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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 Happy Valley (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 Happy Valley. 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 Happy Valley ...

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 Happy Valley: Happy Vly. (or less commonly used: Happy Vally. or Happy Vlly.)

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 southwest 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 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 west 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.

Happy Valley 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 Happy Valley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Happy Valley:

  • Los Angeles County     (The home county of Happy Valley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Happy Valley, with the one closest to Happy Valley listed first.
    • Lincoln Heights
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Heights
      • Lincoln Heights is located in Los Angeles County
    • Sierra Vista
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sierra Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sierra Vista
      • Sierra Vista is located in Los Angeles County
    • Highland Park
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Garvanza
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garvanza
      • Garvanza is located in Los Angeles County
    • Aliso Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aliso Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aliso Village
      • Aliso Village is located in Los Angeles County
    • New Chinatown
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Chinatown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Chinatown
      • New Chinatown is located in Los Angeles County
    • Old Chinatown ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Chinatown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Chinatown
      • Old Chinatown is located in Los Angeles County
    • Eagle Rock
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Rock
      • Eagle Rock is located in Los Angeles County
    • Boyle Heights
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyle Heights
      • Boyle Heights is located in Los Angeles County
    • Little Tokyo
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Tokyo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Tokyo
      • Little Tokyo is located in Los Angeles County
    • Los Angeles
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Pico Gardens
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pico Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pico Gardens
      • Pico Gardens is located in Los Angeles County
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Happy Valley, with the one closest to Happy Valley listed first.
    • La Habra
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Buena Park
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • La Palma
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Los Alamitos
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Brea
      (20 miles [32.2 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 <2>
    • Cypress
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Rossmoor
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossmoor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossmoor
      • Rossmoor is located in Orange County
    • Fullerton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Stanton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Anaheim
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Placentia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Barber City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barber City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barber City
      • Barber City is located in Orange County
  • San Bernardino County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Happy Valley, with the one closest to Happy Valley listed first.
    • Chino Hills
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Montclair
      (28 miles [45.1 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 <2>
    • Chino
      (29 miles [46.7 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 <2>
    • Los Serranos
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Los Serranos have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Serranos
      • Los Serranos is located in San Bernardino County

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

Newspapers Published in Happy Valley ...

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 191 newspapers that have been published in the area around Happy Valley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Happy Valley, there are papers which were published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Happy Valley.

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 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 Happy Valley:

Cemeteries Near Happy Valley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Happy Valley.

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

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

  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Serbian Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Serbian Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Serbian Cemetery
  • Chinese Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chinese Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chinese Cemetery
  • Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • The Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park has also been known as:
    • Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery - Glendale
    • Forest Lawn Memorial Park - Glendale
    • Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #7974 <4>
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the IOOF Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
  • Beth Israel Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beth Israel Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beth Israel Cemetery
  • Mt. Zion Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Cemetery
  • Home of Peace Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Home of Peace Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Home of Peace Cemetery
  • Mausoleum of the Golden West
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mausoleum of the Golden West have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mausoleum of the Golden West
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • San Gabriel Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Angelus Rosedale Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Angelus Rosedale Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Los Angeles.
    • The Angelus Rosedale Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Rosedale Cemetery
    • Rosedale Memorial Park
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Angelus Rosedale Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #8309 <4>
  • Continue List   (78 more) ...
    • Resurrection Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Resurrection Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Resurrection Cemetery
    • Hollywood Forever Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • The Hollywood Forever Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Beth Olam Cemetery
      • Beth Olam Mausoleum
      • Hollywood Memorial Cemetery
      • Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hollywood Forever Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #8033 <4>
    • Savannah Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Savannah Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Savannah 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>

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

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

  • Naud Junction
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Naud Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naud Junction
    • Naud Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Mission Junction
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mission Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mission Junction
    • Mission Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Aurant
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aurant have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurant
    • Aurant is located in Los Angeles County
  • Shorb
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shorb have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shorb
    • Shorb is located in Los Angeles County
  • Garvanza
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garvanza
    • Garvanza is located in Los Angeles County
  • Highland Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Los Angeles
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • South Pasadena
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • East Los Angeles
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Alhambra
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Clement Junction
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clement Junction
    • Clement Junction is located in Los Angeles County
  • Bandini
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bandini
    • Bandini is located in Los Angeles County
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • San Gabriel
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Pasadena
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasadena
      • Pasadena is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 141,045 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pasadena <2>
    • Glendale
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
      • Glendale is located in Los Angeles County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 197,747 people
      • Former name for Glendale:
      • Tropico
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glendale <2>

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

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Happy Valley. 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>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Happy Valley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Happy Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.0836, Longitude: -118.2004       In this case, the coordinates for Happy Valley have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Happy Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024