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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 Amherst (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 Amherst. 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 northeast 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 north.

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 north 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.

Amherst is located in Genesee County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Genesee County: Erie, Livingston, Monroe, Orleans & Wyoming.

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

  • Genesee County     (The home county of Amherst)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Amherst, with the one closest to Amherst listed first.
    • Corfu
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Indian Falls
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Falls
      • Indian Falls is located in Genesee County
    • Alabama
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama
      • Alabama is located in Genesee County
    • Basom
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Sawens
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sawens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawens
      • Sawens is located in Genesee County
    • Griswold
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Griswold have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griswold
      • Griswold is located in Genesee County
    • North Pembroke
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Pembroke have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Pembroke
      • North Pembroke is located in Genesee County
    • Wheatville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatville
      • Wheatville is located in Genesee County
    • Ridgewood Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ridgewood Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgewood Village
      • Ridgewood Village is located in Genesee County
    • Alexander
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Bushville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushville
      • Bushville is located in Genesee County
    • Oakfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Erie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Amherst, with the one closest to Amherst listed first.
    • Amherst
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Williamsville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
      • Williamsville is located in Erie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,171 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Williamsville <1>
    • Getzville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Kenmore
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Harris Hill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Hill
      • Harris Hill is located in Erie County
    • Tonawanda
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Cheektowaga
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Swormville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swormville
      • Swormville is located in Erie County
    • Sloan
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sloan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sloan
      • Sloan is located in Erie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,522 people
    • Depew
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Buffalo
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Ferry Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ferry Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferry Village
      • Ferry Village is located in Erie County
  • Niagara County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Amherst, with the one closest to Amherst listed first.
    • Park Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
      • Park Village is located in Niagara County
    • North Tonawanda
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Tonawanda
      • North Tonawanda is located in Niagara County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 30,050 people
    • Hoffman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
      • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
    • Wurlitzer Park Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wurlitzer Park Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wurlitzer Park Village
      • Wurlitzer Park Village is located in Niagara County
    • Pendleton Center
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pendleton Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pendleton Center
      • Pendleton Center is located in Niagara County
    • Saint Johnsburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johnsburg
      • Saint Johnsburg is located in Niagara County
    • Raymond
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raymond
      • Raymond is located in Niagara County
    • Black Creek Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Black Creek Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek Village
      • Black Creek Village is located in Niagara County
    • Rapids
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rapids have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rapids
      • Rapids is located in Niagara County
    • Lockport Junction
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lockport Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockport Junction
      • Lockport Junction is located in Niagara County
    • South Lockport
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Lockport have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Lockport
      • South Lockport is located in Niagara County
    • Colonial Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colonial Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
      • Colonial Village is located in Niagara County
  • Orleans County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Amherst, with the one closest to Amherst listed first.
    • Jeddo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
      • Jeddo is located in Orleans County
    • Lakewood Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakewood Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
      • Lakewood Village is located in Orleans County
    • Medina
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • West Barre
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Barre
      • West Barre is located in Orleans County
  • Wyoming County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Amherst, with the one closest to Amherst listed first.
    • Folsomdale
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsomdale
      • Folsomdale is located in Wyoming County
    • Harris Corners
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Corners
      • Harris Corners is located in Wyoming County
    • Attica
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Java Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Varysburg
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Johnsonburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnsonburg
      • Johnsonburg is located in Wyoming County
    • Java Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
    • North Java
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Amherst ...

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 42 newspapers that have been published in the area around Amherst.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Amherst, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Amherst.

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 Amherst:

Cemeteries Near Amherst ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Amherst.

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

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

  • Skinnersville Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Skinnersville Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Skinnersville Cemetery
  • St. John's Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • St. Pauls Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Pauls Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Pauls Cemetery
  • St. Stanislaus RC Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the St. Stanislaus RC Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Cheektowaga.
    • The St. Stanislaus RC Cemetery has also been known as:
    • St. Stanislaus Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Stanislaus RC Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #66205 <4>
  • Holy Rest Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Buffalo Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • United German & French RC Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the United German & French RC Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Cheektowaga.
    • The United German & French RC Cemetery has also been known as:
    • United Catholic Cemetery
    • United German & French Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the United German & French RC Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1966051 <4>
  • Ridge Lawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Ridge Lawn Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Cheektowaga.
    • The Ridge Lawn Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Ridgelawn Gardens
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ridge Lawn Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #65791 <4>
  • Pine Lawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Holy Sepulchre Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (344 more) ...
    • St. Michaels Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Michaels Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Michaels Cemetery
    • War of 1812 Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the War of 1812 Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the War of 1812 Cemetery
    • Elmlawn Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Elmlawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Elmlawn 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 Amherst in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Amherst.

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

  • Eggertsville
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eggertsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eggertsville
    • Eggertsville is located in Erie County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eggertsville <1>
  • Snyder
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snyder have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snyder
    • Snyder is located in Erie County
  • Williamsville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
    • Williamsville is located in Erie County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,171 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Williamsville <1>
  • Getzville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Kenmore
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Cheektowaga
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Forks
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forks have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forks
    • Forks is located in Erie County
  • Martinsville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Martinsville is located in Niagara County
  • Harris Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Hill
    • Harris Hill is located in Erie County
  • East Amherst
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Amherst have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Amherst
    • East Amherst is located in Erie County
  • North Tonawanda
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Tonawanda
    • North Tonawanda is located in Niagara County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 30,050 people
  • Tonawanda
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Hoffman
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
      • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
    • Sloan
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sloan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sloan
      • Sloan is located in Erie County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,522 people
    • Doyle
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Doyle have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doyle
      • Doyle is located in Erie County

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

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

The official website for Genesee County: www.co.genesee.ny.us/

The official website for State of New York: https://www.ny.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' (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- Amherst) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Amherst. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.9790, Longitude: -78.7923    
<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 Amherst, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024