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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 Clearwater Beach (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 Clearwater Beach. 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 Clearwater Beach ...

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.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Clearwater Beach: Clearwater Bch.

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 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.

Clearwater Beach is located in Pinellas 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 Pinellas County: Hillsborough & Pasco.

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

  • Pinellas County     (The home county of Clearwater Beach)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clearwater Beach, with the one closest to Clearwater Beach listed first.
    • Clearwater
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearwater
      • Clearwater is located in Pinellas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 116,552 people
      • Former name for Clearwater:
      • Clear Water Harbor
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clearwater <1>
    • Belleair
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Dunedin
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Belleair Beach
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Belleair Bluffs
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Belleair Shore
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belleair Shore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleair Shore
      • Belleair Shore is located in Pinellas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 114 people
    • Habor Bluffs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Habor Bluffs
      • Habor Bluffs is located in Pinellas County
    • Harbor Bluffs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbor Bluffs
      • Harbor Bluffs is located in Pinellas County
    • Ozona
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Anona
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anona
      • Anona is located in Pinellas County
    • Baskin
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Baskin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baskin
      • Baskin is located in Pinellas County
    • Indian Rocks Beach
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Largo
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Largo
      • Largo is located in Pinellas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 84,681 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Largo <1>
  • Hillsborough County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clearwater Beach, with the one closest to Clearwater Beach listed first.
    • Bayport Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bayport Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayport Village
      • Bayport Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Bayside Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bayside Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayside Village
      • Bayside Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Westchase
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westchase have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westchase
      • Westchase is located in Hillsborough County
    • Canterbury Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canterbury Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canterbury Village
      • Canterbury Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Royal Troon Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Royal Troon Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Troon Village
      • Royal Troon Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Fawn Ridge Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fawn Ridge Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fawn Ridge Village
      • Fawn Ridge Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Mecca City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mecca City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mecca City
      • Mecca City is located in Hillsborough County
    • West Waters Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Waters Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Waters Village
      • West Waters Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Holiday Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holiday Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Village
      • Holiday Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Town 'n' Country
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Town 'n' Country have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town 'n' Country
      • Town 'n' Country is located in Hillsborough County
    • Keystone Park
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keystone Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keystone Park
      • Keystone Park is located in Hillsborough County
    • Northlake Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Northlake Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northlake Village
      • Northlake Village is located in Hillsborough County
    • Keystone
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keystone have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keystone
      • Keystone is located in Hillsborough County
  • Pasco County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Clearwater Beach, with the one closest to Clearwater Beach listed first.
    • Holiday
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Beacon Square
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beacon Square have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beacon Square
      • Beacon Square is located in Pasco County
    • Elfers
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Trinity
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • New Port Richey
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Port Richey
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Odessa
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jasmine Estates
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jasmine Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jasmine Estates
      • Jasmine Estates is located in Pasco County
    • Bayonet Point
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Hudson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Land O' Lakes
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Fivay Junction ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fivay Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fivay Junction
      • Fivay Junction is located in Pasco County
    • Fivay ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fivay. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fivay
      • Fivay is located in Pasco County

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Clearwater Beach ...

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 18 newspapers that have been published in the area around Clearwater Beach.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Clearwater Beach. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Clearwater Beach and those printed in the larger area surrounding Clearwater Beach.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4> of Clearwater Beach.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Clearwater Beach:

Cemeteries Near Clearwater Beach ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Clearwater Beach.

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

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

  • Dunedin Highland Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dunedin Highland Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dunedin Highland Memorial Park
  • Dunedin Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dunedin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dunedin Cemetery
  • Rousseau Pioneer Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rousseau Pioneer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rousseau Pioneer Cemetery
  • McMullen Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the McMullen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the McMullen Cemetery
  • Parklawn Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Parklawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Parklawn Cemetery
  • Serenity Gardens Memorial Park
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Serenity Gardens Memorial Park is a very large cemetery that is located in Anona.
    • The Serenity Gardens Memorial Park has also been known as:
    • Moss Feaster Serenity Gardens
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Serenity Gardens Memorial Park
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72605 <5>
  • Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Curlew Hills Memory Gardens
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Curlew Hills Memory Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Curlew Hills Memory Gardens
  • Parklawn Memory Gardens
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Parklawn Memory Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Parklawn Memory Gardens
  • The Garden Sanctuary
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the The Garden Sanctuary have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the The Garden Sanctuary
  • Chapel Hill Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chapel Hill Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chapel Hill Memorial Park
  • Bay Pines National Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bay Pines National Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bay Pines National Cemetery
  • Continue List   (45 more) ...
    • Rose Hill Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rose Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rose Hill Cemetery
    • Cycadia Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cycadia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cycadia Cemetery
    • Eternal Light Mausoleums and Gardens
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Eternal Light Mausoleums and Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eternal Light Mausoleums and Gardens

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>

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

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

  • Keystone Park
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keystone Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keystone Park
    • Keystone Park is located in Hillsborough County
  • Port Tampa
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Port Tampa have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Tampa
    • Port Tampa is located in Hillsborough County
  • Odessa
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Port Richey
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Tampa
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tampa
    • Tampa is located in Hillsborough County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 407,599 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tampa <1>
  • Ybor City
    (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ybor City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ybor City
    • Ybor City is located in Hillsborough County
  • Hudson
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
  • Gulf City
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf City
    • Gulf City is located in Hillsborough County
  • Ehren
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ehren have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ehren
    • Ehren is located in Pasco County

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

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

The official website for Pinellas County: www.pinellascounty.org/

The official website for State of Florida: 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Clearwater Beach) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Clearwater Beach. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 27.9897, Longitude: -82.8266    
<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 Clearwater Beach, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024