RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Wisconsin >> Brown County >> Shirley >> 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 Shirley (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 Shirley. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

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

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the 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.

Shirley is located in Brown County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Brown County: Calumet, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Oconto, Outagamie & Shawano.

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

  • Brown County     (The home county of Shirley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Glenmore
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Glenmore is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
    • Lark
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Lark is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lark
    • Pine Grove
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Pine Grove is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove
    • Morrison
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Morrison is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison
    • Denmark
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Denmark is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denmark
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,271 people
    • Bellevue
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Bellevue is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,030 people
    • Bellevue Town
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Bellevue Town is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellevue Town
    • Wayside
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Wayside is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayside
    • Greenleaf
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Greenleaf is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenleaf
    • Fontenoy
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Fontenoy is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontenoy
    • Poland
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Poland is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poland
    • Allouez
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Allouez is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allouez
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 13,784 people
    • De Pere
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • De Pere is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Pere
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 25,014 people
  • Calumet County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Brillion
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Brillion is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brillion
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,079 people
    • Forest Junction
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Forest Junction is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Junction
    • Dundas
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Dundas is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dundas
    • Kaukauna
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Kaukauna is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kaukauna
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,356 people
    • Potter
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Potter is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 236 people
    • Hilbert
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Hilbert is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilbert
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,081 people
    • Saint John
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Saint John is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint John
    • Sherwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Sherwood is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,040 people
    • Harrison
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Harrison is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison
    • Brant
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Brant is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brant
    • Hayton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Hayton is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayton
    • Chilton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Chilton is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,868 people
    • Stockbridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Stockbridge is located in Calumet County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockbridge
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 619 people
  • Door County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Rosiere
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Rosiere is located in Door County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosiere
    • Namur
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Namur is located in Door County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Namur
    • Brussels
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Brussels is located in Door County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brussels
  • Kewaunee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Curran
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Curran is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curran
    • Bolt
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Bolt is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolt
    • Pilsen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Pilsen is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilsen
    • Stangelville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Stangelville is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stangelville
    • Ellisville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Ellisville is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellisville
    • Krok
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Krok is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Krok
    • Luxemburg
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Luxemburg is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luxemburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,577 people
    • Casco
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Casco is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casco
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 582 people
    • Kewaunee
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Kewaunee is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kewaunee
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,835 people
    • Duvall
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Duvall is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duvall
    • Euren
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Euren is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Euren
    • Gregorville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Gregorville is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gregorville
    • Algoma
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Algoma is located in Kewaunee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algoma
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,038 people
  • Manitowoc County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Hickory Grove
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Hickory Grove is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
    • Maribel
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Maribel is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maribel
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 330 people
    • Rosecrans
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Rosecrans is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosecrans
    • Menchalville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Menchalville is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menchalville
    • Kellnersville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Kellnersville is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellnersville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 317 people
    • Zander
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Zander is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zander
    • Taus
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Taus is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taus
    • Melnik
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Melnik is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melnik
    • Reedsville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Reedsville is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedsville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,143 people
    • Larrabee
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Larrabee is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larrabee
    • Grimms
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Grimms is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grimms
    • Reifs Mills
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Reifs Mills is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reifs Mills
    • Cato
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Cato is located in Manitowoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cato
  • Oconto County
    • Chase
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Chase is located in Oconto County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chase
  • Outagamie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Chicago Corners
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Chicago Corners is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicago Corners
    • Freedom
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Freedom is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom
    • Little Chute
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Little Chute is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Chute
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,164 people
    • Combined Locks
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Combined Locks is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Combined Locks
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,607 people
    • Kimberly
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Kimberly is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimberly
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,869 people
    • Seymour
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Seymour is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seymour
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,457 people
    • Apple Creek
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Apple Creek is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Creek
    • Appleton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Appleton is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appleton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 74,058 people
      • Former name for Appleton:
      • Appleton Junction
    • Black Creek
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Black Creek is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,309 people
    • Nichols
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Nichols is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nichols
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 283 people
    • Greenville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Greenville is located in Outagamie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenville
  • Shawano County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Rose Lawn
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Rose Lawn is located in Shawano County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Lawn
    • Laney
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Laney is located in Shawano County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laney
    • Briarton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Briarton is located in Shawano County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briarton
    • Frazer Corners
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Frazer Corners is located in Shawano County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazer Corners
  • Winnebago County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Shirley, with the one closest to Shirley listed first.
    • Menasha
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Menasha is located in Winnebago County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menasha
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,796 people
    • Neenah
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Neenah is located in Winnebago County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neenah
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,363 people
    • Fox Crossing
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Fox Crossing is located in Winnebago County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Crossing
    • Adella Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Adella Beach is located in Winnebago County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adella Beach

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

Cemeteries Near Shirley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shirley.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Shirley - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Zion Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Zion Lutheran Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Emmanuel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Polish Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • St. John's United Methodist Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Bohemian Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Zion Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • West Danish Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Zion United Methodist Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Eastside Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (262 more) ...
    • Lilly Lake Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Bellevue Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Mt. Olivet Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)

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.<3>

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

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

  • Glenmore
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Glenmore is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
  • Pine Grove
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Pine Grove is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove
  • Kolb
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Kolb is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kolb
  • Denmark
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Denmark is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denmark
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,271 people
  • Greenleaf
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Greenleaf is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenleaf
  • Wayside
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Wayside is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayside
  • Rosecrans
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Rosecrans is located in Manitowoc County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosecrans
  • Fontenoy
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Fontenoy is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fontenoy
  • Poland
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Poland is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poland
  • De Pere
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • De Pere is located in Brown County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Pere
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 25,014 people
  • Cooperstown
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Cooperstown is located in Manitowoc County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooperstown
  • Curran
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Curran is located in Kewaunee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curran
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Henrysville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Henrysville is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrysville
    • Little Rapids
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Little Rapids is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Rapids
    • Wrightstown
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Wrightstown is located in Brown County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wrightstown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,631 people

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

Newspapers Published in Shirley ...

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 65 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shirley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Shirley, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<1>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Shirley.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Shirley:

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Shirley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>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.
<3>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 Shirley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.