RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Wisconsin >> Pierce County >> Elmwood >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Elmwood (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 Elmwood. 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 Elmwood ...

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.

Another variation: Elm Wood.

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 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.

Elmwood is located in Pierce 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 Pierce County: Dakota (MN), Goodhue (MN), Washington (MN), Dunn, Pepin & Saint Croix.

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

  • Pierce County     (The home county of Elmwood)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Olivet
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Olivet. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
      • Olivet is located in Pierce County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Olivet
      • From Elmwood to Olivet
    • Spring Valley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Waverly
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • El Paso
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Plum City
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plum City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum City
      • Plum City is located in Pierce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
    • Martell
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Morton Corner
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Ellsworth
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ellsworth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellsworth
      • Ellsworth is located in Pierce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,272 people
    • Maiden Rock
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Beldenville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Moeville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Bay City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Trimbelle
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Trimbelle. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trimbelle
      • Trimbelle is located in Pierce County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Trimbelle
      • From Elmwood to Trimbelle
  • Buffalo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Maxville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Savoy ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Savoy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savoy
      • Savoy is located in Buffalo County
    • Nelson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nelson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelson
      • Nelson is located in Buffalo County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 343 people
    • Springdale ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springdale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
      • Springdale is located in Buffalo County
    • Mondovi
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Chippewa County
  • Dunn County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Eau Galle
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Dunnville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Knapp
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Menomonie
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Meridean
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Falls City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falls City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falls City
      • Falls City is located in Dunn County
    • Downing
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Boyceville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Tainter Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tainter Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tainter Lake
      • Tainter Lake is located in Dunn County
    • Wheeler
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wheeler have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
      • Wheeler is located in Dunn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 353 people
    • Rock Falls
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rock Falls. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Falls
      • Rock Falls is located in Dunn County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rock Falls
      • From Elmwood to Rock Falls
    • Elk Mound
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elk Mound have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Mound
      • Elk Mound is located in Dunn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 884 people
    • Colfax
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colfax have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colfax
      • Colfax is located in Dunn County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,151 people
  • Eau Claire County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Lufkin
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Shawtown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Shawtown. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawtown
      • Shawtown is located in Eau Claire County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Shawtown
      • From Elmwood to Shawtown
  • Pepin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Arkansaw
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Durand
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Lund
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Ella
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Barry Corner
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Stockholm
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stockholm have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockholm
      • Stockholm is located in Pepin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 64 people
    • Lakeport
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Pepin
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
  • Saint Croix County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Wilson
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Hersey
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Woodville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Baldwin
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Glenwood City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenwood City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood City
      • Glenwood City is located in Saint Croix County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,214 people
    • Hammond
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Roberts
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Erin Corner
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Burkhardt
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Burkhardt. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burkhardt
      • Burkhardt is located in Saint Croix County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Burkhardt
      • From Elmwood to Burkhardt
    • Deer Park
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • New Richmond
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Goodhue County (MN)
  • Wabasha County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elmwood, with the one closest to Elmwood listed first.
    • Lake City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake City
      • Lake City is located in Wabasha County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,114 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake City <3>
    • Reads Landing
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Reads Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reads Landing
      • Reads Landing is located in Wabasha County (MN)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reads Landing <3>
    • Wabasha
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wabasha have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wabasha
      • Wabasha is located in Wabasha County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,467 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wabasha <3>

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

Cemeteries Near Elmwood ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elmwood.

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

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

  • Farm Hill Catholic Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Farm Hill Catholic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Farm Hill Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Spring Lake Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Oak Ridge Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Ridge Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Poplar Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Poplar Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Poplar Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Rock Elm Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Weber Valley Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Weber Valley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Weber Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. John Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. John Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. John Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Michael Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Michael Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Michael Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lower Weston Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lower Weston Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lower Weston Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lucas Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lucas Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lucas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sacred Heart Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
    • 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.
  • St. Henrys Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (169 more) ...
    • Grandview Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • St. Johns Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • 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.
    • Irving Creek Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Irving Creek Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Irving Creek 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Elmwood had a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Elmwood had a population of 790 people.

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

  • Exile
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Exile have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exile
    • Exile is located in Pierce County
  • Hatchville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hatchville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatchville
    • Hatchville is located in Dunn County
  • Olivet
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Olivet. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
    • Olivet is located in Pierce County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Olivet
    • From Elmwood to Olivet
  • Waverly
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Spring Valley
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Eau Galle
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • El Paso
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Ono
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ono have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ono
    • Ono is located in Pierce County
  • Plum City
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plum City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum City
    • Plum City is located in Pierce County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
  • Downsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Downsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downsville
    • Downsville is located in Dunn County
  • Wildwood
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wildwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wildwood
    • Wildwood is located in Saint Croix County
  • Arkansaw
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Elmwood ...

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 88 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elmwood.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Elmwood. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Elmwood and those printed in the larger area surrounding Elmwood.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<5> of Elmwood.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Elmwood:

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>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<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 drawn from Point A (ie- Elmwood) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Elmwood. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.7796, Longitude: -92.1466    
<6>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 Elmwood, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.