Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
So far, we found very little information about Chinatown. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added Chinatown to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Chinatown, 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 Chinatown (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 Chinatown. 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 hospitals and 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.
Although our information shows that the community of Chinatown is historic, it would have been located within present day Santa Clara 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 Santa Clara County: Alameda, Merced, San Benito, San Mateo, Santa Cruz & Stanislaus.
Below are the counties that are near Chinatown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Chinatown:
- Santa Clara County (The home county of Chinatown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- San Jose
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Buena Vista
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Buena Vista is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Sunol - Midtown
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Sunol - Midtown is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunol - Midtown
- Fruitdale
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fruitdale is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruitdale
- Burbank
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Burbank is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burbank
- Alum Rock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Alum Rock is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alum Rock
- Seven Trees
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Seven Trees is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Trees
- Campbell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Santa Clara
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- East Foothills
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- East Foothills is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Foothills
- Agnew
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Agnew is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnew
- Alamitos
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Alamitos is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamitos
- Cambrian Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Cambrian Park is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambrian Park
- Alameda County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- Drawbridge ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Drawbridge is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drawbridge
- Former name for Drawbridge:
- Saline City
- Albrae ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Albrae is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albrae
- Larkins Landing ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Larkins Landing is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larkins Landing
- Fremont
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Fremont is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fremont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 234,569 people
- Former names for Fremont:
- Centerville
- Irvington
- Mission San Jose
- Niles
- Warm Springs
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fremont <2>
- Newark
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Scotts Corner
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Scotts Corner is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Corner
- Sunol
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Union City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Union City is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 74,501 people
- Former name for Union City:
- Decoto
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Union City <2>
- Alvarado ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Alvarado is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alvarado
- Pleasanton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Mount Eden
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Dublin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Fairview
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Fairview is located in Alameda County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Contra Costa County
- San Ramon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Monterey County
- Pajaro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Pajaro is located in Monterey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pajaro
- San Joaquin County
- Carnegie ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Carnegie is located in San Joaquin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carnegie
- San Mateo County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- East Palo Alto
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- The Willows
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- The Willows is located in San Mateo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Willows
- Menlo Park
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Ladera
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Ladera is located in San Mateo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ladera
- West Menlo Park
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Atherton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- North Fair Oaks
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- North Fair Oaks is located in San Mateo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Fair Oaks
- Portola Valley
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Searsville ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Searsville is located in San Mateo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsville
- Redwood City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Adobe Corner
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Adobe Corner is located in San Mateo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adobe Corner
- La Honda
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Woodside
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Santa Cruz County
- The following are listed by their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- Alma ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Alma is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alma
- Summit
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Summit is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- Summit has also been known as:
- Loma Prieta
- Laurel
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Laurel is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
- Glenwood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Glenwood is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- The Willows
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- The Willows is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Willows
- Lompico
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Lompico is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lompico
- Zayante
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Zayante is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zayante
- Boulder Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Brookdale
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Eccles ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Eccles is located in Santa Cruz County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eccles
- Scotts Valley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Ben Lomond
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Felton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Chinatown, see our County-by-County Page for Chinatown.
Cemeteries Near Chinatown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chinatown.
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 Chinatown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Chinatown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- Oak Hill Memorial Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Calvary Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvary Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Calvary Cemetery is located in Alum Rock.
- Santa Clara Mission Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Mission City Memorial Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Los Gatos Memorial Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- St. Johns Catholic Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Madronia Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Cedar Lawn Memorial Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Lawn Memorial Park
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Cedar Lawn Memorial Park is a large cemetery that is located in Fremont.
- The Cedar Lawn Memorial Park has also been known as:
- Cedar Lawn Memorial Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #7892 <3>
- Gates of Heaven Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Old Mexican Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Hidalgo Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Hacienda Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Continue List (49 more) ...
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Ohlone Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ohlone Cemetery
- The Ohlone Cemetery has also been known as:
- Ohlone Indian Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #8228 <3>
- Ohlones 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.
While we didn't find Chinatown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Chinatown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Chinatown, with the one closest to Chinatown listed first.
- College Park
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- College Park is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College Park
- San Jose
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Berryessa
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Berryessa is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berryessa
- Campbell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Santa Clara
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Alamitos
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Alamitos is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamitos
- Agnew
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Agnew is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agnew
- Evergreen
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Evergreen is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen
- Milpitas
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Lawrence
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lawrence is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence
- Los Gatos
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Alviso
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Saratoga
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Guadalupe ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Guadalupe is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guadalupe
- Greystone ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Greystone is located in Santa Clara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greystone
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Chinatown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Chinatown.
Newspapers Published in Chinatown ...
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 42 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chinatown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chinatown, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chinatown.
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 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 Chinatown:
- Websites specific to California
- Pages specific to Santa Clara County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alameda County
- Contra Costa County
- Monterey County
- San Joaquin County
- San Mateo County
- Santa Cruz County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for California
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 Chinatown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Chinatown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |