RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of California >> Riverside County >> Moreno Valley >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
California

The Commemorative Quarter for California





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 Moreno Valley (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 Moreno Valley. 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 Moreno Valley ...

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 Moreno Valley: Moreno Vly. (or less commonly used: Moreno Vally. or Moreno Vlly.)

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 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.

Moreno Valley is located in Riverside 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 Riverside County: La Paz (AZ), Imperial, Orange, San Bernardino & San Diego.

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

  • Riverside County     (The home county of Moreno Valley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moreno Valley, with the one closest to Moreno Valley listed first.
    • March Field
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for March Field have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for March Field
      • March Field is located in Riverside County
    • Ordway
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ordway have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ordway
      • Ordway is located in Riverside County
    • Bannockburn Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bannockburn Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bannockburn Village
      • Bannockburn Village is located in Riverside County
    • Highgrove
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highgrove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highgrove
      • Highgrove is located in Riverside County
    • Woodcrest
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodcrest have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodcrest
      • Woodcrest is located in Riverside County
    • Lakeview
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview
      • Lakeview is located in Riverside County
    • Riverside
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Calimesa
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Perris
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perris
      • Perris is located in Riverside County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 79,011 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Perris <2>
    • Nuevo
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Arlington
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arlington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
      • Arlington is located in Riverside County
    • Rubidoux
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Los Angeles County
    • Claremont
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moreno Valley, with the one closest to Moreno Valley listed first.
    • Beeks Place ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beeks Place have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beeks Place
      • Beeks Place is located in Orange County
    • Silverado Canyon ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Silverado Canyon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverado Canyon
      • Silverado Canyon is located in Orange County
    • Silverado
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Modjeska
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Modjeska have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Modjeska
      • Modjeska is located in Orange County
    • Trabuco Canyon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Portola Hills
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portola Hills
      • Portola Hills is located in Orange County
    • Rancho Santa Margarita
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Trabuco Highlands
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trabuco Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trabuco Highlands
      • Trabuco Highlands is located in Orange County
    • Foothill Ranch
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • San Bernardino County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moreno Valley, with the one closest to Moreno Valley listed first.
    • Bryn Mawr
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Loma Linda
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Plymouth Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plymouth Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth Village
      • Plymouth Village is located in San Bernardino County
    • Mound City ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mound City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound City
      • Mound City is located in San Bernardino County
    • Redlands
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redlands
      • Redlands is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 72,271 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Redlands <2>
    • Grand Terrace
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Lugonia ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lugonia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lugonia
      • Lugonia is located in San Bernardino County
    • Marigold
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marigold
      • Marigold is located in San Bernardino County
    • University Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for University Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Village
      • University Village is located in San Bernardino County
    • Eastbern ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Eastbern. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastbern
      • Eastbern is located in San Bernardino County
    • Mentone
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Colton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colton
      • Colton is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,661 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colton <2>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Moreno Valley ...

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 163 newspapers that have been published in the area around Moreno Valley.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Moreno Valley. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Moreno Valley and those printed in the larger area surrounding Moreno Valley.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 18 miles [29 km]<4> of Moreno Valley.

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 Moreno Valley:

Cemeteries Near Moreno Valley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Moreno Valley.

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

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

  • Riverside National Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Hillside Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Montecito Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Olivewood Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Evergreen Memorial Park
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Perris Valley Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Perris Valley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Perris Valley Cemetery
  • Agua Mansa Pioneer Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens
  • Hermosa Gardens Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Green Acres Memorial Park
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Home of Eternity Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Home of Eternity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Home of Eternity Cemetery
  • Continue List   (22 more) ...
    • Pioneer Memorial Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pioneer Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pioneer Memorial Cemetery
    • Mountain View Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Campo Santo Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Campo Santo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Campo Santo 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.<6>

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

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

  • Mound City ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mound City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound City
    • Mound City is located in San Bernardino County
  • Redlands
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redlands
    • Redlands is located in San Bernardino County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 72,271 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Redlands <2>
  • Lugonia ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lugonia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lugonia
    • Lugonia is located in San Bernardino County
  • Riverside
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Victoria
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Victoria have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victoria
    • Victoria is located in San Bernardino County
  • Colton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colton
    • Colton is located in San Bernardino County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,661 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Colton <2>
  • Eastbern ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Eastbern. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastbern
    • Eastbern is located in San Bernardino County
  • Mentone
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • San Bernardino
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Rialto
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rialto
    • Rialto is located in San Bernardino County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 104,132 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rialto <2>
  • Declezville
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Declezville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Declezville
    • Declezville is located in San Bernardino County
  • Declez
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Declez have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Declez
    • Declez is located in San Bernardino County
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Arrowhead Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arrowhead Springs
      • Arrowhead Springs is located in San Bernardino County
    • Grapeland ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grapeland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grapeland
      • Grapeland is located in San Bernardino County
    • Banning
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)

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

The official website for Moreno Valley: www.moreno-valley.ca.us/

The official website for Riverside County: www.co.riverside.ca.us/

The official website for State of California: https://www.ca.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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>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- Moreno Valley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Moreno Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.9397, Longitude: -117.2264    
<5>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.
<6>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 Moreno Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024