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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 Compton (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 Compton. 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 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.

Compton is located in Los Angeles County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Los Angeles County: Kern, Orange, San Bernardino & Ventura.

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

  • Los Angeles County     (The home county of Compton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Compton, with the one closest to Compton listed first.
    • Rancho Dominguez
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Lynwood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynwood
      • Lynwood is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 68,508 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lynwood <1>
    • Willowbrook
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willowbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willowbrook
      • Willowbrook is located in Los Angeles County
    • West Rancho Dominguez
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Rancho Dominguez have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Rancho Dominguez
      • West Rancho Dominguez is located in Los Angeles County
    • Clearwater
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clearwater have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearwater
      • Clearwater is located in Los Angeles County
    • Paramount
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Hacienda Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hacienda Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hacienda Village
      • Hacienda Village is located in Los Angeles County
    • Watts
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watts
      • Watts is located in Los Angeles County
    • South Gate
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Cudahy
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cudahy
      • Cudahy is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,128 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cudahy <1>
    • South Los Angeles
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Los Angeles
      • South Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles County
    • Dominguez
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dominguez have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dominguez
      • Dominguez is located in Los Angeles County
    • Lincoln Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Village
      • Lincoln Village is located in Los Angeles County
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Compton, with the one closest to Compton listed first.
    • La Palma
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Los Alamitos
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Rossmoor
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossmoor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossmoor
      • Rossmoor is located in Orange County
    • Cypress
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Buena Park
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Seal Beach
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Barber City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barber City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barber City
      • Barber City is located in Orange County
    • Stanton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sunset Beach
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Surfside
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • La Habra
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Green Lantern Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Lantern Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Lantern Village
      • Green Lantern Village is located in Orange County
    • Westminster
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
  • San Bernardino County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Compton, with the one closest to Compton listed first.
    • Chino Hills
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Los Serranos
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Serranos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Serranos
      • Los Serranos is located in San Bernardino County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Compton ...

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 86 newspapers that have been published in the area around Compton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Compton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Compton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Compton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<3> of Compton.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Compton:

Cemeteries Near Compton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Compton.

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

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

  • Angeles Abbey Memorial Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodlawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodlawn Cemetery
  • Lincoln Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lincoln Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lincoln Memorial Park
  • Roosevelt Memorial Park
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Long Beach Forest Lawn Park Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • The Long Beach Forest Lawn Park Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery - Long Beach
    • Forest Lawn Memorial Park - Long Beach
    • Long Beach Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Long Beach Forest Lawn Park Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #180662 <4>
  • All Souls Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the All Souls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the All Souls Cemetery
  • Old Downey Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Downey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Downey Cemetery
  • Sunnyside Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Table Top Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Table Top Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Table Top Cemetery
  • Long Beach Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • The Long Beach Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Long Beach Municipal Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Long Beach Cemetery
  • Young Israel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Young Israel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Young Israel Cemetery
  • Mt. Carmel Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (73 more) ...
    • Wilmington Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Wilmington Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Wilmington.
      • The Wilmington Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Historic Wilmington Cemetery
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilmington Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #152636 <4>
    • Artesia Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Artesia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Artesia Cemetery
    • Memorial Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Memorial Park

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Compton had a population of 636 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Compton had a population of 93,967 people.

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

  • Lynwood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynwood
    • Lynwood is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 68,508 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lynwood <1>
  • Clearwater
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clearwater have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearwater
    • Clearwater is located in Los Angeles County
  • Dominguez
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dominguez have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dominguez
    • Dominguez is located in Los Angeles County
  • South Los Angeles
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Los Angeles
    • South Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles County
  • Moneta
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Moneta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moneta
    • Moneta is located in Los Angeles County
  • Florence
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
    • Florence is located in Los Angeles County
  • Downey
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
    • Downey is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 109,202 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Downey <1>
  • Vinvale
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinvale
    • Vinvale is located in Los Angeles County
  • Gardena
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardena
    • Gardena is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 58,498 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gardena <1>
  • Thenard
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thenard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thenard
    • Thenard is located in Los Angeles County
  • Norwalk
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwalk
    • Norwalk is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 102,635 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwalk <1>
  • Studebaker
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Studebaker
    • Studebaker is located in Los Angeles County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Wilmington
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilmington
      • Wilmington is located in Los Angeles County
    • Long Beach
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Artesia
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artesia
      • Artesia is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,168 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Artesia <1>

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

The official website for Compton: www.comptoncity.org/

The official website for Los Angeles County: www.lacounty.info/

The official website for State of California: https://www.ca.gov/

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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Compton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Compton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.8960, Longitude: -118.2204    
<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 Compton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024