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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 French Island (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 French Island. 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 French Island ...

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 French Island: French Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)

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 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 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.

French Island is located in La Crosse 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 La Crosse County: Houston (MN), Winona (MN), Jackson, Monroe, Trempealeau & Vernon.

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

  • La Crosse County     (The home county of French Island)
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Grand Crossing
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • North La Crosse
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • 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
    • Onalaska
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • 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
    • La Crosse
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Midway
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Brice Prairie
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brice Prairie have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brice Prairie
      • Brice Prairie is located in La Crosse County
    • Holmen
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holmen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmen
      • Holmen is located in La Crosse County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,368 people
    • Barre Mills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Shelby
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • 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
    • West Salem
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Saint Joseph
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Bangor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • 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
  • Buffalo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Marshland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marshland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshland
      • Marshland is located in Buffalo County
    • Bluff Siding
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Fountain City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Crawford County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • North Bend
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Melrose
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Sparta
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Melvina
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Angelo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Cashton
      (25 miles [40.2 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
  • Trempealeau County
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Trempealeau
      (13 miles [20.9 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
    • Galesville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Wrights Corners
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Frenchville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Ettrick
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ettrick have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ettrick
      • Ettrick is located in Trempealeau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 511 people
    • Arcadia
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Blair
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blair have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blair
      • Blair is located in Trempealeau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,330 people
  • Vernon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Stoddard
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Chaseburg
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Coon Valley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Genoa
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Newton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • 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 French Island to Newton
    • Newry
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Westby
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Purdy
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • 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 French Island to Purdy
    • Viroqua
      (27 miles [43.5 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
    • Retreat
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Liberty Pole
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Allamakee County (IA)
  • Fillmore County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Rushford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rushford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushford
      • Rushford is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,695 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rushford <3>
    • South Rushford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Bratsberg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Rushford Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rushford Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushford Village
      • Rushford Village is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 838 people
    • Peterson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Peterson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterson
      • Peterson is located in Fillmore County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 198 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peterson <3>
  • Houston County (MN)
  • Winona County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from French Island, with the one closest to French Island listed first.
    • Dakota
      (6 miles [9.7 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
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Lamoille
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Homer
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
      • Homer is located in Winona County (MN)
    • Wilson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
      • Wilson is located in Winona County (MN)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wilson
      • From French Island to Wilson
    • Winona
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Goodview
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goodview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodview
      • Goodview is located in Winona County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,127 people
    • Wyattville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Stockton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stockton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockton
      • Stockton is located in Winona County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 773 people
    • Minnesota City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minnesota City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnesota City
      • Minnesota City is located in Winona County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 186 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Minnesota City <3>

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

Cemeteries Near French Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of French Island.

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

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

  • Campbell Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Campbell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Campbell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Onalaska City Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Prospect Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Prospect Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Prospect Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Crucifixion Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Pine Creek Catholic Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Creek Catholic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Creek Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gate of Heaven Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gate of Heaven Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gate of Heaven Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dresbach Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dresbach Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dresbach Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Toledo Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Toledo Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Toledo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodlawn Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodlawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Immanuel German Lutheran Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Immanuel German Lutheran Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Immanuel German Lutheran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (211 more) ...
    • Convent Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Convent Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Convent Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Hoffman Family Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hoffman Family Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hoffman Family Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Brice Prairie Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brice Prairie Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brice Prairie 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.<5>

While we didn't find French Island in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of French Island.

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

  • River Junction
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for River Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Junction
    • River Junction is located in Houston County (MN)
  • North La Crosse
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • 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
  • Grand Crossing
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • La Crosse
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Medary
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Medary have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medary
    • Medary is located in La Crosse County
  • Onalaska
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • 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
  • La Crescent
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Midway
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Dresbach
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dresbach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dresbach
    • Dresbach is located in Winona County (MN)
  • Holmen
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holmen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holmen
    • Holmen is located in La Crosse County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,368 people
  • Dakota
    (6 miles [9.7 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
  • Calvert
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • 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
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Barre Mills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Hokah
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hokah have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hokah
      • Hokah is located in Houston County (MN)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hokah <3>
    • New Amsterdam
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Amsterdam have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Amsterdam
      • New Amsterdam is located in La Crosse County

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

Newspapers Published in French Island ...

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 112 newspapers that have been published in the area around French Island.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of French Island, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for French Island.

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 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 French Island:

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

The official website for La Crosse County: www.co.la-crosse.wi.us/

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>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>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 French Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- French Island) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in French Island. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.8579, Longitude: -91.2617    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025