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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 Coon Valley (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 Coon Valley. 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 Coon Valley ...

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 Coon Valley: Coon Vly. (or less commonly used: Coon Vally. or Coon Vlly.)

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 doctors 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.

Coon Valley is located in Vernon County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Vernon County: Allamakee (IA), Houston (MN), Crawford, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Richland & Sauk.

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

  • Vernon County     (The home county of Coon Valley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Chaseburg
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Westby
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Newton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
      • Newton is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Newton
      • From Coon Valley to Newton
    • Newry
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Stoddard
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Viroqua
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viroqua have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viroqua
      • Viroqua is located in Vernon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,394 people
    • Purdy
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Purdy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdy
      • Purdy is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Purdy
      • From Coon Valley to Purdy
    • Genoa
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Liberty Pole
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Fargo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fargo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fargo
      • Fargo is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Fargo
      • From Coon Valley to Fargo
    • Retreat
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Liberty
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Liberty have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
      • Liberty is located in Vernon County
    • La Farge
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Crawford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Rising Sun
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Towerville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • De Soto
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Freeman
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Freeman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
      • Freeman is located in Crawford County
    • Soldiers Grove
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Soldiers Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soldiers Grove
      • Soldiers Grove is located in Crawford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 535 people
    • Ferryville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ferryville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferryville
      • Ferryville is located in Crawford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 173 people
    • Gays Mills
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gays Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gays Mills
      • Gays Mills is located in Crawford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 504 people
    • Mount Sterling
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Sterling have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Sterling
      • Mount Sterling is located in Crawford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 196 people
    • Bell Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bell Center. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell Center
      • Bell Center is located in Crawford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 114 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Bell Center
      • From Coon Valley to Bell Center
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • North Bend
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Melrose
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • La Crosse County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Saint Joseph
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Middle Ridge
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Shelby
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelby have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
      • Shelby is located in La Crosse County
    • Barre Mills
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Bangor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bangor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bangor
      • Bangor is located in La Crosse County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,442 people
    • West Salem
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Rockland
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Grand Crossing
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • La Crosse
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • North La Crosse
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North La Crosse have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North La Crosse
      • North La Crosse is located in La Crosse County
    • French Island
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Onalaska
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Onalaska have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onalaska
      • Onalaska is located in La Crosse County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 19,108 people
    • Midway
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Cashton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cashton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cashton
      • Cashton is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,111 people
    • Melvina
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Sparta
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Oil City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oil City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
      • Oil City is located in Monroe County
    • Angelo
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Norwalk
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Wilton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
      • Wilton is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 498 people
    • Tunnel City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tunnel City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel City
      • Tunnel City is located in Monroe County
  • Richland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Viola
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viola have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viola
      • Viola is located in Richland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 665 people
    • Sabin
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sabin. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sabin
      • Sabin is located in Richland County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sabin
      • From Coon Valley to Sabin
    • Bloom City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Trempealeau County
    • Trempealeau
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trempealeau have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trempealeau
      • Trempealeau is located in Trempealeau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,663 people
  • Allamakee County (IA)
  • Houston County (MN)
  • Winona County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coon Valley, with the one closest to Coon Valley listed first.
    • Dakota
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dakota have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dakota
      • Dakota is located in Winona County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 307 people
    • Nodine
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Lamoille
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Coon Valley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coon Valley.

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

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

  • Hellwig Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hellwig Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hellwig Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • North Ridge Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the North Ridge Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the North Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Krause Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Krause Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Krause Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Chipmunk Coulee Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chipmunk Coulee Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chipmunk Coulee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kienholz Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kienholz Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kienholz Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Krause Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Krause Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Krause Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Our Saviours Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Our Saviours Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Our Saviours Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mormon Coulee Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mormon Coulee Memorial Park
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mormon Coulee Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Matthews Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Matthews Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Matthews Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Haukley Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Haukley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Haukley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Johns Cemetery
    • 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.
  • Coon Prairie Lutheran Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coon Prairie Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coon Prairie Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (235 more) ...
    • Oehler Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oehler Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oehler Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Gable Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gable Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gable Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Zion Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 Coon Valley had a population of 182 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Coon Valley had a population of 782 people.

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

  • Chaseburg
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint Joseph
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Esofea
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Esofea have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Esofea
    • Esofea is located in Vernon County
  • Middle Ridge
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Newton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Newton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
    • Newton is located in Vernon County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Newton
    • From Coon Valley to Newton
  • Springville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springville
    • Springville is located in Vernon County
  • Westby
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Newry
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Stoddard
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Barre Mills
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Calvert
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Calvert have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvert
    • Calvert is located in La Crosse County
  • Viroqua
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viroqua have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viroqua
    • Viroqua is located in Vernon County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,394 people
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Cashton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cashton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cashton
      • Cashton is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,111 people
    • Romance
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Romance have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Romance
      • Romance is located in Vernon County
    • Purdy
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Purdy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdy
      • Purdy is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Purdy
      • From Coon Valley to Purdy

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

Newspapers Published in Coon Valley ...

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 185 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coon Valley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coon Valley, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coon Valley.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with 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 Coon Valley:

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

The official website for State of Wisconsin: https://www.wisconsin.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<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>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Coon Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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- Coon Valley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Coon Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.7024, Longitude: -91.0136    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025