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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 Elk River (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 Elk River. 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 Elk River ...

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 Elk River: Elk Riv.

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 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.

Elk River is located in Clearwater County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Clearwater County: Idaho, Latah, Lewis, Nez Perce, Shoshone, Mineral (MT) & Missoula (MT).

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

  • Clearwater County     (The home county of Elk River)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk River, with the one closest to Elk River listed first.
    • Five Corners ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Corners
      • Five Corners is located in Clearwater County
    • Teakean
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teakean
      • Teakean is located in Clearwater County
    • Ahsahka
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Orofino
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orofino have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orofino
      • Orofino is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,120 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orofino <1>
    • Greer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greer
      • Greer is located in Clearwater County
    • Judge Town
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Judge Town
      • Judge Town is located in Clearwater County
    • Pierce
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Weippe
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weippe have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weippe
      • Weippe is located in Clearwater County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 448 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Weippe <1>
  • Benewah County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk River, with the one closest to Elk River listed first.
    • Fernwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fernwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernwood
      • Fernwood is located in Benewah County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fernwood <1>
    • Santa
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Emida
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emida
      • Emida is located in Benewah County
  • Latah County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk River, with the one closest to Elk River listed first.
    • Bovill
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bovill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bovill
      • Bovill is located in Latah County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 261 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bovill <1>
    • Linden
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
      • Linden is located in Latah County
    • Deary
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deary have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deary
      • Deary is located in Latah County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Deary <1>
    • Kendrick
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kendrick have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendrick
      • Kendrick is located in Latah County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 309 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kendrick <1>
    • Harvard
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harvard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard
      • Harvard is located in Latah County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Harvard <1>
    • Juliaetta
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Troy
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Troy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
      • Troy is located in Latah County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 913 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <1>
    • Howell
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Howell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
      • Howell is located in Latah County
  • Nez Perce County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk River, with the one closest to Elk River listed first.
    • Cavendish
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cavendish
      • Cavendish is located in Nez Perce County
    • Cameron
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Cameron is located in Nez Perce County
    • Peck
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peck
      • Peck is located in Nez Perce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peck <1>
    • Lenore
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lenore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenore
      • Lenore is located in Nez Perce County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lenore <1>
    • Cherrylane
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherrylane
      • Cherrylane is located in Nez Perce County
  • Shoshone County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Elk River, with the one closest to Elk River listed first.
    • Clarkia
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Emerald Creek
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerald Creek
      • Emerald Creek is located in Shoshone County

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

Newspapers Published in Elk River ...

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 16 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elk River.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Elk River, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Elk River.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Elk River:

Cemeteries Near Elk River ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elk River.

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

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

  • Three Pines Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Bovill Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Elwood Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elwood Cemetery
  • Pine Crest Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pine Crest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pine Crest Cemetery
  • Gold Hill Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gold Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gold Hill Cemetery
  • Wells Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wells Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wells Cemetery
  • Weseman Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Weseman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Weseman Cemetery
  • Marsh Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Marsh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Marsh Cemetery
  • Zion Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Zion Cemetery
  • Wild Rose Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wild Rose Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wild Rose Cemetery
  • Riverside Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverside Cemetery
  • Cook Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (26 more) ...
    • Hill Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hill Cemetery
    • Dry Creek Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Bethany Lutheran Church Cemetery
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)

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 Elk River in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Elk River.

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

  • Linden
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
    • Linden is located in Latah County
  • Southwick
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southwick have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southwick
    • Southwick is located in Nez Perce County
  • Cameron
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
    • Cameron is located in Nez Perce County
  • Leland
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leland
    • Leland is located in Nez Perce County
  • Kendrick
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kendrick have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendrick
    • Kendrick is located in Latah County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 309 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kendrick <1>
  • Juliaetta
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Santa
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)

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

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

The official website for Clearwater County: www.clearwatercounty.org/

The official website for State of Idaho: www.state.id.us/

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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- Elk River) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Elk River. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.7830, Longitude: -116.1812       In this case, the coordinates for Elk River have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Elk River, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024