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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 Byron (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 Byron. 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 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.

Byron is located in Contra Costa County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Contra Costa County: Alameda, Marin, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Joaquin & Solano.

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

  • Contra Costa County     (The home county of Byron)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Byron, with the one closest to Byron listed first.
    • Discovery Bay
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Bixler
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixler
      • Bixler is located in Contra Costa County
    • Brentwood
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Knightsen
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Oakley
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
      • Oakley is located in Contra Costa County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 42,710 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakley <1>
    • Bethel Island
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Marsh Creek Springs
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Creek Springs
      • Marsh Creek Springs is located in Contra Costa County
    • Antioch
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
      • Antioch is located in Contra Costa County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 111,605 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Antioch <1>
    • Empire ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Empire have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
      • Empire is located in Contra Costa County
    • Tassajara
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tassajara
      • Tassajara is located in Contra Costa County
    • Blackhawk - Camino Tassajara
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Blackhawk
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blackhawk have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackhawk
      • Blackhawk is located in Contra Costa County
  • Alameda County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Byron, with the one closest to Byron listed first.
    • Altamont
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altamont have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altamont
      • Altamont is located in Alameda County
    • Laddville ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Laddville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laddville
      • Laddville is located in Alameda County
    • Livermore
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Tesla ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Tesla. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tesla
      • Tesla is located in Alameda County
    • Komandorski Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Komandorski Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Komandorski Village
      • Komandorski Village is located in Alameda County
    • San Ramon Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for San Ramon Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Ramon Village
      • San Ramon Village is located in Alameda County
    • Dublin
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Pleasanton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Scotts Corner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Corner
      • Scotts Corner is located in Alameda County
    • Sunol
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Fairview
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
      • Fairview is located in Alameda County
    • Castro Valley
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Sacramento County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Byron, with the one closest to Byron listed first.
    • Isleton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Ryde
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Walnut Grove
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Locke
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locke
      • Locke is located in Sacramento County
    • Vorden
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vorden
      • Vorden is located in Sacramento County
  • San Joaquin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Byron, with the one closest to Byron listed first.
    • Holt
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Tracy
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tracy
      • Tracy is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 95,025 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tracy <1>
    • Wainwright Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wainwright Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wainwright Village
      • Wainwright Village is located in San Joaquin County
    • Banta
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Country Club
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Country Club have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Club
      • Country Club is located in San Joaquin County
    • Carnegie ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carnegie. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carnegie
      • Carnegie is located in San Joaquin County
    • Lyoth
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyoth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyoth
      • Lyoth is located in San Joaquin County
    • Terminous
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terminous
      • Terminous is located in San Joaquin County
    • Lathrop
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lathrop
      • Lathrop is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,373 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lathrop <1>
    • Stockton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockton
      • Stockton is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 312,716 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stockton <1>
    • Taft Mosswood
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taft Mosswood
      • Taft Mosswood is located in San Joaquin County
    • Lincoln Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Village
      • Lincoln Village is located in San Joaquin County
  • Solano County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Byron, with the one closest to Byron listed first.
    • Rio Vista
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Birds Landing
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Solano City ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Solano City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Solano City
      • Solano City is located in Solano County
    • Denverton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denverton have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denverton
      • Denverton is located in Solano County
    • Oxford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oxford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxford
      • Oxford is located in Solano County
    • Benicia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Byron ...

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 131 newspapers that have been published in the area around Byron.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Byron. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Byron and those printed in the larger area surrounding Byron.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4> of Byron.

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 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 Byron:

Cemeteries Near Byron ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Byron.

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

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

  • Byron Brentwood Knightson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Byron Brentwood Knightson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Byron Brentwood Knightson Cemetery
  • Oak View Memorial Park
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak View Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak View Memorial Park
  • New Holy Cross Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Holy Cross Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Holy Cross Cemetery
  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • The Holy Cross Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Holly Cross Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Cross Cemetery
  • Roselawn Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Roselawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Roselawn Cemetery
  • St. Michaels Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Michaels Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Michaels Cemetery
  • Rose Hill Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rose Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rose Hill Cemetery
  • Oak Knoll Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Knoll Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Knoll Cemetery
  • Tracy Public Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Ahayas Achim Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ahayas Achim Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ahayas Achim Cemetery
  • Chinese Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Congregation Adas Yeshuran of Stockton Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (45 more) ...
    • Congregation of Ahavas Achim Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Live Oak Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Live Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Live Oak Cemetery
    • Dublin Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dublin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dublin 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Byron had a population of 289 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Brentwood
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Midway
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Midway is located in Alameda County
  • Stewartville ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stewartville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartville
    • Stewartville is located in Contra Costa County
  • Antioch
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
    • Antioch is located in Contra Costa County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 111,605 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Antioch <1>
  • Somersville ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Somersville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somersville
    • Somersville is located in Contra Costa County
  • Livermore
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Ellis ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ellis have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellis
    • Ellis is located in San Joaquin County
  • Tracy
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tracy
    • Tracy is located in San Joaquin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 95,025 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tracy <1>
  • Nortonville ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nortonville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nortonville
    • Nortonville is located in Contra Costa County
  • Banta
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Cornwall
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cornwall have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornwall
    • Cornwall is located in Contra Costa County
  • Clayton
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayton
    • Clayton is located in Contra Costa County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,527 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clayton <1>
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Collinsville ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Collinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
      • Collinsville is located in Solano County
    • San Ramon
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Pleasanton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)

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

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

The official website for Contra Costa County: www.co.contra-costa.ca.us/

The official website for State of California: https://www.ca.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 from Point A (ie- Byron) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Byron. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.8675, Longitude: -121.6384    
<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 Byron, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024