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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Sotos Crossing. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Sotos Crossing to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Sotos Crossing, please Contact Us.

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 Sotos Crossing (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 Sotos Crossing. 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 Sotos Crossing ...

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.

  • A typical abbreviation for Sotos Crossing: Sotos Xing.
  • While the name of this community is Sotos Crossing, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<2>. So Sotos Crossing may originally have been Soto's Crossing.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Sotos Crossing might be written as Soto Crossing.

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 northeast 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 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.

Although our information shows that the community of Sotos Crossing is historic, it would have been located within present day Santa Cruz 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 Santa Cruz County: Cochise & Pima.

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

  • Santa Cruz County     (The home county of Sotos Crossing)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sotos Crossing, with the one closest to Sotos Crossing listed first.
    • Tubac
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Tumacacori - Carmen
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tumacacori - Carmen
      • Tumacacori - Carmen is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Tumacacori
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Amado
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Otero ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Otero. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otero
      • Otero is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Rio Rico Northeast
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rio Rico Northeast
      • Rio Rico Northeast is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Alto ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alto. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
      • Alto is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Rio Rico Northwest
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rio Rico Northwest
      • Rio Rico Northwest is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Salado ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Salado. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salado
      • Salado is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Madera Canyon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Calabasas ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Calabasas. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calabasas
      • Calabasas is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Rio Rico
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Pima County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sotos Crossing, with the one closest to Sotos Crossing listed first.
    • Arivaca Junction
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arivaca Junction
      • Arivaca Junction is located in Pima County
    • Green Valley
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Arivaca
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Greaterville ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Greaterville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greaterville
      • Greaterville is located in Pima County
    • Sahuarita
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Helvetia ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Helvetia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helvetia
      • Helvetia is located in Pima County
    • East Sahuarita
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Sahuarita have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sahuarita
      • East Sahuarita is located in Pima County
    • Corona de Tucson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Corona de Tucson have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corona de Tucson
      • Corona de Tucson is located in Pima County
    • Summit
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Summit have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
      • Summit is located in Pima County

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

Cemeteries Near Sotos Crossing ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sotos Crossing.

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

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

  • Tubac Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Tumacacori Mission Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • St. Joseph's Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Amado Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Otero Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Otero Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Otero Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2544027 <6>
  • Salero Ranch Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Alto Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Alto Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Alto Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2402581 <6>
  • Calabasas Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Cerro Colorado Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Continental Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Ruby Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ruby Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Ruby Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2295063 <6>
  • Arivaca Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (20 more) ...
    • Oro Blanco Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oro Blanco Cemetery
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Oro Blanco Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2278640 <6>
    • Mission Los Santos Angeles e Guevavi
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Patagonia Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Patagonia Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Patagonia Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<7> to the northeast of Patagonia.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2193271 <6>

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.

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

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

  • Tubac
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Calabasas ‑ Historic
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Calabasas. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calabasas
    • Calabasas is located in Santa Cruz County
  • Arivaca
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Oro Blanco ‑ Historic
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oro Blanco. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oro Blanco
    • Oro Blanco is located in Santa Cruz County
  • Greaterville ‑ Historic
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Greaterville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greaterville
    • Greaterville is located in Pima County
  • Nogales
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nogales
    • Nogales is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 20,107 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nogales <3>
  • Harshaw ‑ Historic
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Harshaw. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harshaw
    • Harshaw is located in Santa Cruz County
  • Sonoita
    (22 miles [35.4 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 Sotos Crossing. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sotos Crossing.

Newspapers Published in Sotos Crossing ...

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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sotos Crossing.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sotos Crossing, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<7>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sotos Crossing.

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 Sotos Crossing:

The official website for Santa Cruz County: www.co.santa-cruz.az.us/

The official website for State of Arizona: https://az.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Sotos Crossing, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>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.
<5>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.
<6>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.
<7>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- Sotos Crossing) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sotos Crossing. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.6306, Longitude: -111.0362       In this case, the coordinates for Sotos Crossing have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025