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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 Surprise (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 Surprise. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Surprise 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 Surprise. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Surprise:

  • Maricopa County     (The home county of Surprise)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
    • Sun City West
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • El Mirage
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Westbrook Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westbrook Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook Village
      • Westbrook Village is located in Maricopa County
    • Youngtown
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Sun City
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Waddell
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Peacock Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Peacock Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peacock Village
      • Peacock Village is located in Maricopa County
    • Sunset Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunset Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Village
      • Sunset Village is located in Maricopa County
    • Citrus Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Citrus Park
      • Citrus Park is located in Maricopa County
    • Peoria Polynesian Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Peoria Polynesian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria Polynesian Village
      • Peoria Polynesian Village is located in Maricopa County
    • Peoria
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria
      • Peoria is located in Maricopa County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 179,872 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peoria <1>
    • Arrowhead Ranch
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arrowhead Ranch
      • Arrowhead Ranch is located in Maricopa County
  • Pinal County
    • Santa Cruz
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Santa Cruz have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Cruz
      • Santa Cruz is located in Pinal County
  • Yavapai County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Surprise, with the one closest to Surprise listed first.
    • Columbia ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia
      • Columbia is located in Yavapai County
    • Humbug ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Humbug
      • Humbug is located in Yavapai County
    • Gillett ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gillett
      • Gillett is located in Yavapai County
    • Tip Top ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tip Top
      • Tip Top is located in Yavapai County
    • Copperopolis ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Copperopolis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copperopolis
      • Copperopolis is located in Yavapai County

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

Newspapers Published in Surprise ...

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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Surprise.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Surprise, 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 Surprise.

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 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 Surprise:

Cemeteries Near Surprise ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Surprise.

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

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

  • Sunwest Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunwest Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunwest Cemetery
  • Sunland Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunland Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunland Memorial Park
  • White Tanks Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Home Mission Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • The Home Mission Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Sleeping Bride Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Home Mission Cemetery
  • Goodyear Farms Historic Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Goodyear Farms Historic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Goodyear Farms Historic Cemetery
  • Heath Grave
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Heath Grave have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Heath Grave
  • Russian Molokan Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Russian Molokan Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Russian Molokan Cemetery
  • Resthaven Park West Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Resthaven Park West Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Resthaven Park West Cemetery
  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Cross Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Cross Cemetery
  • Glendale Memorial Park
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Glendale Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Glendale Memorial Park
  • Phoenix Memorial Park
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Phoenix Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Phoenix Memorial Park
  • Louis B Hazelton Memorial Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (35 more) ...
    • Liberty Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Beth Israel Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beth Israel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beth Israel Cemetery
    • Work Circle Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Work Circle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Work Circle 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 Surprise in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Surprise.

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

  • Peoria
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria
    • Peoria is located in Maricopa County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 179,872 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peoria <1>
  • Phoenix
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phoenix
    • Phoenix is located in Maricopa County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,708,127 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Phoenix <1>
  • Buckeye
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Cave Creek
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Vulture City ‑ Historic
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vulture City
    • Vulture City is located in Maricopa County
    • Vulture City has also been known as:
    • Vulture Mine
    • Vulture
  • Briggs
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Briggs have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briggs
    • Briggs is located in Yavapai County
  • Tempe
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tempe
    • Tempe is located in Maricopa County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 200,402 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tempe <1>
  • Tip Top ‑ Historic
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tip Top
    • Tip Top is located in Yavapai County

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

The official website for Surprise: www.surpriseaz.com/

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>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Surprise) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Surprise. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.6387, Longitude: -112.3770    
<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 Surprise, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024