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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 Francis (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 Francis. 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 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 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.

Francis is located in Putnam 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 Putnam County: Alachua, Bradford, Clay, Flagler, Marion, Saint Johns & Volusia.

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

  • Putnam County     (The home county of Francis)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Peniel
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Peniel is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peniel
    • Palatka
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Buffalo Bluff
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Buffalo Bluff is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Bluff
    • East Palatka
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Satsuma
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hollister
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • San Mateo
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Nashua
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Nashua is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashua
    • Mannville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Mannville is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mannville
    • Bostwick
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Welaka
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Interlachen
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Pomona Park
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Alachua County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Melrose
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Hawthorne
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Campville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Campville is located in Alachua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campville
    • Earleton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Lochloosa
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Island Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Windsor
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Windsor is located in Alachua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor
    • Waldo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Rochelle
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Rochelle is located in Alachua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochelle
  • Bradford County
    • Hampton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Clay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Lake Geneva
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Keystone Heights
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Green Cove Springs
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Penney Farms
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Asbury Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Asbury Lake is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asbury Lake
    • Kingsley Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Kingsley Lake is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsley Lake
    • Kingsley Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Kingsley Village is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsley Village
    • Kingsley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Kingsley is located in Clay County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsley
  • Flagler County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Marineland
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Palm Coast
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Bunnell
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Orange Springs
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Kerr City
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Kerr City is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerr City
    • Salt Springs
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Fort McCoy
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Citra
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Saint Johns County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Hastings
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Armstrong
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Armstrong is located in Saint Johns County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong
    • Tocoi
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Tocoi is located in Saint Johns County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tocoi
    • Elkton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Saint Augustine Shores
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Saint Augustine Shores is located in Saint Johns County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Augustine Shores
    • Saint Augustine South
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Saint Augustine South is located in Saint Johns County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Augustine South
    • Crescent Beach
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • Butler Beach
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Butler Beach is located in Saint Johns County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler Beach
    • Saint Augustine Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Saint Augustine
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Volusia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Francis, with the one closest to Francis listed first.
    • Seville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Pierson
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Francis ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Francis.

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 Francis - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Peniel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Palatka Memorial Gardens
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • St. Joseph Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • West View Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Etonia Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Putnam County Poor Farm Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Mary Elizabeth Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Satsuma Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Mei-Wun Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Naomi Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • San Mateo Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (89 more) ...
    • Pine Lawn Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Sister Spring Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Yelvington Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 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 Francis had a population of 150 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Peniel
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Peniel is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peniel
  • Palatka
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Lundy
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Lundy is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lundy
  • Buffalo Bluff
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Buffalo Bluff is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalo Bluff
  • Satsuma
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • East Palatka
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Hollister
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • San Mateo
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Nashua
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Nashua is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashua
  • Orange Mills
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Orange Mills is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Mills
  • Teasdale
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Teasdale is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teasdale
  • Sisco
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sisco is located in Putnam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sisco
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Mannville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Mannville is located in Putnam County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mannville
    • Welaka
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Bostwick
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)

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

Newspapers Published in Francis ...

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 48 newspapers that have been published in the area around Francis.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Francis, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Francis.

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 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 Francis:

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 Francis, 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Francis) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.