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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 Drakes Place (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 Drakes Place. 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 Drakes Place ...

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 occur.

  • A typical abbreviation for Drakes Place: Drakes Pl. (or less commonly used: Drakes Plc.)
  • While the name of this community is Drakes Place, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Drakes Place may originally have been Drake's Place.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Drakes Place might be written as Drake Place.

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 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.

Drakes Place is located in Hillsborough 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 Hillsborough County: Hardee, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas & Polk.

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

  • Hillsborough County     (The home county of Drakes Place)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Drakes Place, with the one closest to Drakes Place listed first.
    • Bloomingdale
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Bloomingdale is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
    • Valrico
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Indian Hills
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Indian Hills is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Hills
    • Bloomingdale Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Bloomingdale Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale Village
    • Durant
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Valrico Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Valrico Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valrico Village
    • Brandon
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Parkside Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Parkside Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkside Village
    • Brandon Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Brandon Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandon Village
    • Windhorst Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Windhorst Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windhorst Village
    • Fish Hawk
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Fish Hawk is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fish Hawk
    • Countryside Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Countryside Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Countryside Village
    • Boyette
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Boyette is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyette
  • Manatee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Drakes Place, with the one closest to Drakes Place listed first.
    • Duette
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Parrish
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Terra Ceia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Pasco County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Drakes Place, with the one closest to Drakes Place listed first.
    • Crystal Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Crystal Springs is located in Pasco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Springs
    • Zephyrhills
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Wesley Chapel South
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Wesley Chapel South is located in Pasco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley Chapel South
    • Wesley Chapel
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Land O' Lakes
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Richland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Richland is located in Pasco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
    • Odessa
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Saint Leo
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • San Antonio
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • San Antonio is located in Pasco County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Antonio
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,506 people
      • Former name for San Antonio:
      • Lake Jovita
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for San Antonio <2>
  • Pinellas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Drakes Place, with the one closest to Drakes Place listed first.
    • Gandy
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Gandy is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gandy
    • Feather Sound
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Saint Petersburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Lealman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Lealman is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lealman
    • Oldsmar
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Bayview ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Bayview is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayview
    • High Point
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • High Point is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point
    • Pinellas Park
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Safety Harbor
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • South Highpoint
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • South Highpoint is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Highpoint
    • Four Corners
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Four Corners is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
    • Gulfport
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Kenneth City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Drakes Place, with the one closest to Drakes Place listed first.
    • Nichols
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Willow Oak
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Willow Oak is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Oak
    • Mulberry
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Winston
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Winston is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winston
    • Medulla
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Medulla is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medulla
    • Bradley Junction
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Bradley Junction is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradley Junction
    • Lakeland Highlands
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Lakeland Highlands is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeland Highlands
    • Brewster ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Brewster is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brewster
    • Kathleen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Lakeland
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Eaton Park
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Acton ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Acton is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
    • Crystal Lake
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Crystal Lake is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Lake

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

Cemeteries Near Drakes Place ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Drakes Place.

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 Drakes Place - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Brandon Family Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Serenity Meadows Memorial Park
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Hackney - Riverview Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackney - Riverview Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hackney - Riverview Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tampa.
    • The Hackney - Riverview Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hackney Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72067 <3>
  • Lithia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Hillsboro Memorial Gardens
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Limona Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limona Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Limona Cemetery is located in Brandon.
  • Commemorative Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Samford Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Mathews Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Loving Care Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Hunter Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (106 more) ...
    • Blue Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tampa.
      • The Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Centro Asturiano Cemetery
      • Centro Asturiano Memorial Park
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #71836 <3>
    • Rodeph Sholom Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodeph Sholom Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Rodeph Sholom Cemetery is located in Tampa.
      • The Rodeph Sholom Cemetery has also been known as:
      • New Rodeph Sholom Cemetery
      • Tampa Jewish Memorial Gardens
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2500750 <3>

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.<5>

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

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

  • Bloomingdale
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Bloomingdale is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
  • Valrico
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Brandon
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Limona
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Limona is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limona
  • Peru ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Peru is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
  • Sydney
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Seffner
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Mango
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Keysville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Keysville is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
  • Plant City
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Thonotosassa
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Ybor City
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Ybor City is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ybor City
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Knights
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Knights is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knights
    • Tampa
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Tampa is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tampa
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 407,599 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tampa <2>
    • Keene
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Keene is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keene

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

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 Drakes Place:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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- Drakes Place) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<5>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 Drakes Place, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.