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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 Rockwood (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 Rockwood. 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 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 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.

Rockwood is located in 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 Rockwood. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rockwood:

  • La Plata County     (The home county of Rockwood)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rockwood, with the one closest to Rockwood listed first.
    • Hermosa
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermosa
      • Hermosa is located in La Plata County
    • Vallecito
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Durango
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Carbon Junction
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon Junction
      • Carbon Junction is located in La Plata County
    • Florida
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florida
      • Florida is located in La Plata County
    • Hesperus
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Gem Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gem Village
      • Gem Village is located in La Plata County
    • Bayfield
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bayfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
    • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • 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
    • Ignacio
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Bondad
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bondad have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bondad
      • Bondad is located in La Plata County
  • Dolores County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rockwood, with the one closest to Rockwood listed first.
    • Rico
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rico have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
    • Dunton ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunton
      • Dunton is located in Dolores County
  • Montezuma County
    • Mancos
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mancos have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
  • Ouray County
    • Red Mountain ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Mountain
      • Red Mountain is located in Ouray County
  • San Juan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rockwood, with the one closest to Rockwood listed first.
    • Graysill ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 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
    • Silverton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Chattanooga ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chattanooga
      • Chattanooga is located in San Juan County
    • Howardsville ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howardsville
      • Howardsville is located in San Juan County
    • Eureka ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
      • Eureka is located in San Juan County
  • San Miguel County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Rockwood, with the one closest to Rockwood listed first.
    • Ophir
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • 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 <1>
    • Alta ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
      • Alta is located in San Miguel County
    • Liberty Bell ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Bell
      • Liberty Bell is located in San Miguel County
    • Mountain Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
    • Pandora
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pandora
      • Pandora is located in San Miguel County
    • Telluride
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Tomboy ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tomboy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomboy
      • Tomboy is located in San Miguel County
    • Vance Junction
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vance Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vance Junction
      • Vance Junction is located in San Miguel County

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

Newspapers Published in Rockwood ...

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 102 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rockwood.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rockwood, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rockwood.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Rockwood:

Cemeteries Near Rockwood ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rockwood.

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

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

  • Hermosa Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hermosa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hermosa Cemetery
  • Shreck Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shreck Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shreck Cemetery
  • Animas Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Animas Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Animas Cemetery
  • Green Mtn. Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Green Mtn. Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Green Mtn. Cemetery
  • Greenmount Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Crestview Memorial Garden
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Crestview Memorial Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Crestview Memorial Garden
  • Rico Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rico Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rico Cemetery
  • Hesperus Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hesperus Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hesperus Cemetery
  • Bayfield Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bayfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bayfield Cemetery
  • Thompson Park Cemetery
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Thompson Park Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Thompson Park Cemetery
  • Hay Gulch Cemetery
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hay Gulch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hay Gulch Cemetery
  • Hillside Cemetery
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (10 more) ...
    • Sheek Cemetery
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • 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 our Gazetteer entry for the Sheek Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #57548 <5>
    • Ouray Memorial Cemetery
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ouray Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ouray Memorial Cemetery
    • Cedar Grove Cemetery
      (28 miles [45.1 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Rockwood had a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Hermosa
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hermosa
    • Hermosa is located in La Plata County
  • Trimble
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trimble have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trimble
    • Trimble is located in La Plata County
  • Durango
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
  • Rico
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rico have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
  • Fort Lewis ‑ Historic
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • 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
  • Silverton
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Ophir
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • 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 <1>
  • Howardsville ‑ Historic
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howardsville
    • Howardsville is located in San Juan County
  • Chattanooga ‑ Historic
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chattanooga
    • Chattanooga is located in San Juan County
  • Ames ‑ Historic
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ames have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ames
    • Ames is located in San Miguel County
  • Ignacio
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Red Mountain ‑ Historic
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Mountain
    • Red Mountain is located in Ouray County
  • Eureka ‑ Historic
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
    • Eureka is located in San Juan County

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

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

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>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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Rockwood) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rockwood. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.4910, Longitude: -107.8025    
<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>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 Rockwood, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024