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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 Coker (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 Coker. 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 southwest 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 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.

Coker is located in Hardee 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 Hardee County: DeSoto, Highlands, Hillsborough, Manatee & Polk.

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

  • Hardee County     (The home county of Coker)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Wauchula
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Bowling Green
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Zolfo Springs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Ona
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Crewsville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Crewsville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crewsville
      • Crewsville is located in Hardee County
  • DeSoto County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Calvinia ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Calvinia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvinia
      • Calvinia is located in DeSoto County
    • Arcadia
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Nocatee
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Highlands County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Avon Park
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Alpine
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine
      • Alpine is located in Highlands County
    • Sebring
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • De Soto City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Soto City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Soto City
      • De Soto City is located in Highlands County
  • Hillsborough County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Welcome
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welcome
      • Welcome is located in Hillsborough County
    • Lithia
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Pinecrest
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Balm
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Boyette
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boyette have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyette
      • Boyette is located in Hillsborough County
  • Manatee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Duette
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Myakka City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Sandy
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
      • Sandy is located in Manatee County
    • Verna
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verna
      • Verna is located in Manatee County
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coker, with the one closest to Coker listed first.
    • Fort Meade
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Oponys Town ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oponys Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oponys Town
      • Oponys Town is located in Polk County
    • Brewster ‑ Historic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Brewster. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brewster
      • Brewster is located in Polk County
    • Homeland
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Pittsburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsburg
      • Pittsburg is located in Polk County
    • Cox Corner ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cox Corner
      • Cox Corner is located in Polk County
    • Frostproof
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Alturas
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Bartow
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Lake Garfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Garfield
      • Lake Garfield is located in Polk County
    • Roux Quarters ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Roux Quarters. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roux Quarters
      • Roux Quarters is located in Polk County
    • Armour ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Armour. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armour
      • Armour is located in Polk County
    • Connersville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Connersville
      • Connersville is located in Polk County

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

Cemeteries Near Coker ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coker.

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

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

  • Wauchula Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Olive Branch Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Olive Branch Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Olive Branch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Hart Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hart Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ft. Meade Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Hope Cemetery
    • The New Hope Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
    • New Hope Methodist Episcopal Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72336 <4>
  • Watson Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Corinth Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Corinth Cemetery
    • The Corinth Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bereah Cemetery
    • Corinth Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2242863 <4>
  • Pleasant Grove Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Hancock Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (49 more) ...
    • Coker Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coker Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Old Elim Church Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Eden Cemetery
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)

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 Coker in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Coker.

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

  • Wauchula
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Zolfo Springs
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Bowling Green
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Fort Meade
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Calvinia ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Calvinia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvinia
    • Calvinia is located in DeSoto County
  • Crewsville
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Crewsville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crewsville
    • Crewsville is located in Hardee County
  • Homeland
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
  • Avon Park
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Bartow
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
  • Pine Level
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Level have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Level
    • Pine Level is located in DeSoto County
  • Arcadia
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
  • Gordonville
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordonville
    • Gordonville is located in Polk County
  • Continue List   (5 more) ...
    • Sandy
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
      • Sandy is located in Manatee County
    • Wahneta
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wahneta
      • Wahneta is located in Polk County
    • Keysville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keysville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
      • Keysville is located in Hillsborough County

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

Newspapers Published in Coker ...

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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coker.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coker, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coker.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Coker:

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

The official website for Hardee County: www.hardeecounty.net/

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>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.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Coker) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Coker. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 27.5653, Longitude: -81.8148       In this case, the coordinates for Coker have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Coker, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Mar 2025