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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 Sunset 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 Sunset 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 Sunset 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 Sunset Beach: Sunset 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 doctors and hospitals 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.

Sunset Beach is located in Mason County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Mason County: Grays Harbor, Jefferson, Kitsap, Pierce & Thurston.

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

  • Mason County     (The home county of Sunset Beach)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Allyn
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Belfair
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Grapeview
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Tahuya
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Hoodsport
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Lilliwaup
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Potlatch
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Bayshore
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayshore
      • Bayshore is located in Mason County
    • Skokomish
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skokomish
      • Skokomish is located in Mason County
    • Shelton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Mohrweis
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohrweis
      • Mohrweis is located in Mason County
    • New Kamilche
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Kamilche have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Kamilche
      • New Kamilche is located in Mason County
    • Matlock
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matlock
      • Matlock is located in Mason County
  • Grays Harbor County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • McCleary Junction
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCleary Junction
      • McCleary Junction is located in Grays Harbor County
    • McCleary
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Brinnon
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Quilcene
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
  • King County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Magnolia Beach
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Beach
      • Magnolia Beach is located in King County
    • Tahlequah
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tahlequah
      • Tahlequah is located in King County
    • Vashon Heights
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vashon Heights
      • Vashon Heights is located in King County
    • Vashon
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Seahurst
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seahurst
      • Seahurst is located in King County
    • Alki
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alki
      • Alki is located in King County
    • Buenna
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buenna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buenna
      • Buenna is located in King County
    • Burien
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Normandy Park
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • White Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Center
      • White Center is located in King County
    • Des Moines
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • North Hill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hill
      • North Hill is located in King County
    • Redondo
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redondo
      • Redondo is located in King County
  • Kitsap County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Burley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Holly
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly
      • Holly is located in Kitsap County
    • Gorst
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Crosby
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crosby
      • Crosby is located in Kitsap County
    • Bethel
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • East Port Orchard
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Port Orchard
      • East Port Orchard is located in Kitsap County
    • Navy Yard City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Navy Yard City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Navy Yard City
      • Navy Yard City is located in Kitsap County
    • Port Orchard
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Erlands Point - Kitsap Lake
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Parkwood
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
      • Parkwood is located in Kitsap County
    • Retsil
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Retsil
      • Retsil is located in Kitsap County
    • Bremerton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Chico
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chico
      • Chico is located in Kitsap County
  • Pierce County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Vaughn
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vaughn
      • Vaughn is located in Pierce County
    • Herron Island
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Home
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Home
      • Home is located in Pierce County
    • Wauna
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wauna
      • Wauna is located in Pierce County
    • Lakebay
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Rosedale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale
      • Rosedale is located in Pierce County
    • Artondale
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Artondale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artondale
      • Artondale is located in Pierce County
    • Gig Harbor
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Cromwell
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cromwell
      • Cromwell is located in Pierce County
    • Longbranch
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Fox Island
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Gertrude
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gertrude
      • Gertrude is located in Pierce County
    • Anderson Island
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson Island
      • Anderson Island is located in Pierce County
  • Thurston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunset Beach, with the one closest to Sunset Beach listed first.
    • Puget
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puget
      • Puget is located in Thurston County
    • Lacey
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacey
      • Lacey is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,178 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lacey <1>
    • Olympia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Tanglewilde
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanglewilde
      • Tanglewilde is located in Thurston County
    • Tumwater
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Nisqually Indian Community
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nisqually Indian Community. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nisqually Indian Community
      • Nisqually Indian Community is located in Thurston County
    • Kellys Korner
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellys Korner
      • Kellys Korner is located in Thurston County
    • East Olympia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Sunset 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 61 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sunset Beach.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sunset Beach, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sunset 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 Sunset Beach:

Cemeteries Near Sunset Beach ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sunset 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 Sunset Beach covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Twin Firs Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Vaughn Bay Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • The Vaughn Bay Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bayview Cemetery
    • Niemann Family Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Vaughn Bay Cemetery
  • Dewatto Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dewatto Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dewatto Cemetery
  • Minter Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Minter Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Minter Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<4> to the east of Wauna.
    • The Minter Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Elgin Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Minter Cemetery
  • Lakebay Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Rosedale Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • German Lutheran Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • The German Lutheran Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Lakebay German Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
    • Old German Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the German Lutheran Cemetery
  • Oakland Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Oakland Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakland Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #865976 <5>
  • Miller Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Miller Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Miller Cemetery
  • Longbranch Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Artondale Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Haven of Rest Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (69 more) ...
    • K P Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the K P Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the K P Cemetery
    • Sunset Lane Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunset Lane Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunset Lane Cemetery
    • Forest Lawn Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)

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 Sunset Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Sunset Beach.

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

  • Allyn
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Vaughn
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vaughn
    • Vaughn is located in Pierce County
  • Minter
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minter have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minter
    • Minter is located in Pierce County
  • Dewatto
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dewatto have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewatto
    • Dewatto is located in Mason County
  • Union ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Union have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union
    • Union is located in Mason County
  • Hoodsport
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Lakebay
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Rosedale
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale
    • Rosedale is located in Pierce County
  • Purdy
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Purdy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purdy
    • Purdy is located in Pierce County
  • Crosby
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crosby
    • Crosby is located in Kitsap County
  • Artondale
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Artondale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artondale
    • Artondale is located in Pierce County
  • Charleston
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Charleston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charleston
    • Charleston is located in Kitsap County
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Longbranch
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Meridian
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meridian have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meridian
      • Meridian is located in Pierce County
    • Gig Harbor
      (15 miles [24.1 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 Sunset Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sunset Beach.

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

The official website for Mason County: www.co.mason.wa.us/

The official website for State of Washington: https://access.wa.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>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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Sunset Beach) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sunset Beach. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.4081, Longitude: -122.8854       In this case, the coordinates for Sunset Beach have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Sunset 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