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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 Orleans Flat (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 Orleans Flat. 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 Orleans Flat ...

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 Orleans Flat: Orleans Flt.
  • While the name of this community is Orleans Flat, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Orleans Flat may originally have been Orlean's Flat.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Orleans Flat might be written as Orlean Flat.

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 and hospitals 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.

Orleans Flat is located in Nevada 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 Nevada County: Placer, Sierra, Yuba & Washoe (NV).

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

  • Nevada County     (The home county of Orleans Flat)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • Graniteville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Graniteville is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graniteville
    • Washington
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • North Bloomfield ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • North Bloomfield is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bloomfield
    • Marsh Mill
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Marsh Mill is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marsh Mill
    • Lake City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake City is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake City
    • North Columbia
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • North Columbia is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Columbia
    • Scotts Flat
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Scotts Flat is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Flat
    • Blue Tent
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Blue Tent is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Tent
    • North San Juan
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Baltimore Town
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Baltimore Town is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baltimore Town
    • You Bet ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • You Bet is located in Nevada County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for You Bet
    • Nevada City Rancheria
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Nevada City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Butte County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • Clipper Mills
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Oroleve
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Oroleve is located in Butte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oroleve
    • Lumpkin ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Lumpkin is located in Butte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lumpkin
    • Evansville ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Evansville is located in Butte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansville
    • Forbestown
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Feather Falls
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Robinson Mill
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Robinson Mill is located in Butte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson Mill
    • Bangor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Placer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • Emigrant Gap
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Alta
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Dutch Flat
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Casa Loma
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Casa Loma is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casa Loma
    • Gold Run
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Secret Town
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Secret Town is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Secret Town
    • Big Bend
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Big Bend is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bend
    • Chicago Park ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Chicago Park is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicago Park
    • Iowa Hill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Colfax
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Last Chance ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Last Chance is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Last Chance
    • Donner
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Donner is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donner
    • Michigan Bluff
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Michigan Bluff is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michigan Bluff
  • Plumas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • La Porte
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Little Grass Valley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Little Grass Valley is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Grass Valley
    • Plumas Eureka
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Plumas Eureka is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumas Eureka
    • Johnsville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Clio
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Graeagle
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Valley Ranch
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Valley Ranch is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Ranch
    • Whitehawk
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Whitehawk is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehawk
    • Blairsden
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • C-Road
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • C-Road is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for C-Road
    • Mohawk
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Mohawk is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohawk
    • Mohawk Vista
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Mohawk Vista is located in Plumas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohawk Vista
    • Cromberg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Shasta County
    • Bear Valley ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Bear Valley is located in Shasta County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bear Valley
  • Sierra County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • Alleghany
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Forest
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Forest is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
    • Goodyears Bar
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Downieville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Brandy City ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Brandy City is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandy City
    • Loganville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Loganville is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loganville
    • Sierra City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Queen City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Queen City is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queen City
    • Poker Flat
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Poker Flat is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poker Flat
    • Gibsonville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Gibsonville is located in Sierra County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibsonville
    • Sattley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Calpine
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Sierraville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Yuba County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Orleans Flat, with the one closest to Orleans Flat listed first.
    • Camptonville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Depot Hill ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Depot Hill is located in Yuba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Depot Hill
    • Garden Valley ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Garden Valley is located in Yuba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Valley
    • Foster Bar ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Foster Bar is located in Yuba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster Bar
    • Bullards Bar ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Bullards Bar is located in Yuba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullards Bar
    • Strawberry Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Dobbins
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Challenge
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Brownsville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Oregon House
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Rackerby
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Smartville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Timbuctoo ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Timbuctoo is located in Yuba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timbuctoo

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

Cemeteries Near Orleans Flat ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Orleans Flat.

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 Orleans Flat - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

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

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

  • Moore's Flat
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Moore's Flat is located in Nevada County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moore's Flat
  • Alleghany
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • North Bloomfield ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • North Bloomfield is located in Nevada County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bloomfield
  • Washington
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Graniteville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Graniteville is located in Nevada County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graniteville
  • Goodyears Bar
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Maybert ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Maybert is located in Nevada County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maybert
  • Pike
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Pike is located in Sierra County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pike
    • Pike has also been known as:
    • Pike City
  • North Columbia
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • North Columbia is located in Nevada County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Columbia
  • Downieville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Camptonville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Emigrant Gap
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Blue Canyon
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Blue Canyon is located in Placer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Canyon
    • North San Juan
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Sierra City
      (14 miles [22.5 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 Orleans Flat. See our List of 1890's Communities around Orleans Flat.

Newspapers Published in Orleans Flat ...

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 Orleans Flat.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Orleans Flat, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Orleans Flat.

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 Orleans Flat:

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 Orleans Flat, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Orleans Flat) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.