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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Mayday. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Mayday to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Mayday, please Contact Us.

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 Mayday (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 Mayday. 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.

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 doctors 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.

Although our information shows that the community of Mayday is historic, it would have been located within present day La Plata County.

To see how the shape of Colorado's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of La Plata County: Archuleta, Dolores, Hinsdale, Montezuma, San Juan & San Juan (NM).

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

  • La Plata County     (The home county of Mayday)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mayday, with the one closest to Mayday listed first.
    • Hesperus
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fort Lewis. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
      • Fort Lewis is located in La Plata County
    • Durango
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hermosa
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermosa
      • Hermosa is located in La Plata County
    • Carbon Junction
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon Junction
      • Carbon Junction is located in La Plata County
    • Marvel
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marvel have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marvel
      • Marvel is located in La Plata County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Marvel <2>
    • Rockwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwood
      • Rockwood is located in La Plata County
    • Florida
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florida
      • Florida is located in La Plata County
    • Bondad
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bondad. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bondad
      • Bondad is located in La Plata County
    • Gem Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gem Village
      • Gem Village is located in La Plata County
    • Bayfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bayfield have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayfield
      • Bayfield is located in La Plata County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,586 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bayfield <2>
    • Vallecito
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Dolores County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mayday, with the one closest to Mayday listed first.
    • Rico
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rico have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rico
      • Rico is located in Dolores County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 262 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rico <2>
    • Dunton ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunton
      • Dunton is located in Dolores County
  • Montezuma County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Mayday, with the one closest to Mayday listed first.
    • Mancos
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mancos have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mancos
      • Mancos is located in Montezuma County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,398 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mancos <2>
    • Dolores
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Cortez
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cortez have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortez
      • Cortez is located in Montezuma County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,734 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cortez <2>
    • McPhee ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for McPhee. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McPhee
      • McPhee is located in Montezuma County
  • San Juan County
    • Graysill ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Graysill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysill
      • Graysill is located in San Juan County
  • San Juan County (NM)

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

Cemeteries Near Mayday ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mayday.

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

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

  • Thompson Park Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Thompson Park Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Thompson Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hesperus Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hesperus Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hesperus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hay Gulch Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hay Gulch Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hay Gulch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sheek Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sheek Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Sheek Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #57548 <5>
  • Webber Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Green Mtn. Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Mtn. Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Mtn. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Greenmount Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenmount Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Greenmount Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southwest of Durango.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1013065 <5>
  • Cedar Grove Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Mancos Pioneer Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Animas Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Animas Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Animas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kline Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kline Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kline Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Marvel Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Hermosa Cemetery
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hermosa Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hermosa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Crestview Memorial Garden
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crestview Memorial Garden
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crestview Memorial Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Shreck Cemetery
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shreck Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shreck Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.

While we didn't find Mayday in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Mayday.

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

  • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fort Lewis. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Lewis
    • Fort Lewis is located in La Plata County
  • Durango
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Trimble
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trimble have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trimble
    • Trimble is located in La Plata County
  • Hermosa
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermosa
    • Hermosa is located in La Plata County
  • Rockwood
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwood
    • Rockwood is located in La Plata County
  • Rico
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rico have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rico
    • Rico is located in Dolores County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 262 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rico <2>
  • Dolores
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
  • Cortez
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cortez have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortez
    • Cortez is located in Montezuma County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,734 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cortez <2>
  • La Plata
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
  • Ignacio
    (29 miles [46.7 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 Mayday. See our List of 1890's Communities around Mayday.

Newspapers Published in Mayday ...

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 75 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mayday.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Mayday, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Mayday.

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 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 Mayday:

The official website for La Plata County: www.co.laplata.co.us/

The official website for State of Colorado: https://www.colorado.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Mayday, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>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.
<5>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.
<6>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- Mayday) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Mayday. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.3506, Longitude: -108.0767       In this case, the coordinates for Mayday have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025