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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 Ridgway (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 Ridgway. 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 Ridgway ...

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.

Another variation: Ridgeway.

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 northwest 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 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 west 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.

Ridgway is located in Ouray 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 Ouray County: Gunnison, Hinsdale, Montrose, San Juan & San Miguel.

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

  • Ouray County     (The home county of Ridgway)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ridgway, with the one closest to Ridgway listed first.
    • Dallas
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
      • Dallas is located in Ouray County
    • Loghill Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Loghill Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loghill Village
      • Loghill Village is located in Ouray County
    • Eldredge
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldredge
      • Eldredge is located in Ouray County
    • Ouray
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Colona
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colona
      • Colona is located in Ouray County
    • Red Mountain ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Mountain
      • Red Mountain is located in Ouray County
  • Hinsdale County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ridgway, with the one closest to Ridgway listed first.
    • Capitol City ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capitol City
      • Capitol City is located in Hinsdale County
    • Lake City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Carson ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carson
      • Carson is located in Hinsdale County
    • Old Carson ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Carson
      • Old Carson is located in Hinsdale County
  • Montrose County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ridgway, with the one closest to Ridgway listed first.
    • Uncompahgre
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uncompahgre
      • Uncompahgre is located in Montrose County
    • Vernal
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vernal have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernal
      • Vernal is located in Montrose County
    • Montrose
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montrose have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montrose
      • Montrose is located in Montrose County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 19,902 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montrose <2>
    • Cimarron
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cimarron have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cimarron
      • Cimarron is located in Montrose County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cimarron <2>
    • Ute
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ute
      • Ute is located in Montrose County
  • San Juan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ridgway, with the one closest to Ridgway listed first.
    • Animas Forks ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Animas Forks
      • Animas Forks is located in San Juan County
    • Chattanooga ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chattanooga
      • Chattanooga is located in San Juan County
    • Eureka ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in San Juan County
    • Howardsville ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howardsville
      • Howardsville is located in San Juan County
    • Silverton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
  • San Miguel County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Ridgway, with the one closest to Ridgway listed first.
    • San Miguel ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Miguel
      • San Miguel is located in San Miguel County
    • Tomboy ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tomboy have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomboy
      • Tomboy is located in San Miguel County
    • Liberty Bell ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Bell
      • Liberty Bell is located in San Miguel County
    • Pandora
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pandora
      • Pandora is located in San Miguel County
    • Telluride
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Keystone ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keystone
      • Keystone is located in San Miguel County
    • Mountain Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Village
      • Mountain Village is located in San Miguel County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,470 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mountain Village <2>
    • Sawpit
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawpit
      • Sawpit is located in San Miguel County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 38 people
      • Sawpit has also been known as:
      • Saw Pit
    • Vanadium ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vanadium
      • Vanadium is located in San Miguel County
    • Vance Junction
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vance Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vance Junction
      • Vance Junction is located in San Miguel County
    • Placerville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Alta ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
      • Alta is located in San Miguel County
    • Ophir
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ophir
      • Ophir is located in San Miguel County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 190 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ophir <2>

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Ridgway ...

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 98 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ridgway.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Ridgway. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Ridgway and those printed in the larger area surrounding Ridgway.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<3> of Ridgway.

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 Ridgway:

Cemeteries Near Ridgway ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ridgway.

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

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

  • Dallas Park Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dallas Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dallas Park Cemetery
  • Dallas Park Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dallas Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dallas Park Cemetery
  • Cedar Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cedar Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cedar Hill Cemetery
  • Colona Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Colona Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Colona Cemetery
  • Lone Tree Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lone Tree Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lone Tree Cemetery
  • Lone Tree Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Button Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Button Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Button Cemetery
  • Uncompahgre Memorial Gardens
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Uncompahgre Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Uncompahgre Memorial Gardens
  • Grandview Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Cemetery
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Cedar Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Hillside Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • New Cemetery
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Cemetery
    • Old Cemetery
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Cemetery
    • Nurse - Brownlee Cemetery
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nurse - Brownlee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nurse - Brownlee Cemetery
    • Norwood Cemetery
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)

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, Ridgway had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Ridgway had a population of 1,039 people.

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

  • Dallas
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
    • Dallas is located in Ouray County
  • Portland
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Portland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portland
    • Portland is located in Ouray County
  • Ouray
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • San Miguel ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Miguel
    • San Miguel is located in San Miguel County
  • Leonard ‑ Historic
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leonard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leonard
    • Leonard is located in San Miguel County
  • Uncompahgre
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uncompahgre
    • Uncompahgre is located in Montrose County
  • Telluride
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Pandora
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pandora
    • Pandora is located in San Miguel County
  • Ironton ‑ Historic
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ironton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironton
    • Ironton is located in Ouray County
  • Ilium
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ilium have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ilium
    • Ilium is located in San Miguel County
  • Vance Junction
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vance Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vance Junction
    • Vance Junction is located in San Miguel County
  • Red Mountain ‑ Historic
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Mountain
    • Red Mountain is located in Ouray County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Placerville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Animas Forks ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Animas Forks
      • Animas Forks is located in San Juan County
    • Capitol City ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capitol City
      • Capitol City is located in Hinsdale County

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

The official website for Ridgway: https://ridgwaycolorado.com/

The official website for Ouray County: www.co.ouray.co.us/

The official website for State of Colorado: https://www.colorado.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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ridgway) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ridgway. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.1514, Longitude: -107.7576    
<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 Ridgway, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024