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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 Gordola (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 Gordola. 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.

Gordola is located in Santa Cruz 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 Cruz County: Monterey, San Benito, San Mateo & Santa Clara.

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

  • Santa Cruz County     (The home county of Gordola)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gordola, with the one closest to Gordola listed first.
    • Bonny Doon
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Davenport
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Paradise Park
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Paradise Park is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Park
    • Davenport Landing
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Davenport Landing is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Davenport Landing
    • Pasatiempo
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Pasatiempo is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasatiempo
    • Santa Cruz
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Felton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Mount Hermon
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Twin Lakes
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Twin Lakes is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
    • Swanton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Swanton is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swanton
    • Ben Lomond
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Eccles ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Eccles is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eccles
  • Monterey County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gordola, with the one closest to Gordola listed first.
    • Pajaro
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Pajaro is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pajaro
    • Moss Landing
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Las Lomas
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Las Lomas is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Las Lomas
    • Elkhorn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Elkhorn is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
    • Vega ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Vega is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vega
    • Castroville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Aromas
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Marina
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Marina is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marina
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,836 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marina <1>
    • Pacific Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Point Alones ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Point Alones is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Alones
    • Del Monte Forest
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Del Monte Forest is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Del Monte Forest
    • Prattco ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Prattco is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prattco
  • San Benito County
    • River Oaks
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • River Oaks is located in San Benito County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Oaks
  • San Mateo County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gordola, with the one closest to Gordola listed first.
    • Loma Mar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Pescadero
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • La Honda
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • San Gregorio
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Portola Valley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Ladera
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Ladera is located in San Mateo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ladera
    • Searsville ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Searsville is located in San Mateo County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsville
  • Santa Clara County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Gordola, with the one closest to Gordola listed first.
    • Patchen
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Patchen is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patchen
    • Redwood Estates
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Chemeketa Park
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Chemeketa Park is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chemeketa Park
    • Holy City ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Holy City is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holy City
    • Lexington Hills
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lexington Hills is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington Hills
    • Lexington ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Lexington is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington
    • Monte Sereno
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Sveadal
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Sveadal is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sveadal
    • Saratoga
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Los Gatos
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Champagne Fountain
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Champagne Fountain is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Champagne Fountain
    • English Town
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • English Town is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Town

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

Cemeteries Near Gordola ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Gordola.

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 Gordola - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Home of Peace Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Santa Cruz Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Felton Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Felton Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Felton Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Felton.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #274025 <2>
  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Old Holy Cross Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Oakwood Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood Memorial Park
    • The Oakwood Memorial Park has also been known as:
    • Oak Wood Cemetery
    • Santa Cruz Memorial Oakwood Chapel Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #8219 <2>
  • Soquel Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Soquel Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Soquel Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the north of Soquel.
    • The Soquel Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Beit Olam Cemetery
    • Eternal Home Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #999577 <2>
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Day Valley Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
  • Cascade Ranch Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Madronia Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (27 more) ...
    • Pioneer Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • IOOF Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Watsonville Catholic Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)

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.<4>

While we didn't find Gordola in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Gordola.

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

  • Bonny Doon
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Santa Cruz
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Felton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Ben Lomond
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Soquel
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Zayante
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Zayante is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zayante
  • Capitola
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Boulder Creek
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Aptos
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Glenwood
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Glenwood is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
  • Laurel
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Laurel is located in Santa Cruz County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
  • Patchen
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Patchen is located in Santa Clara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patchen
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Corralitos
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Guadalupe ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Guadalupe is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guadalupe
    • Los Gatos
      (20 miles [32.2 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 Gordola. See our List of 1890's Communities around Gordola.

Newspapers Published in Gordola ...

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 163 newspapers that have been published in the area around Gordola.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Gordola, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Gordola.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Gordola:

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>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Gordola) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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 Gordola, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.