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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 Mackinac 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 Mackinac 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 Mackinac 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 Mackinac Island: Mackinac 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Mackinac Island is located in Mackinac County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Mackinac County: Chippewa, Luce & Schoolcraft.

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

  • Mackinac County     (The home county of Mackinac Island)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mackinac Island, with the one closest to Mackinac Island listed first.
    • British Landing
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for British Landing
      • British Landing is located in Mackinac County
    • Saint Ignace
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Ignace have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Ignace
      • Saint Ignace is located in Mackinac County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,325 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Ignace <2>
    • Gros Cap
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gros Cap
      • Gros Cap is located in Mackinac County
    • Pointe Aux Pins
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Pontchartrain Shores
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontchartrain Shores
      • Pontchartrain Shores is located in Mackinac County
    • Hessel
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Allenville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenville
      • Allenville is located in Mackinac County
    • Moran
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moran have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moran
      • Moran is located in Mackinac County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moran <2>
    • Cedarville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedarville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarville
      • Cedarville is located in Mackinac County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cedarville <2>
    • Simmons ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Simmons have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simmons
      • Simmons is located in Mackinac County
    • Port Dolomite
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Dolomite
      • Port Dolomite is located in Mackinac County
    • Kenneth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenneth
      • Kenneth is located in Mackinac County
    • Ozark
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ozark have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ozark
      • Ozark is located in Mackinac County
  • Cheboygan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mackinac Island, with the one closest to Mackinac Island listed first.
    • Point Nipigon
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Nipigon
      • Point Nipigon is located in Cheboygan County
      • Point Nipigon has also been known as:
      • Point Nip-i-gon
    • Cheboygan
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cheboygan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheboygan
      • Cheboygan is located in Cheboygan County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,697 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cheboygan <2>
    • Riggsville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riggsville
      • Riggsville is located in Cheboygan County
    • Mullett Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mullett Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mullett Lake
      • Mullett Lake is located in Cheboygan County
    • Silver Beach
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Beach
      • Silver Beach is located in Cheboygan County
    • Long Point
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Point
      • Long Point is located in Cheboygan County
    • Veery Point
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Veery Point
      • Veery Point is located in Cheboygan County
    • Topinabee
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Giauque Beach
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Giauque Beach
      • Giauque Beach is located in Cheboygan County
    • Burt Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burt Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burt Lake
      • Burt Lake is located in Cheboygan County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burt Lake <2>
    • Indian River
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian River
      • Indian River is located in Cheboygan County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Indian River <2>
  • Chippewa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mackinac Island, with the one closest to Mackinac Island listed first.
    • Dryburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dryburg
      • Dryburg is located in Chippewa County
    • Fibre
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fibre
      • Fibre is located in Chippewa County
    • Pickford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Stalwart
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stalwart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stalwart
      • Stalwart is located in Chippewa County
    • Rudyard
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Dick
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dick
      • Dick is located in Chippewa County
    • Stirlingville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stirlingville
      • Stirlingville is located in Chippewa County
    • Goetzville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goetzville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goetzville
      • Goetzville is located in Chippewa County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Goetzville <2>
    • Kinross
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Trout Lake
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Emmet County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mackinac Island, with the one closest to Mackinac Island listed first.
    • Mackinaw City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Carp Lake
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Levering
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Van
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van
      • Van is located in Emmet County
    • Pellston
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pellston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pellston
      • Pellston is located in Emmet County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 843 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pellston <2>
    • Cross Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cross Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Village
      • Cross Village is located in Emmet County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cross Village <2>
    • Marsh Corner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Corner
      • Marsh Corner is located in Emmet County
    • Brutus
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brutus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brutus
      • Brutus is located in Emmet County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brutus <2>
    • Alanson
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alanson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alanson
      • Alanson is located in Emmet County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 755 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alanson <2>
    • Good Hart
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Stutsmanville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stutsmanville
      • Stutsmanville is located in Emmet County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Mackinac 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 28 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mackinac Island.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Mackinac Island. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Mackinac Island and those printed in the larger area surrounding Mackinac Island.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<3> of Mackinac Island.

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 Mackinac Island:

Cemeteries Near Mackinac Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mackinac 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 Mackinac Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Ft. Mackinac Post Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ft. Mackinac Post Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ft. Mackinac Post Cemetery
  • St. Anns Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Anns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Anns Cemetery
  • Mackinac Island Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mackinac Island Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mackinac Island Cemetery
  • Lakeside Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakeside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakeside Cemetery
  • St. Ignace's Catholic Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Ignace's Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Ignace's Catholic Cemetery
  • Mackinaw City Bible Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mackinaw City Bible Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mackinaw City Bible Church Cemetery
  • Indian Burial Ground
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Indian Burial Ground have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Indian Burial Ground
  • Lakeview Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakeview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakeview Cemetery
  • Gros Gap Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gros Gap Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gros Gap Cemetery
  • Sailors & Indians Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sailors & Indians Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sailors & Indians Cemetery
  • McRae Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the McRae Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the McRae Cemetery
  • Olive Church Grove Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Olive Church Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Olive Church Grove Cemetery
  • Continue List   (68 more) ...
    • Carp River Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carp River Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carp River Cemetery
    • St. Ignace Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Ignace Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Ignace Cemetery
    • Hebron Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hebron Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hebron Cemetery

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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Mackinac Island had a population of 750 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Mackinac Island had a population of 478 people.

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

  • Saint Ignace
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Ignace have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Ignace
    • Saint Ignace is located in Mackinac County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,325 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Ignace <2>
  • Mackinaw City
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Freedom
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Freedom have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom
    • Freedom is located in Cheboygan County
  • Pointe Aux Pins
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Carp Lake
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Hessel
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Moran
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moran have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moran
    • Moran is located in Mackinac County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moran <2>
  • Cedarville
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedarville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarville
    • Cedarville is located in Mackinac County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cedarville <2>
  • Cheboygan
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cheboygan have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheboygan
    • Cheboygan is located in Cheboygan County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,697 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cheboygan <2>
  • Bliss
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bliss have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bliss
    • Bliss is located in Emmet County
  • Levering
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Riggsville
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riggsville
    • Riggsville is located in Cheboygan County
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Mullett Lake
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mullett Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mullett Lake
      • Mullett Lake is located in Cheboygan County
    • Pellston
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pellston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pellston
      • Pellston is located in Emmet County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 843 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pellston <2>
    • Brevort
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brevort have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brevort
      • Brevort is located in Mackinac County

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

The official website for Mackinac Island: www.cityofmi.org/

The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.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>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 drawn from Point A (ie- Mackinac Island) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Mackinac Island. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.8561, Longitude: -84.6217       In this case, the coordinates for Mackinac Island have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>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 Mackinac Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024