois Bend listed first.
    • Petersburg
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Petersburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
      • Petersburg is located in Jefferson County (OK)
    • Grady
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grady
      • Grady is located in Jefferson County (OK)
    • Oscar
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Cornish
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cornish have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornish
      • Cornish is located in Jefferson County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 154 people
    • Ringling
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ringling have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ringling
      • Ringling is located in Jefferson County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 945 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ringling <2>
    • Terral
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Terral have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terral
      • Terral is located in Jefferson County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 382 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Terral <2>
    • Ryan
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ryan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ryan
      • Ryan is located in Jefferson County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 744 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ryan <2>
  • Love County (OK)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Illinois Bend, with the one closest to Illinois Bend listed first.
    • Leon
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leon
      • Leon is located in Love County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 99 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Leon <2>
    • Jimtown
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jimtown
      • Jimtown is located in Love County (OK)
    • Orr
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orr
      • Orr is located in Love County (OK)
    • Burneyville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Thackerville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thackerville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thackerville
      • Thackerville is located in Love County (OK)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 521 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Thackerville <2>
    • Marietta
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Overbrook
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Illinois Bend ...

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 81 newspapers that have been published in the area around Illinois Bend.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Illinois Bend, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Illinois Bend.

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 websites either 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 Illinois Bend:

Cemeteries Near Illinois Bend ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Illinois Bend.

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

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

  • Murrell Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Murrell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Murrell Cemetery
  • Williams Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Williams Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Williams Cemetery
  • Leon Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Leon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Leon Cemetery
  • Courtney Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Courtney Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Courtney Cemetery
  • Rubottom Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rubottom Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rubottom Cemetery
  • Bourland Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bourland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bourland Cemetery
  • Union Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Cemetery
  • Mayfield Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mayfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mayfield Cemetery
  • Coker Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coker Cemetery
  • Scanland Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Scanland Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Scanland Cemetery
  • Liberty Chapel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Liberty Chapel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Liberty Chapel Cemetery
  • Able Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Able Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Able Cemetery
  • Continue List   (123 more) ...
    • Jimtown Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jimtown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jimtown Cemetery
    • Petersburg Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Petersburg Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Petersburg Cemetery
    • Shady Grove Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shady Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shady Grove 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Illinois Bend had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Spanish Fort
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spanish Fort
    • Spanish Fort is located in Montague County
  • Bonita
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonita have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonita
    • Bonita is located in Montague County
  • Marysville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marysville
    • Marysville is located in Cooke County
  • Saint Jo
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Jo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Jo
    • Saint Jo is located in Montague County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,032 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Jo <2>
  • Nocona
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Sivells Bend ‑ Historic
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sivells Bend have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sivells Bend
    • Sivells Bend is located in Cooke County
  • Muenster
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Dye
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dye have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dye
    • Dye is located in Montague County
  • Belcherville ‑ Historic
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belcherville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belcherville
    • Belcherville is located in Montague County
  • Montague
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montague have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montague
    • Montague is located in Montague County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montague <2>
  • Myra
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Hardy
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardy
    • Hardy is located in Montague County
  • Continue List   (10 more) ...
    • Lindsay
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Forestburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Hood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hood
      • Hood is located in Cooke County

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

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

The official website for State of Texas: https://texas.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>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Illinois Bend) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Illinois Bend. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.8824, Longitude: -97.4872    
<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 Illinois Bend, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024