RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of California >> El Dorado County >> Old Fort Jim >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Old Fort Jim (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 Old Fort Jim. 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 Old Fort Jim ...

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 Old Fort Jim: Old Ft. Jim (or less commonly used: Old Frt. Jim)

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.

Old Fort Jim 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 Old Fort Jim. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Old Fort Jim:

  • El Dorado County     (The home county of Old Fort Jim)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Fort Jim, with the one closest to Old Fort Jim listed first.
    • Motor City
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Motor City is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Motor City
    • Newtown
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Newtown is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newtown
    • Camino
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Pleasant Valley
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Pleasant Valley is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
    • Tiger Lily
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Tiger Lily is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tiger Lily
    • Sportsman Hall ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Sportsman Hall is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sportsman Hall
    • Somerset
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Placerville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Diamond Springs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Pollock Pines
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • El Dorado
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Fair Play
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Amador County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Fort Jim, with the one closest to Old Fort Jim listed first.
    • River Pines
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Fiddletown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Plymouth
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Volcano
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Amador City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Drytown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Pine Grove
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Pioneer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Sutter Creek
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Martell
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Jackson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • May ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • May is located in Amador County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for May
  • Calaveras County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Fort Jim, with the one closest to Old Fort Jim listed first.
    • West Point
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Bummerville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Bummerville is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bummerville
    • Sandy Gulch
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Sandy Gulch is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Gulch
    • Glencoe
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Wilseyville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Big Bar
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Big Bar is located in Calaveras County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bar
    • Mokelumne Hill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Rail Road Flat
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Nevada County
    • Lake of the Pines
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Lake of the Pines is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake of the Pines
  • Placer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Fort Jim, with the one closest to Old Fort Jim listed first.
    • Foresthill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Michigan Bluff
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Michigan Bluff is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michigan Bluff
    • Yankee Jims
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Yankee Jims is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yankee Jims
    • Auburn
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Bowman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Applegate
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Clipper Gap
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Clipper Gap is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clipper Gap
    • North Auburn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • North Auburn is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Auburn
    • Granite Bay
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Meadow Vista
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Newcastle
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Ophir
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Ophir is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophir
  • Sacramento County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Old Fort Jim, with the one closest to Old Fort Jim listed first.
    • Mormon Island ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Mormon Island is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mormon Island
    • Folsom
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Folsom is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsom
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 82,726 people
      • Folsom has also been known as:
      • Folsom City
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Folsom <1>
    • Represa
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Represa is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Represa
    • Prairie City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Prairie City is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie City
    • Rancho Murieta
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Folsom Junction
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Folsom Junction is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsom Junction
    • Natoma
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Natoma is located in Sacramento County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natoma
    • Orangevale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Sloughhouse
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Gold River
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Citrus Heights
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
    • Fair Oaks
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Old Fort Jim ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Old Fort Jim.

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 Old Fort Jim - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Smith Flat Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Placerville Union Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 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
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Middletown Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Westwood Hills Memorial Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Gold Hill Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 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>
  • Pioneer Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Catholic Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • James Marshall Gravesite
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Chinese Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (57 more) ...
    • Shenandoah Valley Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Uniontown Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Indian Diggings Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)

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 Old Fort Jim in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Old Fort Jim.

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

  • Pleasant Valley
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Pleasant Valley is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Valley
  • Placerville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • El Dorado
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Fair Play
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Kelsey
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Kelsey is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelsey
  • Nashville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Nashville is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashville
  • Omo Ranch
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Omo Ranch is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omo Ranch
  • Grizzly Flatx
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Pacific
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Pacific is located in El Dorado County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pacific
  • Coloma
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Lotus
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Shingle Springs
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Garden Valley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Bryants
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Bryants is located in El Dorado County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryants
    • Fiddletown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Old Fort Jim ...

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 58 newspapers that have been published in the area around Old Fort Jim.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Old Fort Jim, 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 Old Fort Jim.

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 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 Old Fort Jim:

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 Old Fort Jim, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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- Old Fort Jim) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.