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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 Gold Ridge (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 Gold Ridge. 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 Gold Ridge ...

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 occur.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Gold Ridge: Gold Rdg. (or less commonly used: Gold Rdge. or Gold Ridg.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Gold Ridge. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Gold Ridge.

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.

Gold Ridge is located in El Dorado 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 El Dorado County: Alpine, Amador, Placer, Sacramento & Douglas (NV).

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

  • El Dorado County     (The home county of Gold Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gold Ridge, with the one closest to Gold Ridge listed first.
    • Pollock Pines
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Fresh Pond
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Fresh Pond is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fresh Pond
    • Pacific
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Pacific is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pacific
    • Sportsman Hall ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Sportsman Hall is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sportsman Hall
    • Camino
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Riverton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Riverton is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
    • Newtown
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Newtown is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtown
    • Pleasant Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Pleasant Valley is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
    • White Hall
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • White Hall is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hall
    • Grizzly Flatx
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Somerset
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Motor City
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Motor City is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Motor City
  • Amador County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gold Ridge, with the one closest to Gold Ridge listed first.
    • River Pines
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Fiddletown
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Volcano
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Pioneer
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Pine Grove
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Kit Carson
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Plymouth
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Kirkwood
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Amador City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Drytown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Sutter Creek
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Electra ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Electra is located in Amador County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Electra
  • Calaveras County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gold Ridge, with the one closest to Gold Ridge listed first.
    • Bummerville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Bummerville is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bummerville
    • West Point
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Sandy Gulch
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Sandy Gulch is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Gulch
    • Wilseyville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Glencoe
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Rail Road Flat
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Placer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gold Ridge, with the one closest to Gold Ridge listed first.
    • Greekstore
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Greekstore is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greekstore
    • Foresthill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Michigan Bluff
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Michigan Bluff is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michigan Bluff
    • Yankee Jims
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Yankee Jims is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yankee Jims
    • Last Chance ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Last Chance is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Last Chance
    • Applegate
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Bowman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Clipper Gap
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Clipper Gap is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clipper Gap
    • Iowa Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Meadow Vista
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Weimar
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Auburn
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Sacramento County
    • Mormon Island ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Mormon Island is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mormon Island

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

Cemeteries Near Gold Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gold Ridge.

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 Gold Ridge - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Gold Ridge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Smith Flat Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Placerville Union Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Placerville Union Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Placerville Union Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Placerville.
    • The Placerville Union Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Union Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1812538 <2>
  • Bennett Memorial Park
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Indian Diggings Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
  • Middletown Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Westwood Hills Memorial Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Andreason Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Pioneer Grave
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Pioneer Graves Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (40 more) ...
    • James Marshall Gravesite
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Pioneer Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Gold Hill Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • The Gold Hill Cemetery is located on private property - be sure to secure permission before visiting and respect the owner's property rights.
      • We're sorry, but we do not have contact information for the owner.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Hill Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Gold Hill Cemetery is located in Gold Hill.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2348365 <2>

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 Gold Ridge in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gold Ridge.

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

  • Pacific
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Pacific is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pacific
  • Bryants
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Bryants is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryants
  • Pleasant Valley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Pleasant Valley is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
  • Grizzly Flatx
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Omo Ranch
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Omo Ranch is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omo Ranch
  • Fair Play
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Placerville
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Kelsey
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Kelsey is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelsey
  • El Dorado
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
  • Garden Valley
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Georgetown
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Coloma
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Lotus
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Nashville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Nashville is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashville
    • Fiddletown
      (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 Gold Ridge. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gold Ridge.

Newspapers Published in Gold Ridge ...

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 59 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gold Ridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gold Ridge, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gold Ridge.

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 Gold Ridge:

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 Gold Ridge, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Gold Ridge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.