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 Higley (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 Higley. 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 and hospitals 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.
Higley is located in Maricopa County.
To see how the shape of Arizona's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Maricopa County: Gila, La Paz, Pima, Pinal, Yavapai & Yuma.
Below are the counties that are near Higley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Higley:
- Maricopa County (The home county of Higley)
- The following are listed by their distance from Higley, with the one closest to Higley listed first.
- Gilbert
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sonora
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sonora have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonora
- Sonora is located in Maricopa County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sonora <1>
- Sanokai Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sanokai Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanokai Village
- Sanokai Village is located in Maricopa County
- Chandler Heights
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Queen Creek
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Chandler
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Buckhorn
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Royal Palm Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Royal Palm Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Palm Village
- Royal Palm Village is located in Maricopa County
- Summer Place Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Summer Place Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer Place Village
- Summer Place Village is located in Maricopa County
- Silver Spur Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Spur Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Spur Village
- Silver Spur Village is located in Maricopa County
- Mesa
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Hohokam Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hohokam Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hohokam Village
- Hohokam Village is located in Maricopa County
- Pinal County
- The following are listed by their distance from Higley, with the one closest to Higley listed first.
- Santan
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santan
- Santan is located in Pinal County
- Stotonic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bapchule
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sweetwater
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sacaton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Gold Canyon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Goldfield ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Youngberg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Casa Blanca
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Blackwater
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blackwater have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackwater
- Blackwater is located in Pinal County
- Maricopa Wells ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Gold Camp
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gold Camp have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Camp
- Gold Camp is located in Pinal County
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Higley, see our County-by-County Page for Higley.
Cemeteries Near Higley ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Higley.
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 Higley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Higley, with the one closest to Higley listed first.
- Queen of Heaven Catholic Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Goodyear - Ocotillo Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Valley of the Sun Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Valley of the Sun Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Valley of the Sun Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Mountain View Memorial Gardens
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Stotonic Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- City of Mesa Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the City of Mesa Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the City of Mesa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Mesa City Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- St. Ann Catholic Church Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Sweetwater Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Bapchule Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Green Acres Memorial Park
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Guadalupe Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Guadalupe Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Guadalupe Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Continue List (34 more) ...
- C.H. Cook Memorial Church Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Twin Buttes Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- West Casa Blanca Cemetery
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
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 Higley in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Higley.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Higley, with the one closest to Higley listed first.
- Mesa
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Lehi
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lehi have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lehi
- Lehi is located in Maricopa County
- Kyrene
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Sweetwater
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Tempe
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sacaton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Phoenix
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Maricopa
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Florence
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Heaton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heaton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heaton
- Heaton is located in Pinal County
- Casa Grande
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Higley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Higley.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Higley ...
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 66 newspapers that have been published in the area around Higley.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Higley. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Higley and those printed in the larger area surrounding Higley.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<6> of Higley.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Higley:
- Websites specific to Arizona
- Pages specific to Maricopa County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Arizona
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Higley. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Maricopa County: www.maricopa.gov/
The official website for State of Arizona: https://az.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> | 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 Higley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
<6> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Higley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Higley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.3069, Longitude: -111.7211 |