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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 Moffat (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 Moffat. 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 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.

Moffat is located in Saguache 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 Saguache County: Alamosa, Chaffee, Custer, Fremont, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Huerfano, Mineral & Rio Grande.

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

  • Saguache County     (The home county of Moffat)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moffat, with the one closest to Moffat listed first.
    • Crestone
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Saguache
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saguache have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saguache
      • Saguache is located in Saguache County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saguache <1>
    • Villa Grove
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Villa Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
      • Villa Grove is located in Saguache County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Villa Grove <1>
    • Duncan ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Liberty ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Spook City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spook City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spook City
      • Spook City is located in Saguache County
    • Kerper City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kerper City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerper City
      • Kerper City is located in Saguache County
    • Bonanza
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Alamosa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moffat, with the one closest to Moffat listed first.
    • Hooper
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Mosca
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mosca have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mosca
      • Mosca is located in Alamosa County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mosca <1>
  • Custer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Moffat, with the one closest to Moffat listed first.
    • Ula ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Westcliffe
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Silver Cliff
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Cliff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Cliff
      • Silver Cliff is located in Custer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 741 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silver Cliff <1>
  • Fremont County
  • Rio Grande County

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

Cemeteries Near Moffat ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Moffat.

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

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

  • Mirage Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mirage Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mirage Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cotton Creek Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cotton Creek Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cotton Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Teton Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Teton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Teton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hillside Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Whites Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Whites Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Whites Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Villa Grove Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Villa Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Villa Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Campo Santo Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Campo Santo Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Campo Santo Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Speiser Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
  • Pines Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
  • The Pines Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Pines Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for The Pines Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hope Cemetery
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hope Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ula Cemetery
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ula Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ula Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (8 more) ...
    • Silver Cliff Cemetery
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Silver Cliff Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Silver Cliff Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Hillside Cemetery
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hillside Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hillside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Stanley Cemetery
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Moffat had a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Moffat had a population of 123 people.

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

  • Crestone
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Saguache
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saguache have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saguache
    • Saguache is located in Saguache County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 531 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saguache <1>
  • Hooper
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
  • Villa Grove
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Villa Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
    • Villa Grove is located in Saguache County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Villa Grove <1>
  • La Garita
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for La Garita have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Garita
    • La Garita is located in Saguache County
  • Bonanza
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Westcliffe
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
  • Alder ‑ Historic
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alder have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alder
    • Alder is located in Saguache County
  • Coaldale
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
  • Vallie
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Vallie. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vallie
    • Vallie is located in Fremont County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Vallie
    • From Moffat to Vallie
  • Silver Cliff
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Cliff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Cliff
    • Silver Cliff is located in Custer County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 741 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silver Cliff <1>
  • Cotopaxi
    (28 miles [45.1 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 Moffat. See our List of 1890's Communities around Moffat.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Moffat ...

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 22 newspapers that have been published in the area around Moffat.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Moffat. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Moffat and those printed in the larger area surrounding Moffat.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<6> of Moffat.

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 Moffat:

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

The official website for Saguache County: www.slv.org/saguachecounty/

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

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 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.
<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 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 Moffat, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Moffat) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Moffat. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.9994, Longitude: -105.9068    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025