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 Buena Vista (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 Buena Vista. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.
Buena Vista is located in Amador County.
To see how the shape of California's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Amador County: Alpine, Calaveras, El Dorado, Sacramento & San Joaquin.
Below are the counties that are near Buena Vista. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Buena Vista:
- Amador County (The home county of Buena Vista)
- The following are listed by their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Camanche Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Camanche Village is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camanche Village
- Ione
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ione is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ione
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,326 people
- Former names for Ione:
- Bedbug
- Freeze Out
- Hardscrabble
- Ione City
- Ione Valley
- Jone City
- Jone Valley
- Rickeyville
- Woosterville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ione <1>
- Jackson
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Martell
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Amador City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Sutter Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Carbondale ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Carbondale is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbondale
- Drytown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- May ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- May is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for May
- Electra ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Electra is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Electra
- Plymouth
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Fiddletown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Calaveras County
- The following are listed by their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Oregon Bar ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Oregon Bar is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oregon Bar
- Campo Seco
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Burson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Wallace
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Valley Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Big Bar
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Big Bar is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bar
- Mokelumne Hill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Rancho Calaveras
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Rancho Calaveras is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rancho Calaveras
- Petersburg ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Petersburg is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Petersburg has also been known as:
- Greasertown
- Jenny Lind
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Jenny Lind is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenny Lind
- San Andreas
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lost City ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Lost City is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost City
- El Dorado County
- The following are listed by their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Mount Aukum
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Fair Play
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Euchre Diggings ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Euchre Diggings is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Euchre Diggings
- Shingle Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cameron Park
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Clarksville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Clarksville is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
- Crescent Ridge Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Mormon Tavern ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Mormon Tavern is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mormon Tavern
- Park Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Park Village is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
- El Dorado
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- La Cresta Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- La Cresta Village is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Cresta Village
- Ridgeview Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Ridgeview Village is located in El Dorado County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgeview Village
- Sacramento County
- The following are listed by their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Rancho Murieta
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Herald
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Sloughhouse
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Galt
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Galt is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galt
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,551 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Galt <1>
- Wilton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Arno ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Arno is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arno
- McConnel
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- McConnel is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McConnel
- Mather
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Vineyard
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Vineyard is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineyard
- Elk Grove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Prairie City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Prairie City is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie City
- Walsh Station
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Walsh Station is located in Sacramento County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walsh Station
- San Joaquin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Clements
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lockeford
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bellota
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Bellota is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellota
- Victor
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Acampo
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Linden
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Peters
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Lodi
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lodi is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lodi
- Population from the 2020 Census: 68,186 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lodi <1>
- North Woodbridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- North Woodbridge is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Woodbridge
- South Woodbridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- South Woodbridge is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Woodbridge
- Woodbridge
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Holden ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Holden is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holden
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Buena Vista, see our County-by-County Page for Buena Vista.
Cemeteries Near Buena Vista ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Buena Vista.
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.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Buena Vista - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Buena Vista covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Ione Protestant - Community Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Catholic Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jackson Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- St. Sava Servian Orthodox Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Catholic Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- IOOF Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for IOOF Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the IOOF Cemetery is located outside and to the northwest of Sutter Creek.
- New Protestant Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- City Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for City Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the City Cemetery is located in Sutter Creek.
- Oak Knoll Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- St. Stevens Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Drytown Public Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Clements Glen View Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (67 more) ...
- Pioneer Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Protestant Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- White Family Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
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.<3>
While we didn't find Buena Vista in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Buena Vista.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Buena Vista, with the one closest to Buena Vista listed first.
- Ione
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ione is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ione
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,326 people
- Former names for Ione:
- Bedbug
- Freeze Out
- Hardscrabble
- Ione City
- Ione Valley
- Jone City
- Jone Valley
- Rickeyville
- Woosterville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ione <1>
- Lancha Plana ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Lancha Plana is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lancha Plana
- Camanche ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Camanche is located in Calaveras County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camanche
- Former names for Camanche:
- Clay's Bar
- Limerrick
- Campo Seco
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Wallace
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Burson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Valley Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Jackson
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Sutter Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Amador City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Carbondale ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Carbondale is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbondale
- May ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- May is located in Amador County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for May
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Drytown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Clements
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mokelumne Hill
(11 miles [17.7 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 Buena Vista. See our List of 1890's Communities around Buena Vista.
Newspapers Published in Buena Vista ...
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 88 newspapers that have been published in the area around Buena Vista.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Buena Vista, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Buena Vista.
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 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 Buena Vista:
- Websites specific to California
- Pages specific to Amador County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Calaveras County
- El Dorado County
- Sacramento County
- San Joaquin County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for California
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 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. |
| <3> | 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 Buena Vista, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Buena Vista) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |