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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 Johnston Corner (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 Johnston Corner. 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 Johnston Corner ...

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 Johnston Corner: Johnston Cor. (or less commonly used: Johnston Crn.)

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

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

  • Santa Cruz County     (The home county of Johnston Corner)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Johnston Corner, with the one closest to Johnston Corner listed first.
    • Interlaken
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Interlaken is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Interlaken
    • Colache Town
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Colache Town is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colache Town
    • Watsonville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Strongs Mobile Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Amesti
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Amesti is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amesti
    • Freedom
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Corralitos
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Aptos Hills - Larkin Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • La Selva Beach
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Day Valley
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Day Valley is located in Santa Cruz County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Day Valley
    • Rio del Mar
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Aptos
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Capitola
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Monterey County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Johnston Corner, with the one closest to Johnston Corner listed first.
    • Vega ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Vega is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vega
    • Pajaro
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Pajaro is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pajaro
    • Las Lomas
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Las Lomas is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Las Lomas
    • Aromas
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Elkhorn
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Elkhorn is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
    • Moss Landing
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Prunedale
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Castroville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Santa Rita
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Santa Rita is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Rita
    • Boronda
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Boronda is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boronda
    • Salinas
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Marina
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • 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>
    • Prattco ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Prattco is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prattco
  • San Benito County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Johnston Corner, with the one closest to Johnston Corner listed first.
    • River Oaks
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • River Oaks is located in San Benito County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Oaks
    • San Juan Bautista
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Dunneville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Dunneville is located in San Benito County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunneville
    • Hollister
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Ridgemark
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Ridgemark is located in San Benito County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgemark
    • Tres Pinos
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Paicines
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Santa Clara County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Johnston Corner, with the one closest to Johnston Corner listed first.
    • Sargent ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Sargent is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sargent
    • Gilroy
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Gilroy is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilroy
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,831 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilroy <1>
    • Rucker
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Rucker is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rucker
    • Sveadal
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Sveadal is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sveadal
    • San Martin
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Morgan Hill
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Madrone
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Madrone is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madrone
    • Coyote
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • New Almaden
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • English Town
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • English Town is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Town
    • Holy City ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Holy City is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holy City
    • Lexington Hills
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Lexington Hills is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington Hills
    • Patchen
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Patchen is located in Santa Clara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patchen

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

Cemeteries Near Johnston Corner ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Johnston Corner.

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 Johnston Corner - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Pajaro Valley Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • St. Francis Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Watsonville Catholic Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Pioneer Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Hambey Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Day Valley Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Castroville Public Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castroville Public Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Castroville Public Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the south of Moss Landing.
    • The Castroville Public Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Castroville Cemetery
    • Castroville / Moss Landing Cemetery
    • Moss Landing Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #7885 <2>
  • San Juan Bautista Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Queen of Heaven Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (31 more) ...
    • Calvary Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Mt. Hope Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Soquel Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • 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>

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

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

  • Pajaro
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Pajaro is located in Monterey County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pajaro
  • Vega ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Vega is located in Monterey County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vega
  • Watsonville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Corralitos
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Elkhorn
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Elkhorn is located in Monterey County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkhorn
  • Sargent ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Sargent is located in Santa Clara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sargent
  • Carnadero
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Carnadero is located in Santa Clara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carnadero
  • Gilroy
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Gilroy is located in Santa Clara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilroy
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,831 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gilroy <1>
  • Castroville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Aptos
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Tennant ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Tennant is located in Santa Clara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tennant
  • Santa Rita
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Santa Rita is located in Monterey County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santa Rita
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Natividad
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Natividad is located in Monterey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natividad
    • Soquel
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Capitola
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Johnston Corner ...

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 60 newspapers that have been published in the area around Johnston Corner.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Johnston Corner, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Johnston Corner.

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 Johnston Corner:

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 Johnston Corner, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Johnston Corner) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.