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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 Chain O'Lakes (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 Chain O'Lakes. 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 and doctors 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.

Chain O'Lakes is located in Lake 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 Lake County: Marion, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, Sumter & Volusia.

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

  • Lake County     (The home county of Chain O'Lakes)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Acron ‑ Historic
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Acron is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acron
    • Paisley
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Lake Kathryn
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Lake Kathryn is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Kathryn
    • Lake Mack - Forest Hills
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Pine Lakes
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Pine Lakes is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lakes
    • Cassia
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Cassia is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassia
    • Pittman
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Pittman is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittman
    • Altoona
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Lakeview Terrace Retirement Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Umatilla
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Astor
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Mount Plymouth
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Mount Plymouth is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Plymouth
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Electra
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Electra is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Electra
    • Eastlake Weir
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Weirsdale
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Ocklawaha
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Lynne
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Lynne is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynne
    • Salt Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Candler
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Tangerine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Zellwood
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Apopka
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Plymouth
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • South Apopka
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • South Apopka is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Apopka
    • Paradise Heights
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Paradise Heights is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Heights
    • Clarcona
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Lockhart
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Eatonville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Maitland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Crown Point
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Crown Point is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
    • Fairview Shores
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Fairview Shores is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Shores
  • Putnam County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Crescent City Station
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Georgetown
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Crescent City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Seminole County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Lake Monroe
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Heathrow
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Lake Mary
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Sanford
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Wekiwa Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Wekiwa Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wekiwa Springs
    • Indian Mound Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Indian Mound Village is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Mound Village
    • Midway
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Midway is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Forest City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Forest City is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
    • Sanlando Springs
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Sanlando Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanlando Springs
    • Longwood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Altamonte Springs
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Cameron City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Cameron City is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron City
  • Sumter County
    • The Villages
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • The Villages is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Villages
  • Volusia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.
    • Beresford
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Beresford is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
    • Highland Park ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Highland Park is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Park
    • West De Land
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • West De Land is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West De Land
    • Glenwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • De Land Southwest
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • De Land Southwest is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Land Southwest
    • De Land
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Volusia
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Volusia is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Volusia
    • Fort Florida
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Fort Florida is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Florida
    • North De Land
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • North De Land is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North De Land
    • Orange City Hills
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Orange City Hills is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange City Hills
    • De Leon Springs
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • De Bary
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Chain O'Lakes ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chain O'Lakes.

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 Chain O'Lakes - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Chain O'Lakes covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.

  • Ponceannah Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Shockley Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Cassia Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Seneca Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Altoona Hinson Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Glendale Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Seminole Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Umatilla Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Beresford Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Baker Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Union Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Cemetery
    • The Union Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Orange Cemetery
    • Union / Baker / Wright Cemetery
    • Wright Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72710 <2>
  • Glenwood Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (99 more) ...
    • Glenwood African-American Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood African-American Cemetery
      • The Glenwood African-American Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Church Street Cemetery
      • Glenwood Black Cemetery
    • Astor Park Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • MB Church Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)

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>

While we didn't find Chain O'Lakes in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Chain O'Lakes.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Chain O'Lakes, with the one closest to Chain O'Lakes listed first.

  • Paisley
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Saint Francis
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Saint Francis is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Francis
  • Cassia
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Cassia is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cassia
  • Crows Bluff
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Crows Bluff is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crows Bluff
  • Pittman
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Pittman is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittman
  • Altoona
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Seneca
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Seneca is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca
  • Umatilla
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
  • Fatio
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Fatio is located in Volusia County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fatio
  • Beresford
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Beresford is located in Volusia County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
  • Highland Park ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Highland Park is located in Volusia County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Park
  • West De Land
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • West De Land is located in Volusia County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West De Land
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Chain O'Lakes ...

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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chain O'Lakes.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chain O'Lakes, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chain O'Lakes.

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 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 Chain O'Lakes:

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 Chain O'Lakes, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Chain O'Lakes) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.