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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 Bay Ridge (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 Bay Ridge. 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 Bay Ridge ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Bay Ridge: Bay Rdg. (or less commonly used: Bay Rdge. or Bay Ridg.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Bay Ridge. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Bay Ridge.

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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Bay Ridge is located in Orange County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Orange County: Brevard, Lake, Osceola, Polk & Seminole.

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

  • Orange County     (The home county of Bay Ridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Zellwood
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Plymouth
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Apopka
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Tangerine
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • South Apopka
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • South Apopka is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Apopka
    • Paradise Heights
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Paradise Heights is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Heights
    • Clarcona
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Crown Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Crown Point is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
    • Lockhart
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Ocoee
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Ocoee is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocoee
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 49,168 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ocoee <1>
    • Tildenville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Tildenville is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tildenville
    • Winter Garden
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Lake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Sorrento
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Mount Plymouth
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Mount Plymouth is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Plymouth
    • Mount Dora
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Lake Jem
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Lake Jem is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Jem
    • Ethel
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Ethel is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ethel
    • Oakland Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Oakland Park is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Park
    • Cassia
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Cassia is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassia
    • Eustis
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Astatula
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Tavares
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Ferndale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Montverde
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Weirsdale
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Eastlake Weir
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Ocklawaha
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Osceola County
  • Seminole County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Forest City
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Forest City is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
    • Wekiwa Springs
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Wekiwa Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wekiwa Springs
    • Heathrow
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Sanlando Springs
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Sanlando Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanlando Springs
    • Altamonte Springs
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Longwood
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Lake Mary
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Fern Park
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Casselberry
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Lake Monroe
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Winter Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Sanford
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
  • Sumter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Orange Home
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Orange Home is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Home
    • The Villages
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • The Villages is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Villages
    • Adamsville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Adamsville is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
    • Center Hill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Mabel
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Mabel is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabel
    • Wildwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Sumterville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Volusia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Bay Ridge, with the one closest to Bay Ridge listed first.
    • Fort Florida
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Fort Florida is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Florida
    • Valdez
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Valdez is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valdez
    • De Bary
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Orange City Hills
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Orange City Hills is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange City Hills
    • Enterprise
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Orange City
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Beresford
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Beresford is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
    • Deltona
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • West De Land
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • West De Land is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West De Land
    • De Land Southwest
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • De Land Southwest is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Land Southwest
    • Highland Park ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Highland Park is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Park
    • Cassadaga
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Bay Ridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bay Ridge.

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 Bay Ridge - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Bay Ridge Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Sorrento Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Zellwood Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Tangerine Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Plymouth Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Edgewood - Greenwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Seminole Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Pine Forest Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Lake Jem Burying Grounds
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Florida Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Seneca Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (102 more) ...
    • Highland Memory Gardens
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Memory Gardens
      • The Highland Memory Gardens has also been known as:
      • Highland Memorial Garden
      • Highland Memorial Gardens
    • West Orange Memorial Gardens
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Greenwood Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Bay Ridge had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Zellwood
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Sorrento
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • McDonald
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • McDonald is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald
  • Plymouth
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Apopka
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Tangerine
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Mount Dora
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Seneca
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Seneca is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca
  • Ethel
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Ethel is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ethel
  • Astatula
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Clarcona
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Piedmont
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Piedmont is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piedmont
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Cassia
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Cassia is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassia
    • Eustis
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Tavares
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Bay Ridge ...

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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bay Ridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bay Ridge, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bay Ridge.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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 Bay Ridge:

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 Bay Ridge, 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' (or 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- Bay Ridge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.