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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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates (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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates. 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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates ...

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.

  • A typical abbreviation for Melones Sunset Lake Estates: Melones Sunset Lk. Ests.
  • While the name of this community is Melones Sunset Lake Estates, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Melones Sunset Lake Estates may originally have been Melone's Sunset Lake Estates.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Melones Sunset Lake Estates might be written as Melone Sunset Lake Estates.

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 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.

Melones Sunset Lake Estates is located in Tuolumne 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 Tuolumne County: Alpine, Calaveras, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Mono & Stanislaus.

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

  • Tuolumne County     (The home county of Melones Sunset Lake Estates)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.
    • Rawhide
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Rawhide is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rawhide
    • Tuttletown
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Tuttletown is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuttletown
    • Jamestown
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Stent
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Stent is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stent
    • Sonora
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Columbia Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Columbia Village is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia Village
    • Squabbletown
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Squabbletown is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Squabbletown
    • Yosemite Junction
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Yosemite Junction is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yosemite Junction
    • East Sonora
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • East Sonora is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Sonora
    • Greenley Oaks
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Greenley Oaks is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenley Oaks
    • Columbia
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Martinez
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Martinez is located in Tuolumne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinez
    • Chinese Camp
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Amador County
    • Electra ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Electra is located in Amador County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Electra
  • Calaveras County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.
    • Melones ‑ Historic
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Melones is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melones
    • Angels Camp
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • The Shores of Poker Flat
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Vallecito
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Angels City
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Angels City is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angels City
    • Angels
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Angels is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angels
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,963 people
    • Copper Cove Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Copper Cove Village is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copper Cove Village
    • Altaville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Copperopolis
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Douglas Flat
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Murphys
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Carmen City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Carmen City is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carmen City
    • Cedar Vista
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Cedar Vista is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Vista
  • Mariposa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.
    • Coulterville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Dogtown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Dogtown is located in Mariposa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogtown
    • Bagby ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Bagby is located in Mariposa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bagby
  • Merced County
  • San Joaquin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.
    • Cometa
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Cometa is located in San Joaquin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cometa
    • Trigo ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Trigo is located in San Joaquin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trigo
    • Farmington
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Bellota
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Bellota is located in San Joaquin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellota
    • Escalon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Escalon is located in San Joaquin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Escalon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,580 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Escalon <2>
  • Stanislaus County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.
    • Knights Ferry
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • La Grange
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • East Oakdale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • East Oakdale is located in Stanislaus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Oakdale
    • Adela
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Adela is located in Stanislaus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adela
    • Oakdale
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Oakdale is located in Stanislaus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakdale
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,228 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakdale <2>
    • Waterford
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Hickman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Riverbank
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Melones Sunset Lake Estates ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Melones Sunset Lake Estates.

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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates - one of the links might be able to help.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.

  • Jamestown Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Stent Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stent Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Stent Cemetery is located in the vicinity of Stent
    • The Stent Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Poverty Hill Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2229117 <3>
  • Sonora City Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Shaws Flat Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Masonic Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Jewish Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Sonora Hebrew Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonora Hebrew Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Sonora Hebrew Cemetery is located in Sonora.
    • The Sonora Hebrew Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Pioneer Jewish Cemetery
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Mountain Shadow Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Public Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (32 more) ...
    • Vallecito Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Altaville Catholic Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altaville Catholic Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Altaville Catholic Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Altaville.
      • The Altaville Catholic Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Angels Camp Catholic Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2269483 <3>
    • Catholic Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catholic Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Catholic Cemetery is located in Altaville.

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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Melones Sunset Lake Estates.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Melones Sunset Lake Estates, with the one closest to Melones Sunset Lake Estates listed first.

  • Tuttletown
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Tuttletown is located in Tuolumne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuttletown
  • Jamestown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Sonora
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Chinese Camp
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Columbia
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Angels Camp
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Copperopolis
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Douglas Flat
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Soulsbyville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Murphys
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Tuolumne
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Knights Ferry
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Telegraph City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Telegraph City is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Telegraph City
    • Big Oak Flat
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Groveland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Melones Sunset Lake Estates ...

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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around Melones Sunset Lake Estates.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Melones Sunset Lake Estates, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Melones Sunset Lake Estates.

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 websites either 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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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 Melones Sunset Lake Estates, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Melones Sunset Lake Estates) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.