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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 West Modesto (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 West Modesto. 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 West Modesto ...

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 West Modesto: W. Modesto

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 hospitals and 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.

West Modesto is located in Stanislaus 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 Stanislaus County: Alameda, Calaveras, Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin & Santa Clara.

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

  • Stanislaus County     (The home county of West Modesto)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Modesto, with the one closest to West Modesto listed first.
    • Shackelford
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shackelford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shackelford
      • Shackelford is located in Stanislaus County
    • Bret Harte
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bret Harte
      • Bret Harte is located in Stanislaus County
    • Riverdale Park
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverdale Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale Park
      • Riverdale Park is located in Stanislaus County
    • Bystrom
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bystrom have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bystrom
      • Bystrom is located in Stanislaus County
    • Modesto
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Modesto
      • Modesto is located in Stanislaus County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 215,666 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Modesto <2>
    • Ceres
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceres
      • Ceres is located in Stanislaus County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 48,603 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ceres <2>
    • Tuolumne City ‑ Historic
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tuolumne City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuolumne City
      • Tuolumne City is located in Stanislaus County
    • Salida
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Empire
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Keyes
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Hughson
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Del Rio
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Del Rio have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Del Rio
      • Del Rio is located in Stanislaus County
    • Riverbank
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Calaveras County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Modesto, with the one closest to West Modesto listed first.
    • Telegraph City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Telegraph City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Telegraph City
      • Telegraph City is located in Calaveras County
    • Milton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
      • Milton is located in Calaveras County
  • Merced County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Modesto, with the one closest to West Modesto listed first.
    • Hilmar
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Delhi
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Ballico
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Stevinson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Livingston
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Cressey
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Gustine
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Arundel ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arundel have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arundel
      • Arundel is located in Merced County
    • The Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Grove
      • The Grove is located in Merced County
    • Winton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Amsterdam
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amsterdam
      • Amsterdam is located in Merced County
    • Atwater
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Fluhr
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fluhr
      • Fluhr is located in Merced County
  • San Joaquin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Modesto, with the one closest to West Modesto listed first.
    • Ripon
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ripon
      • Ripon is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,774 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ripon <2>
    • Alba
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alba
      • Alba is located in San Joaquin County
    • Escalon
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Escalon
      • Escalon is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,580 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Escalon <2>
    • Atlanta
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlanta
      • Atlanta is located in San Joaquin County
    • Vernalis
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Five Corners
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Corners
      • Five Corners is located in San Joaquin County
    • Manteca
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manteca
      • Manteca is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 84,445 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manteca <2>
    • Lathrop
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lathrop
      • Lathrop is located in San Joaquin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,373 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lathrop <2>
    • Manteca Junction
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manteca Junction
      • Manteca Junction is located in San Joaquin County
    • Lyoth
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyoth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyoth
      • Lyoth is located in San Joaquin County
    • Farmington
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Banta
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • French Camp
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)

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

Newspapers Published in West Modesto ...

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 126 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Modesto.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Modesto, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Modesto.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start 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 West Modesto:

Cemeteries Near West Modesto ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Modesto.

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 West Modesto covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • St. Stanislaus Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Stanislaus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Stanislaus Cemetery
  • Woodcolony Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Woodcolony Cemetery is located outside and to the northwest of Modesto.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodcolony Cemetery
  • Lakewood Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lakewood Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lakewood Memorial Park
  • Grayson Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Ripon Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Patterson Cemetery District
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Burwood Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Langworth Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Langworth Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Langworth Cemetery
  • St. Johns Catholic Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Turlock Memorial Park
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Denair Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Citizens Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Citizens Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Citizens Cemetery
  • Continue List   (27 more) ...

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

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

  • Modesto
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Modesto
    • Modesto is located in Stanislaus County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 215,666 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Modesto <2>
  • Ceres
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ceres
    • Ceres is located in Stanislaus County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 48,603 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ceres <2>
  • Salida
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Keyes
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Grayson
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grayson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayson
    • Grayson is located in Stanislaus County
  • Ripon
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ripon
    • Ripon is located in San Joaquin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,774 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ripon <2>
  • Westley
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Turlock
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turlock
    • Turlock is located in Stanislaus County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 73,059 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Turlock <2>
  • Atlanta
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atlanta
    • Atlanta is located in San Joaquin County
  • Waterford
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Oakdale
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakdale
    • Oakdale is located in Stanislaus County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,228 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakdale <2>
  • Vernalis
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Crows Landing
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Hickman
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Cometa
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cometa have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cometa
      • Cometa is located in San Joaquin County

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

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Modesto. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Stanislaus County: www.co.stanislaus.ca.us/

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 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- West Modesto) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Modesto. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.6192, Longitude: -121.0280    
<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 West Modesto, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024