RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Florida >> Sarasota County >> Hidden River >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Hidden River (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 Hidden River. 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 Hidden River ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Hidden River: Hidden Riv.

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

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 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.

Hidden River is located in Sarasota 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 Sarasota County: Charlotte, DeSoto & Manatee.

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

  • Sarasota County     (The home county of Hidden River)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hidden River, with the one closest to Hidden River listed first.
    • Shiney Town
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Shiney Town is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiney Town
    • Lake Sarasota
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Lake Sarasota is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Sarasota
    • Fruitville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Bee Ridge
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Bee Ridge is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bee Ridge
    • The Meadows
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • The Meadows is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Meadows
    • Sarasota Springs
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Sarasota Springs is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sarasota Springs
    • Desoto Lakes
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Desoto Lakes is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Desoto Lakes
    • Kensington Park
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Kensington Park is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kensington Park
    • Pinecraft
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • South Gate Ridge
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • South Gate Ridge is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gate Ridge
    • Osprey
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Gulf Gate Estates
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Gulf Gate Estates is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf Gate Estates
  • Charlotte County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hidden River, with the one closest to Hidden River listed first.
    • Murdock
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • El Jobean
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Port Charlotte
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Grove City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Manasota Key
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Charlotte Harbor
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Harbor View
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Harbor View is located in Charlotte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbor View
    • Harbour Heights
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Harbour Heights is located in Charlotte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbour Heights
    • Rotonda West
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Cleveland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Cleveland is located in Charlotte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland
    • Fishermens Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Fishermens Village is located in Charlotte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishermens Village
    • Punta Gorda
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
  • DeSoto County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hidden River, with the one closest to Hidden River listed first.
    • Fort Ogden
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Arcadia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Nocatee
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Calvinia ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Calvinia is located in DeSoto County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvinia
  • Hardee County
  • Hillsborough County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hidden River, with the one closest to Hidden River listed first.
    • Park Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Park Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
    • Wimauma
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Bayou Pass Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Bayou Pass Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Pass Village
    • Freedom Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Freedom Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Village
    • Montero Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Montero Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montero Village
    • Sun City Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Sun City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Cypress Creek Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Cypress Creek Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress Creek Village
    • Ruskin
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Gulf City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Gulf City is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf City
    • Manatee Harbor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Manatee Harbor is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manatee Harbor
  • Manatee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Hidden River, with the one closest to Hidden River listed first.
    • Verna
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Verna is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verna
    • Myakka City
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Sandy
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Sandy is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
    • Waterbury
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Waterbury is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterbury
    • Lakewood Ranch
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Tallevast
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Oneco
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Samoset
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Samoset is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samoset
    • Whitfield
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Whitfield is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitfield
    • Duette
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Bayshore Gardens
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Bayshore Gardens is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayshore Gardens
    • West Samoset
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • West Samoset is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Samoset

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

Cemeteries Near Hidden River ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hidden River.

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 Hidden River - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Myakka Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Sardis Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Sarasota National Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Bethel Mennonite Church Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Palms Memorial Park Gardens
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Palms Memorial Park
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Pine Level Campground Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Sarasota Memorial Park
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
  • Braden River Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Galilee Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Venice Memorial Gardens
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (25 more) ...
    • Fortner Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Keen Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Manatee Memorial Cemetery
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)

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>

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

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

  • Sandy
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Sandy is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
  • Rye
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Rye is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye
  • Pine Level
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Pine Level is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Level
  • Manatee
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Manatee is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manatee
  • Erie
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Erie is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
  • Ellenton
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Fort Ogden
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
  • Bradenton
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
  • Palmetto
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Nocatee
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
  • Arcadia
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
  • Grove City
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (7 more) ...
    • Charlotte Harbor
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Harbor View
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Harbor View is located in Charlotte County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbor View
    • Calvinia ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Calvinia is located in DeSoto County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvinia

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

Newspapers Published in Hidden River ...

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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hidden River.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Hidden River, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Hidden River.

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 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 Hidden River:

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 Hidden River, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Hidden River) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.