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 Bowden (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 Bowden. 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 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.
Bowden is located in Duval County.
To see how the shape of Florida's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Duval County: Baker, Clay, Nassau & Saint Johns.
Below are the counties that are near Bowden. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bowden:
- Duval County (The home county of Bowden)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- San Marco
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Marco
- San Marco is located in Duval County
- Arlington
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Arlington is located in Duval County
- Brooklyn
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
- Brooklyn is located in Duval County
- Jacksonville
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Loretto
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loretto
- Loretto is located in Duval County
- Sans Pareil
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sans Pareil
- Sans Pareil is located in Duval County
- Talleyrand
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talleyrand
- Talleyrand is located in Duval County
- Magnolia Gardens
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Gardens
- Magnolia Gardens is located in Duval County
- Normandy Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- San Pablo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for San Pablo have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Pablo
- San Pablo is located in Duval County
- Jacksonville Heights
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Greenfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenfield have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
- Greenfield is located in Duval County
- Polly Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Polly Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polly Town
- Polly Town is located in Duval County
- Baker County
- MacClenny
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- Orange Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Bellair - Meadowbrook Terrace
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bellair - Meadowbrook Terrace. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellair - Meadowbrook Terrace
- Bellair - Meadowbrook Terrace is located in Clay County
- Lakeside
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeside have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeside
- Lakeside is located in Clay County
- Doctors Inlet
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Green Cove Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Asbury Lake
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Asbury Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury Lake
- Asbury Lake is located in Clay County
- Middleburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Penney Farms
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Nassau County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- Bryceville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Nassau Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nassau Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nassau Village
- Nassau Village is located in Nassau County
- Crawford
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crawford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
- Crawford is located in Nassau County
- Amelia City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Amelia City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia City
- Amelia City is located in Nassau County
- Callahan
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Yulee
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Dyal
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyal
- Dyal is located in Nassau County
- Fernandina Beach
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Saint Johns County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- Saint Johns
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Fruit Cove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Ponte Vedra Beach
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Ponte Vedra
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ponte Vedra have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponte Vedra
- Ponte Vedra is located in Saint Johns County
- Palm Valley
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palm Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palm Valley
- Palm Valley is located in Saint Johns County
- Sawgrass
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sawgrass have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawgrass
- Sawgrass is located in Saint Johns County
- Tocoi
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tocoi
- Tocoi is located in Saint Johns County
- Vilano Beach
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Charlton County (GA)
- Saint George
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint George have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
- Saint George is located in Charlton County (GA)
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint George <1>
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bowden, see our County-by-County Page for Bowden.
Newspapers Published in Bowden ...
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 137 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bowden.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bowden, there are papers which were published within 8 miles [12.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bowden.
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 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 Bowden:
- Websites specific to Florida
- Pages specific to Duval County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Baker County
- Clay County
- Nassau County
- Saint Johns County
- Charlton County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Florida
Cemeteries Near Bowden ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bowden.
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 Bowden covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- Oaklawn Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oaklawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oaklawn Cemetery
- Oaklawn Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Greenlawn Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Sammis Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sammis Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sammis Cemetery
- City Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the City Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the City Cemetery
- Arlington Community Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Arlington Park Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- The Evergreen Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the The Evergreen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the The Evergreen Cemetery
- Evergreen Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Church of Our Savior Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Mandarin Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- St. Joseph Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (80 more) ...
- Chapel Hill Memory Garden
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chapel Hill Memory Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chapel Hill Memory Garden
- Gilmore Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gilmore Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gilmore Cemetery
- Parsons Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Parsons Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Parsons Cemetery
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, Bowden had railroad service and no post office.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bowden, with the one closest to Bowden listed first.
- Saint Nicholas
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Nicholas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Nicholas
- Saint Nicholas is located in Duval County
- Spring Glen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Glen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Glen
- Spring Glen is located in Duval County
- South Jacksonville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Jacksonville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Jacksonville
- South Jacksonville is located in Duval County
- Beauclerc
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beauclerc have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauclerc
- Beauclerc is located in Duval County
- Plummers
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plummers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plummers
- Plummers is located in Duval County
- Jacksonville
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Arlington
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Arlington is located in Duval County
- Floral Bluff
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Floral Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floral Bluff
- Floral Bluff is located in Duval County
- Mandarin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mandarin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandarin
- Mandarin is located in Duval County
- Greenland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenland
- Greenland is located in Duval County
- Gilmore
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilmore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilmore
- Gilmore is located in Duval County
- Orange Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Chaseville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chaseville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chaseville
- Chaseville is located in Duval County
- Edgewood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edgewood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewood
- Edgewood is located in Duval County
- Sweetwater
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sweetwater have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetwater
- Sweetwater is located in Duval County
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bowden. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bowden.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bowden. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Florida: https://www.myflorida.com/
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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Bowden) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bowden. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.2650, Longitude: -81.6176 |
<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 Bowden, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |