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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 Prairie Trail Ranches (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 Prairie Trail Ranches. 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.

Prairie Trail Ranches is located in Elbert County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Elbert County: Arapahoe, Douglas, El Paso, Lincoln & Washington.

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

  • Elbert County     (The home county of Prairie Trail Ranches)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Ponderosa Park
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Ponderosa Park is located in Elbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponderosa Park
    • Elizabeth
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Kiowa
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Elbert
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Fondis
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Fondis is located in Elbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fondis
  • Adams County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Watkins
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Friendly Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Friendly Village is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendly Village
    • Hillcrest Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Hillcrest Village is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest Village
    • Bennett
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Strasburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Commerce City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Adams City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Adams City is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams City
    • Derby
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Derby is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derby
    • Dupont
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • North Washington
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • North Washington is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Washington
    • Welby
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Welby is located in Adams County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welby
  • Arapahoe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Foxfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Foxfield is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foxfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 771 people
    • Algonquin Acres
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Algonquin Acres is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algonquin Acres
    • Centennial
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Castlewood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Castlewood is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castlewood
    • Somerset Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Somerset Village is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somerset Village
    • Cherry Knolls
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Cherry Knolls is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Knolls
    • Greenwood Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Hallcrafts Village East
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Sableridge
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Sableridge is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sableridge
    • Settlers Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Settlers Village is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Settlers Village
    • Southglenn
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Southglenn is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southglenn
    • Havana Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Havana Village is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havana Village
    • Altura
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Altura is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altura
  • Denver County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Cherry Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Cherry Creek is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Creek
    • Montbello
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Sandown
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Sandown is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandown
    • Denver
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Denver is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denver
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 735,538 people
      • Former names for Denver:
      • Auraina
      • Denver City
      • Montana City
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Denver <1>
    • West Denver
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • West Denver is located in Denver County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Denver
  • Douglas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • The Pinery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • The Pinery is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Pinery
    • Pine Valley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Pine Valley is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Valley
    • Parker
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Franktown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Cherry Creek Highlands
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Stonegate
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Stonegate is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonegate
    • Cottonwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Cottonwood is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood
    • Grand View Estates
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Grand View Estates is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand View Estates
    • Founders Village
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Founders Village is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Founders Village
    • Meridian
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Meridian is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meridian
    • Castle Rock
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Castle Pines North
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Castle Pines North is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Pines North
      • Estimated population in 2011: 10,602 people
    • Lone Tree
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • El Paso County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Woodmoor
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Woodmoor is located in El Paso County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodmoor
    • Eastonville ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Eastonville is located in El Paso County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastonville
    • Monument
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Palmer Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Prairie Trail Ranches, with the one closest to Prairie Trail Ranches listed first.
    • Archer
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Archer is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Archer
    • Columbine
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Columbine is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbine
    • Ken Caryl
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Lakewood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Edgewater
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Green Mountain Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Mountain View
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Mountain View is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 549 people
    • Dome Rock
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Dome Rock is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dome Rock

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

Cemeteries Near Prairie Trail Ranches ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Prairie Trail Ranches.

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 Prairie Trail Ranches - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Miller Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Newlin Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Fonder Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Elizabeth Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Franktown Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Parker Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parker Cemetery
    • The Parker Cemetery has also been known as:
    • J.S. Parker Cemetery
    • James Sample Parker Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #722189 <2>
  • Ebenezer Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Hungate Memorial
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Running Creek Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Kiowa Old Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Cedar Hill Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Lewis Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (37 more) ...
    • Melvin Lewis Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • St. Simeon Catholic Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Elbert - Kiowa Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 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.<3>

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

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

  • Hilltop
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Hilltop is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltop
  • Elizabeth
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Parker
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Franktown
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Kiowa
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Castle Rock
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Sedalia
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Elbert
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
  • Sullivan
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Sullivan is located in Arapahoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivan
  • Aurora
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Aurora is located in Arapahoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurora
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 387,377 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Aurora <1>
  • Larkspur
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Acequia
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Acequia is located in Douglas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acequia
  • Continue List   (11 more) ...
    • Littleton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Greenland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Greenland is located in Douglas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenland
    • Fort Logan ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Fort Logan is located in Arapahoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Logan

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

Newspapers Published in Prairie Trail Ranches ...

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 Prairie Trail Ranches.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Prairie Trail Ranches, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Prairie Trail Ranches.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Prairie Trail Ranches:

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 Prairie Trail Ranches, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Prairie Trail Ranches) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.