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 West Bancroft (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 West Bancroft. 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 West Bancroft ...
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 occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for West Bancroft: W. Bancroft
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 hospitals and 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.
West Bancroft is located in Portage 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 Portage County: Adams, Marathon, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara & Wood.
Below are the counties that are near West Bancroft. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Bancroft:
- Portage County (The home county of West Bancroft)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Almond
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Almond is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almond
- Population from the 2020 Census: 428 people
- Blaine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Blaine is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blaine
- Plover
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Plover is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,252 people
- Arnott
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Arnott is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnott
- Whiting
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Whiting is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiting
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,704 people
- Park Ridge
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Park Ridge is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Ridge
- Population from the 2020 Census: 496 people
- Custer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Custer is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer
- Stevens Point
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Stevens Point is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stevens Point
- Population from the 2020 Census: 25,949 people
- Amherst Junction
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Amherst Junction is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Junction
- Population from the 2020 Census: 392 people
- Amherst
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Amherst is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,082 people
- Lake Emily ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Emily is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Emily
- Nelsonville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Nelsonville is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelsonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 151 people
- Adams County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Leola
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Leola is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leola
- New Rome ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- New Rome is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Rome
- Big Flats
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Big Flats is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Flats
- Pilot Knob ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Pilot Knob is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Knob
- Arkdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Arkdale is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkdale
- Adams
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Adams is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,905 people
- Friendship
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Friendship is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Population from the 2020 Census: 676 people
- Strongs Prairie
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Strongs Prairie is located in Adams County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strongs Prairie
- Juneau County
- New Miner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- New Miner is located in Juneau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Miner
- Marathon County
- Ashley
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Ashley is located in Marathon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashley
- Marquette County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Neshkoro
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Neshkoro is located in Marquette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neshkoro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 425 people
- Westfield
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Westfield is located in Marquette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,268 people
- Waupaca County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Cobb Town
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Cobb Town is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb Town
- Sheridan
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Sheridan is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
- Rural
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Rural is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural
- King
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- King is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for King
- Scandinavia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Scandinavia is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scandinavia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 349 people
- Waupaca
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Waupaca is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waupaca
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,857 people
- Iola
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Iola is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iola
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,190 people
- Ogdensburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ogdensburg is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogdensburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 175 people
- Baldwins Mill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Baldwins Mill is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baldwins Mill
- Weyauwega
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Weyauwega is located in Waupaca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weyauwega
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,745 people
- Waushara County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Plainfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Plainfield is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 832 people
- Hancock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Hancock is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 402 people
- Wild Rose
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wild Rose is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wild Rose
- Population from the 2020 Census: 651 people
- Coloma
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Coloma is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 444 people
- Wautoma
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Wautoma is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wautoma
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,114 people
- Mount Morris
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Morris is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Morris
- Saxeville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Saxeville is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saxeville
- Silver Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Silver Lake is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Lake
- Pine River
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Pine River is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
- Lohrville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lohrville is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lohrville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 389 people
- Poy Sippi
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Poy Sippi is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poy Sippi
- Redgranite
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Redgranite is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redgranite
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,111 people
- Wood County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Grand Rapids
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Grand Rapids is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Rapids
- Lake Wazeecha
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Lake Wazeecha is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Wazeecha
- Biron
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Biron is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biron
- Population from the 2020 Census: 761 people
- Wisconsin Rapids
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Wisconsin Rapids is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wisconsin Rapids
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,555 people
- Port Edwards
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Port Edwards is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Edwards
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,752 people
- Rudolph
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Rudolph is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rudolph
- Population from the 2020 Census: 411 people
- Nekoosa
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Nekoosa is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nekoosa
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,391 people
- Eight Corners
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Eight Corners is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eight Corners
- Vesper
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Vesper is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vesper
- Population from the 2020 Census: 539 people
- Milladore
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Milladore is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milladore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 258 people
- Sherry
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sherry is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherry
- Blenker
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Blenker is located in Wood County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blenker
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Bancroft, see our County-by-County Page for West Bancroft.
Cemeteries Near West Bancroft ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Bancroft.
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 West Bancroft - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Bancroft covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Pine Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Lone Pine Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Spiritland Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Guardian Angel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- North Almond Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Plainfield Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Hillside Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ray Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- East German Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- St. Johns Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Liberty Corners Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (152 more) ...
- Buena Vista Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Maine Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Hillside Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
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.<2>
While we didn't find West Bancroft in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Bancroft.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Bancroft, with the one closest to West Bancroft listed first.
- Bancroft
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Bancroft is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bancroft
- Keene
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Keene is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keene
- Plainfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Plainfield is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 832 people
- Almond
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Almond is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almond
- Population from the 2020 Census: 428 people
- Blaine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Blaine is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blaine
- Meehan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Meehan is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meehan
- Hancock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Hancock is located in Waushara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 402 people
- Arnott
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Arnott is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnott
- Fancher
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Fancher is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fancher
- Stockton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Stockton is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockton
- Amherst
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Amherst is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,082 people
- Amherst Junction
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Amherst Junction is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Junction
- Population from the 2020 Census: 392 people
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Lake Emily ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Emily is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Emily
- Custer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Custer is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Custer
- Stevens Point
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Stevens Point is located in Portage County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stevens Point
- Population from the 2020 Census: 25,949 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around West Bancroft. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Bancroft.
Newspapers Published in West Bancroft ...
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 81 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Bancroft.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Bancroft, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Bancroft.
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 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 West Bancroft:
- Websites specific to Wisconsin
- Pages specific to Portage County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adams County
- Juneau County
- Marathon County
- Marquette County
- Waupaca County
- Waushara County
- Wood County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Wisconsin
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | 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 West Bancroft, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- West Bancroft) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |