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 Westerlee (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 Westerlee. 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 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.
Westerlee is located in Sussex County.
To see how the shape of Delaware's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Sussex County: Kent, Caroline (MD), Dorchester (MD), Wicomico (MD), Worcester (MD) & Cape May (NJ).
Below are the counties that are near Westerlee. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Westerlee:
- Sussex County (The home county of Westerlee)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Delmar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Ward
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Ward is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
- Laurel
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Bethel
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Blades
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Blades is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blades
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,498 people
- Heritage Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Heritage Village is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heritage Village
- Ross
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Ross is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross
- Seaford
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Reliance
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Reliance is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reliance
- Mission
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mission is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mission
- Briar Hook
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Briar Hook is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briar Hook
- Millsboro
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Bridgeville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Kent County
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Adamsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Adamsville is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
- Hickman
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Hickman is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Andrewsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Andrewsville is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andrewsville
- Farmington
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Vernon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Vernon is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
- Williamsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Williamsville is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
- Caroline County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Federalsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hynson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hynson is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hynson
- Preston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Grove
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Grove is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove
- Hickman
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Hickman is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickman
- Bethlehem
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bethlehem is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Tanyard
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Tanyard is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanyard
- Tuckahoe Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Tuckahoe Springs is located in Caroline County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckahoe Springs
- Dorchester County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Galestown
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Galestown is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galestown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
- Walnut Landing
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Walnut Landing is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Landing
- Brookview
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Brookview is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 58 people
- Eldorado
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Eldorado is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldorado
- Population from the 2020 Census: 57 people
- Reliance
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Reliance is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reliance
- Rabbit Town
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Rabbit Town is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rabbit Town
- Vienna
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Finchville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Finchville is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchville
- Rhodesdale
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Marshyhope Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Marshyhope Village is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshyhope Village
- Salem
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Salem is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Hurlock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Williamsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Williamsburg is located in Dorchester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
- Somerset County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Eden
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Eden is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
- Loretto
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Loretto is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loretto
- Princess Anne
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Mount Vernon
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Vernon is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Monie
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Monie is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monie
- Oriole
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Oriole is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oriole
- Westover
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Champ
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Champ is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Champ
- Somersett Town ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Somersett Town is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somersett Town
- Costen
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Costen is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costen
- West Pocomoke
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- West Pocomoke is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pocomoke
- Manokin
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Manokin is located in Somerset County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manokin
- Dames Quarter
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Talbot County (MD)
- Trappe
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Wicomico County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Delmar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Cedar Hurst Village
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cedar Hurst Village is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Hurst Village
- Hebron
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Salisbury
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- White Plains
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- White Plains is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Plains
- Rockawalking Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rockawalking Village is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockawalking Village
- Centennial Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Centennial Village is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centennial Village
- Sharptown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sharptown is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharptown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 664 people
- Dogwood Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Dogwood Village is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogwood Village
- Parsonsburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Fruitland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Mardela Springs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Mardela Springs is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mardela Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 351 people
- Pittsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Worcester County (MD)
- The following are listed by their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Whaleyville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Bishop
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Bishop is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop
- Showell
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Showell is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Showell
- Bishopville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Berlin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Berlin is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,940 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Berlin <1>
- Newark
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Snow Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ocean Pines
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Cedartown
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Cedartown is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedartown
- West Ocean City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- West Ocean City is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Ocean City
- Pocomoke City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Pocomoke City is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocomoke City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,095 people
- Former names for Pocomoke City:
- New Town
- Stevens Landing
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pocomoke City <1>
- Girdletree
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Girdletree is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girdletree
- North Ocean City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- North Ocean City is located in Worcester County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ocean City
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Westerlee, see our County-by-County Page for Westerlee.
Cemeteries Near Westerlee ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Westerlee.
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 Westerlee - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Westerlee covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- St. Stephens Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Nichols Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Spring Hill Memorial Garden
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Oliphant Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Ralphs Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Hebron Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Parsons Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Melson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Smith Mills Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Mills Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Smith Mills Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the northeast of Delmar.
- The Smith Mills Cemetery has also been known as:
- Little Creek Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2375541 <2>
- Hustons Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Odd Fellows Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Odd Fellows Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Odd Fellows Cemetery is located outside and to the southwest of Laurel.
- New Mt. Zion Methodist Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Continue List (235 more) ...
- Laurel Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Hill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Laurel Hill Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southwest of Laurel.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #104388 <2>
- Wicomico Memorial Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Hammond Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
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>
While we didn't find Westerlee in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Westerlee.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Westerlee, with the one closest to Westerlee listed first.
- Delmar
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Hebron
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Columbia
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Columbia is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbia
- Salisbury
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Walston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Walston is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walston
- Ward
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Ward is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward
- Laurel
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Bethel
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Parsonsburg
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Whitesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Whitesville is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Broad Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Broad Creek is located in Sussex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broad Creek
- Sharptown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sharptown is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharptown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 664 people
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Fruitland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Riverton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Riverton is located in Wicomico County (MD)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
- Quantico
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Westerlee. See our List of 1890's Communities around Westerlee.
Newspapers Published in Westerlee ...
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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Westerlee.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Westerlee, there are papers which were published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Westerlee.
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 professional and volunteer 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 Westerlee:
- Websites specific to Delaware
- Pages specific to Sussex County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Kent County
- Caroline County
- Dorchester County
- Somerset County
- Talbot County
- Wicomico County
- Worcester County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Delaware
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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Westerlee) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <4> | The Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MIHP (for the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties). More information about the MHT and MIHP can be found on their website: mht.maryland.gov. |
| <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 Westerlee, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |