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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 South Lake Tahoe (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 South Lake Tahoe. 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 South Lake Tahoe ...

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 South Lake Tahoe: S. Lk. Tahoe

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.

South Lake Tahoe is located in El Dorado 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 El Dorado County: Alpine, Amador, Placer, Sacramento & Douglas (NV).

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

  • El Dorado County     (The home county of South Lake Tahoe)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Al Tahoe
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Al Tahoe
      • Al Tahoe is located in El Dorado County
    • Tallac Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tallac Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallac Village
      • Tallac Village is located in El Dorado County
    • Fallen Leaf
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Echo Lake
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Phillips
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Phillips have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillips
      • Phillips is located in El Dorado County
    • Twin Bridges
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Tahoma
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Strawberry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Kyburz
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • White Hall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Hall have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hall
      • White Hall is located in El Dorado County
    • Riverton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
      • Riverton is located in El Dorado County
  • Alpine County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Sorensens
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sorensens
      • Sorensens is located in Alpine County
    • Mesa Vista
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mesa Vista
      • Mesa Vista is located in Alpine County
    • Paynesville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paynesville
      • Paynesville is located in Alpine County
    • Alpine Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alpine Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine Village
      • Alpine Village is located in Alpine County
    • Kirkwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Marklee Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marklee Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marklee Village
      • Marklee Village is located in Alpine County
    • Markleeville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Loope ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loope
      • Loope is located in Alpine County
  • Amador County
  • Nevada County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Polaris
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Polaris have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polaris
      • Polaris is located in Nevada County
    • Truckee
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Bronco
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bronco have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bronco
      • Bronco is located in Nevada County
    • Prosser Lake Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prosser Lake Heights
      • Prosser Lake Heights is located in Nevada County
  • Placer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Tahoma Meadows
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tahoma Meadows have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tahoma Meadows
      • Tahoma Meadows is located in Placer County
    • Homewood
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Tahoe Pines
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tahoe Pines
      • Tahoe Pines is located in Placer County
    • Tahoe City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Dollar Point
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dollar Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dollar Point
      • Dollar Point is located in Placer County
    • Lake Forest
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Forest
      • Lake Forest is located in Placer County
    • Brockway
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Carnelian Bay
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Kings Beach
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Tahoe Vista
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Soda Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Soda Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soda Springs
      • Soda Springs is located in Placer County
  • Carson City (NV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Carson City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Lakeview Summit
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview Summit have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Summit
      • Lakeview Summit is located in Carson City (NV)
    • New Empire
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Empire
      • New Empire is located in Carson City (NV)
    • Empire
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Empire have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
      • Empire is located in Carson City (NV)
  • Douglas County (NV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Edgewood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edgewood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewood
      • Edgewood is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Stateline
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Tahoe Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tahoe Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tahoe Village
      • Tahoe Village is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Zephyr Cove
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Kingsbury
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingsbury have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsbury
      • Kingsbury is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Skyland
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skyland
      • Skyland is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Kingsbury Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingsbury Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsbury Village
      • Kingsbury Village is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Summit Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Summit Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit Village
      • Summit Village is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Mottsville ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mottsville
      • Mottsville is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Lincoln Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Park
      • Lincoln Park is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Sheridan ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
      • Sheridan is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Walleys Hot Springs
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walleys Hot Springs
      • Walleys Hot Springs is located in Douglas County (NV)
    • Genoa
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Lyon County (NV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Eureka ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in Lyon County (NV)
    • Mound House
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Johntown ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johntown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johntown
      • Johntown is located in Lyon County (NV)
    • Silver City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
      • Silver City is located in Lyon County (NV)
    • Dayton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Storey County (NV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • American City ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for American City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for American City
      • American City is located in Storey County (NV)
    • American Flat ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for American Flat have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for American Flat
      • American Flat is located in Storey County (NV)
    • Gold Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gold Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Hill
      • Gold Hill is located in Storey County (NV)
  • Washoe County (NV)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Lake Tahoe, with the one closest to South Lake Tahoe listed first.
    • Crystal Bay
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Incline Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Tyrolian Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tyrolian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyrolian Village
      • Tyrolian Village is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • Franktown
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franktown
      • Franktown is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • Ophir City ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ophir City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophir City
      • Ophir City is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • New Washoe City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Washoe City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washoe City
      • Washoe City is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • Sundown Town
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sundown Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sundown Town
      • Sundown Town is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • Galena ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Galena. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galena
      • Galena is located in Washoe County (NV)
    • Pleasant Valley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
      • Pleasant Valley is located in Washoe County (NV)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of South Lake Tahoe ...

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 69 newspapers that have been published in the area around South Lake Tahoe.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of South Lake Tahoe. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of South Lake Tahoe and those printed in the larger area surrounding South Lake Tahoe.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4> of South Lake Tahoe.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 South Lake Tahoe:

Cemeteries Near South Lake Tahoe ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of South Lake Tahoe.

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 South Lake Tahoe covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

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 South Lake Tahoe in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of South Lake Tahoe.

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

  • Bijou
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bijou have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bijou
    • Bijou is located in El Dorado County
  • Lake Valley
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Valley
    • Lake Valley is located in El Dorado County
  • Tallac Village
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tallac Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallac Village
    • Tallac Village is located in El Dorado County
  • Hobart ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hobart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hobart
    • Hobart is located in Douglas County (NV)
  • Emerald Bay
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emerald Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerald Bay
    • Emerald Bay is located in El Dorado County
  • Sheridan ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
    • Sheridan is located in Douglas County (NV)
  • Genoa
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Glenbrook
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Gardnerville
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Woodfords
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodfords have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodfords
    • Woodfords is located in Alpine County
  • Tahoe City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Markleeville
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (12 more) ...
    • Carson City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Incline Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Brunswick ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brunswick have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brunswick
      • Brunswick is located in Carson City (NV)

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

The official website for South Lake Tahoe: www.ci.south-lake-tahoe.ca.us/

The official website for El Dorado County: www.co.el-dorado.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 '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- South Lake Tahoe) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in South Lake Tahoe. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.9401, Longitude: -119.9773    
<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 South Lake Tahoe, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024