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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 Baraboo (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 Baraboo. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and 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.

Baraboo is located in Sauk County and is the County Seat.

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 Sauk County: Adams, Columbia, Dane, Iowa, Juneau, Richland & Vernon.

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

  • Sauk County     (The home county of Baraboo)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Baraboo, with the one closest to Baraboo listed first.
    • West Baraboo
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • West Baraboo is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Baraboo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,416 people
    • North Freedom
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • North Freedom is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Freedom
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 690 people
    • Moon Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Rock Springs
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Rock Springs is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Springs
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
    • Lake Delton
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Merrimac
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Merrimac is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrimac
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 441 people
    • Denzer
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Prairie du Sac village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Sauk City
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Sauk City is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sauk City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,498 people
    • Reedsburg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Reedsburg is located in Sauk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedsburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,500 people
    • Leland
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Loganville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • Adams County
  • Columbia County
  • Dane County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Baraboo, with the one closest to Baraboo listed first.
    • Marxville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Dane
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Dane is located in Dane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dane
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,134 people
    • Mazomanie
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Mazomanie is located in Dane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mazomanie
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,715 people
    • Martinsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Black Earth
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Morrisonville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Waunakee
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Waunakee is located in Dane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waunakee
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 14,188 people
    • Cross Plains
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Cross Plains is located in Dane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Plains
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,280 people
    • Ashton Corners
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ashton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • DeForest
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Windsor
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Iowa County
  • Juneau County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Baraboo, with the one closest to Baraboo listed first.
    • Lyndon Station
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Lyndon Station is located in Juneau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyndon Station
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 485 people
    • Lemonweir
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Wonewoc
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Wonewoc is located in Juneau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wonewoc
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 789 people
    • Mauston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Mauston is located in Juneau County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mauston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,358 people
    • Union Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Marquette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Baraboo, with the one closest to Baraboo listed first.
    • Douglas Center
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Endeavor
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Endeavor is located in Marquette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Endeavor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 464 people
    • Oxford
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Packwaukee
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Glen Oak
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Montello
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Westfield
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Westfield is located in Marquette County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,268 people
  • Richland County

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

Cemeteries Near Baraboo ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Baraboo.

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 Baraboo - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Baraboo covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Walnut Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • St. Josephs Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • St. Michaels Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Rock Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Brewster Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Zuch Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Jones Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Sumpter Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Webster Prairie Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Kerth Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Tucker Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Fairfield Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (214 more) ...
    • Pleasant Valley Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Miller Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Oak Hill Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)

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 Baraboo had a population of 4,605 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Baraboo had a population of 12,121 people.

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

  • North Freedom
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • North Freedom is located in Sauk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Freedom
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 690 people
  • Denzer
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Okee
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Prairie du Sac village
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Sauk City
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Sauk City is located in Sauk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sauk City
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,498 people
  • Dekorra
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Dekorra is located in Columbia County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dekorra
  • Dell Prairie ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Dell Prairie is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dell Prairie
  • Reedsburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Reedsburg is located in Sauk County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedsburg
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,500 people
  • Leland
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Portage
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Briggsville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Briggsville is located in Marquette County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briggsville
  • Big Spring
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Big Spring is located in Adams County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Spring
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Roxbury
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Roxbury is located in Dane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury
    • Lodi
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Loganville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Baraboo ...

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 127 newspapers that have been published in the area around Baraboo.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Baraboo. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Baraboo and those printed in the larger area surrounding Baraboo.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<2> of Baraboo.

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 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 Baraboo:

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 Baraboo, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Baraboo) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.