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 Alma Center (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 Alma Center. 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 Alma Center ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Alma Center: Alma Ctr. (or less commonly used: Alma Cen., Alma Cent. or Alma Cntr.)
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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Alma Center is located in Jackson County.
To see how the shape of Wisconsin's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Jackson County: Clark, Eau Claire, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Trempealeau & Wood.
Below are the counties that are near Alma Center. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Alma Center:
- Jackson County (The home county of Alma Center)
- The following are listed by their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- Merrillan
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Merrillan is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrillan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 522 people
- Hixton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hixton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hixton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 417 people
- Sechlerville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sechlerville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sechlerville
- Hatfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Hatfield is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatfield
- Black River Falls
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Black River Falls is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black River Falls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,454 people
- Levis
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Levis is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levis
- York
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- York is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
- Taylor
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Taylor is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor
- Population from the 2020 Census: 473 people
- Requa
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Requa is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Requa
- Pray
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Pray is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pray
- Melrose
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Melrose is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Population from the 2020 Census: 476 people
- Millston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Millston is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 162 people
- Lapham Junction
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Lapham Junction is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapham Junction
- Clark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- Humbird
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Humbird is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Humbird
- Neillsville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Neillsville is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neillsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,375 people
- Globe
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Globe is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Globe
- Willard
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Willard is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willard
- Granton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Granton is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 343 people
- Greenwood
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Greenwood is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 995 people
- Loyal
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Loyal is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyal
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,229 people
- Chili
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Chili is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chili
- Spokeville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Spokeville is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spokeville
- Crawford County
- Lynxville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lynxville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynxville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 125 people
- Eau Claire County
- The following are listed by their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- Fairchild
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Fairchild is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairchild
- Population from the 2020 Census: 607 people
- Hay Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hay Creek is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hay Creek
- Augusta
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Augusta is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Augusta
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,517 people
- Allen
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Allen is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
- Fall Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Fall Creek is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fall Creek
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,291 people
- La Crosse County
- Mindoro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Mindoro is located in La Crosse County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mindoro
- Monroe County
- Warrens
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Warrens is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrens
- Population from the 2020 Census: 346 people
- Trempealeau County
- The following are listed by their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- Pigeon Falls
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Pigeon Falls is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon Falls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 399 people
- Osseo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Osseo is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osseo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,671 people
- Blair
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Blair is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blair
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,330 people
- Coral City
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Coral City is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coral City
- Whitehall
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Whitehall is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,565 people
- Strum
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Strum is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strum
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,071 people
- Ettrick
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ettrick is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ettrick
- Population from the 2020 Census: 511 people
- Independence
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Independence is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,291 people
- New City ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- New City is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New City
- Russell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Russell is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russell
- Frenchville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Frenchville is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchville
- Eleva
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Eleva is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eleva
- Population from the 2020 Census: 661 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Alma Center, see our County-by-County Page for Alma Center.
Cemeteries Near Alma Center ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Alma Center.
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 Alma Center - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Alma Center covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- East Lawn Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- St. Mary Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Stanford Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Pole Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Oakwood Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Houghtonburg Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Curtis Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- West Garden Valley Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Trinity Rest Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Smallpox Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Sechlerville Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Mentor Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Continue List (117 more) ...
- Diphtheria Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lutheran Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Pine Creek Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
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.<1>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Alma Center had a population of 206 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Alma Center had a population of 491 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Alma Center, with the one closest to Alma Center listed first.
- Merrillan
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Merrillan is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrillan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 522 people
- North Branch
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- North Branch is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Branch
- Hixton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hixton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hixton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 417 people
- Humbird
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Humbird is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Humbird
- Sechlerville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Sechlerville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sechlerville
- Hatfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Hatfield is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatfield
- Northfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Northfield is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northfield
- Black River Falls
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Black River Falls is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black River Falls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,454 people
- Fairchild
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Fairchild is located in Eau Claire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairchild
- Population from the 2020 Census: 607 people
- Levis
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Levis is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levis
- York
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- York is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
- Price
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Price is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Price
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Sheppard
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Sheppard is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheppard
- Pigeon Falls
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Pigeon Falls is located in Trempealeau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pigeon Falls
- Population from the 2020 Census: 399 people
- Waterbury
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Waterbury is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterbury
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Alma Center. See our List of 1890's Communities around Alma Center.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Alma Center ...
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 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Alma Center.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Alma Center. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Alma Center and those printed in the larger area surrounding Alma Center.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<2> of Alma Center.
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 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 Alma Center:
- Websites specific to Wisconsin
- Pages specific to Jackson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clark County
- Crawford County
- Eau Claire County
- La Crosse County
- Monroe County
- Trempealeau County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Wisconsin
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Alma Center, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Alma Center) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |