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The Commemorative Quarter for California





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 East Los Angeles (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 East Los Angeles. 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 East Los Angeles ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for East Los Angeles: E. Los Angeles

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 southeast 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 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 east 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.

East Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles 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 Los Angeles County: Kern, Orange, San Bernardino & Ventura.

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

  • Los Angeles County     (The home county of East Los Angeles)
    • The following are listed by their distance from East Los Angeles, with the one closest to East Los Angeles listed first.
    • Bandini
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bandini
      • Bandini is located in Los Angeles County
    • Commerce
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Maywood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maywood
      • Maywood is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,595 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maywood <1>
    • Boyle Heights
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyle Heights
      • Boyle Heights is located in Los Angeles County
    • Montebello
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Monterey Park
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Aliso Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aliso Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aliso Village
      • Aliso Village is located in Los Angeles County
    • Bell
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell
      • Bell is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 34,734 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bell <1>
    • Pico Gardens
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pico Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pico Gardens
      • Pico Gardens is located in Los Angeles County
    • Vernon
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
      • Vernon is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vernon <1>
    • Bell Gardens
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Clement Junction
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clement Junction
      • Clement Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from East Los Angeles, with the one closest to East Los Angeles listed first.
    • Buena Park
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • La Habra
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • La Palma
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Los Alamitos
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Brea
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brea
      • Brea is located in Orange County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 44,484 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brea <1>
    • Cypress
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Rossmoor
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossmoor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossmoor
      • Rossmoor is located in Orange County
    • Fullerton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Stanton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Anaheim
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Barber City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barber City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barber City
      • Barber City is located in Orange County
    • Placentia
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • San Bernardino County
    • The following are listed by their distance from East Los Angeles, with the one closest to East Los Angeles listed first.
    • Chino Hills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Los Serranos
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Serranos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Serranos
      • Los Serranos is located in San Bernardino County
    • Chino
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chino
      • Chino is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 92,290 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chino <1>
    • Montclair
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montclair
      • Montclair is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 40,600 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montclair <1>
    • Ontario
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ontario
      • Ontario is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 183,393 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ontario <1>
    • Upland
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upland
      • Upland is located in San Bernardino County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 77,850 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Upland <1>
    • San Antonio Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for San Antonio Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Antonio Heights
      • San Antonio Heights is located in San Bernardino County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of East Los Angeles ...

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 86 newspapers that have been published in the area around East Los Angeles.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of East Los Angeles. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of East Los Angeles and those printed in the larger area surrounding East Los Angeles.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<3> of East Los Angeles.

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 helpful 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 East Los Angeles:

Cemeteries Near East Los Angeles ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of East Los Angeles.

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 East Los Angeles covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Beth Israel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • 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
  • Serbian Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Serbian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Serbian Cemetery
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Mausoleum of the Golden West
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mausoleum of the Golden West have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mausoleum of the Golden West
  • Home of Peace Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Home of Peace Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Home of Peace Cemetery
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Cemetery
  • Chinese Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chinese Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chinese Cemetery
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the IOOF Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Mt. Carmel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Park Lawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Memorial Park
  • Continue List   (78 more) ...
    • Russian Molokan Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 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
    • Resurrection Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Resurrection Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Resurrection Cemetery
    • Old Downey Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Downey Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Downey 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, East Los Angeles had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Bandini
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bandini
    • Bandini is located in Los Angeles County
  • Aurant
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aurant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurant
    • Aurant is located in Los Angeles County
  • Vinvale
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinvale
    • Vinvale is located in Los Angeles County
  • Shorb
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shorb have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shorb
    • Shorb is located in Los Angeles County
  • Mission Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mission Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mission Junction
    • Mission Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Naud Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Naud Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naud Junction
    • Naud Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Los Angeles
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Clement Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clement Junction
    • Clement Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Alhambra
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Florence
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
    • Florence is located in Los Angeles County
  • Lynwood
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynwood
    • Lynwood is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 68,508 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lynwood <1>
  • Downey
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downey
    • Downey is located in Los Angeles County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 109,202 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Downey <1>
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Los Nietos
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Nietos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Nietos
      • Los Nietos is located in Los Angeles County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Los Nietos <1>
    • East San Gabriel
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East San Gabriel have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East San Gabriel
      • East San Gabriel is located in Los Angeles County
    • San Gabriel
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)

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

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

The official website for Los Angeles County: www.lacounty.info/

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>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- East Los Angeles) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in East Los Angeles. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.0225, Longitude: -118.1670    
<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 East Los Angeles, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024