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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 Fort Mason (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 Fort Mason. 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 Fort Mason ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Fort Mason: Ft. Mason

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Fort Mason. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Fort Mason.

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 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 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.

Fort Mason 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 Fort Mason. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Fort Mason:

  • Lake County     (The home county of Fort Mason)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • Eustis
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Grand Island
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Mid Florida Lakes
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Mid Florida Lakes is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mid Florida Lakes
    • Lakeview Terrace Retirement Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Umatilla
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Bassville Park
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Bassville Park is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bassville Park
    • Oakland Park
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Oakland Park is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland Park
    • Tavares
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Mount Dora
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Lisbon
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Lisbon is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
    • Altoona
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Silver Lake
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Silver Lake is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Lake
    • Orange Bend
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Orange Bend is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Bend
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • Weirsdale
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Eastlake Weir
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Ocklawaha
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Electra
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Electra is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Electra
    • Candler
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Summerfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Belleview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Silver Springs Shores
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Lynne
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Lynne is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynne
    • Danks Corner
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
  • Orange County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • Tangerine
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Zellwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Plymouth
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Apopka
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • South Apopka
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • South Apopka is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Apopka
    • Paradise Heights
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Paradise Heights is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Heights
    • Clarcona
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Crown Point
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Crown Point is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
    • Oakland
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Tildenville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Tildenville is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tildenville
    • Winter Garden
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Killarney
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Lockhart
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
  • Seminole County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • Wekiwa Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Wekiwa Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wekiwa Springs
    • Heathrow
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Forest City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Forest City is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
    • Lake Monroe
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Sanlando Springs
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Sanlando Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanlando Springs
    • Lake Mary
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Altamonte Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Longwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Sanford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Casselberry
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Fern Park
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Winter Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Indian Mound Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Indian Mound Village is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Mound Village
  • Sumter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • The Villages
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • The Villages is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Villages
    • Orange Home
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Orange Home is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Home
    • Adamsville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Adamsville is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
    • Oxford
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Wildwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Coleman
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Center Hill
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Sumterville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Mabel
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Mabel is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabel
    • Lake Panasoffkee
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Bushnell
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Webster
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Linden
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Linden is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
  • Volusia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fort Mason, with the one closest to Fort Mason listed first.
    • Fort Florida
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Fort Florida is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Florida
    • De Bary
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Volusia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Volusia is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Volusia
    • Valdez
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Valdez is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valdez
    • Beresford
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Beresford is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
    • Highland Park ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Highland Park is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Park
    • Orange City Hills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Orange City Hills is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange City Hills
    • Orange City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • West De Land
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • West De Land is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West De Land
    • De Land Southwest
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • De Land Southwest is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Land Southwest
    • Glenwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • De Land
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • De Leon Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Fort Mason ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fort Mason.

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 Fort Mason - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Lakeside Memory Gardens
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Marsh Memorial Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Grand Island Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Umatilla Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Glendale Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Pine Forest Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Tavares Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Seneca Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Lane Park Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Altoona Hinson Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Lake Jem Burying Grounds
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (118 more) ...
    • Tangerine Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sorrento Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Seminole Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Fort Mason had a population of 102 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Eustis
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Grand Island
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Umatilla
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Tavares
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Mount Dora
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Lisbon
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Lisbon is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
  • Orange Bend
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Orange Bend is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Bend
  • Seneca
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Seneca is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca
  • Altoona
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Ellsworth Junction
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Ellsworth Junction is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellsworth Junction
  • Lane Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Lane Park is located in Lake County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lane Park
  • Tangerine
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (18 more) ...
    • Eldorado
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Eldorado is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldorado
    • Sorrento
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Pittman
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Pittman is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittman

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

Newspapers Published in Fort Mason ...

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 52 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fort Mason.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fort Mason, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fort Mason.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Fort Mason:

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