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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 Middle Ridge (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 Middle Ridge. 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 Middle Ridge ...

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 Middle Ridge: Middle Rdg. (or less commonly used: Middle Rdge. or Middle Ridg.)

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Middle Ridge 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 Middle Ridge. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Middle Ridge:

  • La Crosse County     (The home county of Middle Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Saint Joseph
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Bangor
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bangor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Rockland
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Barre Mills
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • West Salem
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Shelby
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelby have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelby
      • Shelby is located in La Crosse County
    • Onalaska
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Onalaska have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Grand Crossing
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • La Crosse
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • North La Crosse
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North La Crosse have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 west)
    • Midway
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Mindoro
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Crawford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Rising Sun
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Towerville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Soldiers Grove
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Soldiers Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • De Soto
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Freeman
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Freeman have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman
      • Freeman is located in Crawford County
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • North Bend
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Melrose
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Millston
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Melvina
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Cashton
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cashton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Sparta
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Angelo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Norwalk
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Oil City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oil City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
      • Oil City is located in Monroe County
    • Wilton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tunnel City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel City
      • Tunnel City is located in Monroe County
    • Tomah
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tomah have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomah
      • Tomah is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,363 people
    • Kendall
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kendall have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendall
      • Kendall is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 472 people
    • Clifton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Oakdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Richland County
    • Viola
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viola have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
  • Trempealeau County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Galesville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Trempealeau
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trempealeau have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Ettrick
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ettrick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Frenchville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Vernon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Coon Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Newry
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Westby
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Chaseburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Newton
      (15 miles [24.1 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.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
      • Newton is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Newton
      • From Middle Ridge to Newton
    • Viroqua
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viroqua have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
    • Stoddard
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Ontario
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ontario have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ontario
      • Ontario is located in Vernon County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 561 people
    • Purdy
      (20 miles [32.2 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.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdy
      • Purdy is located in Vernon County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Purdy
      • From Middle Ridge to Purdy
    • Genoa
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Liberty Pole
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • La Farge
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Liberty
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Liberty have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
      • Liberty is located in Vernon County
  • Allamakee County (IA)
  • Houston County (MN)
  • Winona County (MN)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Middle Ridge, with the one closest to Middle Ridge listed first.
    • Dakota
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dakota have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 west)
    • Lamoille
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Middle Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Middle Ridge.

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

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

  • North Ridge Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • 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.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Welsh Congregational Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Welsh Congregational Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Welsh Congregational Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Welsh Calvanistic Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Welsh Calvanistic Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Welsh Calvanistic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • 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.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Moen Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Moen Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Moen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Rockland Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Burns Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Burns Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Burns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Rest Haven Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rest Haven Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rest Haven Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Union Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Leon Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Leon Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Leon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (208 more) ...
    • Hellwig Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • 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.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Krause Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 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.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Sacred Heart Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • 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.<1> 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 Middle Ridge had a population of 18 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Saint Joseph
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Coon Valley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Leon
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leon
    • Leon is located in Monroe County
  • Rockland
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Newry
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Melvina
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Barre Mills
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Cashton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cashton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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
  • West Salem
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Westby
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Burns
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burns have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns
    • Burns is located in La Crosse County
  • Esofea
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Esofea have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Esofea
    • Esofea is located in Vernon County
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Sparta
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Chaseburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Marys
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Marys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
      • Saint Marys is located in Monroe County

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

Newspapers Published in Middle Ridge ...

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 186 newspapers that have been published in the area around Middle Ridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Middle Ridge, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Middle Ridge.

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 professional and volunteer 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 Middle Ridge:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Middle Ridge. 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>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.
<2>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Middle Ridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Middle Ridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.8002, Longitude: -90.9459       In this case, the coordinates for Middle Ridge have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<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 Middle Ridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025