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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 American Beach (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 American Beach. 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 American Beach ...

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 American Beach: American Bch.

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.

American Beach is located in Nassau County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Nassau County: Baker, Duval, Camden (GA) & Charlton (GA).

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

  • Nassau County     (The home county of American Beach)
    • The following are listed by their distance from American Beach, with the one closest to American Beach listed first.
    • Amelia City
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Amelia City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia City
      • Amelia City is located in Nassau County
    • Fernandina Beach
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Yulee
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Nassau Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nassau Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nassau Village
      • Nassau Village is located in Nassau County
    • Evergreen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
      • Evergreen is located in Nassau County
    • Callahan
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Dyal
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyal
      • Dyal is located in Nassau County
    • Crawford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crawford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
      • Crawford is located in Nassau County
    • Hilliard
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Duval County
    • The following are listed by their distance from American Beach, with the one closest to American Beach listed first.
    • Polly Town
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Polly Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polly Town
      • Polly Town is located in Duval County
    • Greenfield
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
      • Greenfield is located in Duval County
    • Atlantic Beach
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Garden City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garden City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
      • Garden City is located in Duval County
    • Neptune Beach
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Arlington
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
      • Arlington is located in Duval County
    • Biscayne Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Biscayne Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biscayne Village
      • Biscayne Village is located in Duval County
    • Talleyrand
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talleyrand
      • Talleyrand is located in Duval County
    • San Pablo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for San Pablo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Pablo
      • San Pablo is located in Duval County
    • Jacksonville Beach
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville Beach
      • Jacksonville Beach is located in Duval County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,609 people
      • Former names for Jacksonville Beach:
      • Pablo Beach
      • Ruby
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jacksonville Beach <2>
    • Sans Pareil
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sans Pareil
      • Sans Pareil is located in Duval County
    • Magnolia Gardens
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Gardens
      • Magnolia Gardens is located in Duval County
    • Jacksonville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint Johns County
    • The following are listed by their distance from American Beach, with the one closest to American Beach listed first.
    • Ponte Vedra Beach
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Ponte Vedra
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ponte Vedra have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponte Vedra
      • Ponte Vedra is located in Saint Johns County
    • Sawgrass
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sawgrass have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawgrass
      • Sawgrass is located in Saint Johns County
    • Palm Valley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palm Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palm Valley
      • Palm Valley is located in Saint Johns County
  • Camden County (GA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from American Beach, with the one closest to American Beach listed first.
    • Dungeness
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dungeness have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dungeness
      • Dungeness is located in Camden County (GA)
    • Saint Marys
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Marys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
      • Saint Marys is located in Camden County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,854 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Marys <2>
    • Scotchville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotchville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotchville
      • Scotchville is located in Camden County (GA)
      • Estimated population in 2019: 337 people
    • Kingsland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingsland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsland
      • Kingsland is located in Camden County (GA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,292 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kingsland <2>
    • London Hill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for London Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for London Hill
      • London Hill is located in Camden County (GA)
      • Estimated population in 2019: 91 people
    • Harrietts Bluff Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harrietts Bluff Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrietts Bluff Village
      • Harrietts Bluff Village is located in Camden County (GA)
    • Greenville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenville
      • Greenville is located in Camden County (GA)
      • Estimated population in 2019: 845 people

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

Newspapers Published in American Beach ...

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 5 newspapers that have been published in the area around American Beach.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of American Beach, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for American Beach.

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 helpful 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 American Beach:

Cemeteries Near American Beach ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of American Beach.

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

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

  • Bosquebello Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bosquebello Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bosquebello Cemetery
  • Ferreira Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ferreira Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ferreira Cemetery
  • Anderson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Anderson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Anderson Cemetery
  • Talbot Island Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Talbot Island Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Talbot Island Cemetery
  • Green Pine Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Higginbotham Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Higginbotham Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Higginbotham Cemetery
  • Bowles Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bowles Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bowles Cemetery
  • Yulee Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Yulee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Yulee Cemetery
  • Dunn Creek Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dunn Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dunn Creek Cemetery
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
  • Carnegie Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Carnegie Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Carnegie Cemetery
  • Rain Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rain Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rain Cemetery
  • Continue List   (70 more) ...
    • Mayport Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mayport Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mayport Cemetery
    • Cosmo Cemetery
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cosmo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cosmo Cemetery
    • Parsons Cemetery
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Parsons Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Parsons 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.<5>

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

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

  • Chester
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chester have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
    • Chester is located in Nassau County
  • Mayport
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mayport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayport
    • Mayport is located in Duval County
  • New Berlin
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Berlin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Berlin
    • New Berlin is located in Duval County
  • Fulton
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fulton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fulton
    • Fulton is located in Duval County
  • Saint Marys
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Marys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Marys
    • Saint Marys is located in Camden County (GA)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,854 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Marys <2>
  • Crandall
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crandall have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crandall
    • Crandall is located in Nassau County
  • Gilmore
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilmore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore
    • Gilmore is located in Duval County
  • Greenfield
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
    • Greenfield is located in Duval County
  • Chaseville
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chaseville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chaseville
    • Chaseville is located in Duval County
  • Italia
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Italia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Italia
    • Italia is located in Nassau County
  • Panama Park
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Panama Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panama Park
    • Panama Park is located in Duval County
  • Floral Bluff
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Floral Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floral Bluff
    • Floral Bluff is located in Duval County
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Arlington
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
      • Arlington is located in Duval County
    • San Pablo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for San Pablo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Pablo
      • San Pablo is located in Duval County
    • Evergreen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
      • Evergreen is located in Nassau County

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

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

The official website for Nassau County: www.nassauclerk.com/

The official website for State of Florida: www.myflorida.com/

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 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- American Beach) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in American Beach. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.5750, Longitude: -81.4440       In this case, the coordinates for American Beach have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about American Beach, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024