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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 Paradise Heights (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 Paradise Heights. 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 Paradise Heights ...

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 Paradise Heights: Paradise Hts. (in Canada, 'Hgts.' is the more common abbreviation.)

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

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Paradise Heights is located in Orange 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 Orange County: Brevard, Lake, Osceola, Polk & Seminole.

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

  • Orange County     (The home county of Paradise Heights)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Clarcona
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Crown Point
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Crown Point is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
    • South Apopka
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • South Apopka is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Apopka
    • Ocoee
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Ocoee is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocoee
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 49,168 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ocoee <1>
    • Apopka
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Plymouth
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Minorville ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Minorville is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
    • Winter Garden
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Lockhart
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Tildenville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Tildenville is located in Orange County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tildenville
    • Gotha
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Oakland
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Lake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Montverde
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Waits Junction
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Waits Junction is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waits Junction
    • Ferndale
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Lake Jem
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Lake Jem is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Jem
    • Mohawk
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Mohawk is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohawk
    • Mount Plymouth
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Mount Plymouth is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Plymouth
    • Sorrento
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Astatula
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Minneola
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Ethel
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Ethel is located in Lake County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ethel
    • Mount Dora
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Clermont
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Osceola County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Celebration
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Kissimmee
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Reunion
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Buena Ventura Lakes
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Campbell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Campbell is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
    • ChampionsGate
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • ChampionsGate is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for ChampionsGate
    • Intercession City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Runnymede
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Runnymede is located in Osceola County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Runnymede
    • Saint Cloud
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Polk County
  • Seminole County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Forest City
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Forest City is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest City
    • Wekiwa Springs
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Wekiwa Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wekiwa Springs
    • Altamonte Springs
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Sanlando Springs
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Sanlando Springs is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sanlando Springs
    • Fern Park
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Casselberry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Longwood
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Heathrow
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Winter Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Lake Mary
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Lake Monroe
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Oviedo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Oviedo is located in Seminole County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oviedo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 41,652 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oviedo <1>
  • Sumter County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Mabel
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Mabel is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabel
    • Center Hill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Orange Home
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Orange Home is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Home
    • Linden
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Linden is located in Sumter County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
    • Webster
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Volusia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Paradise Heights, with the one closest to Paradise Heights listed first.
    • Fort Florida
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Fort Florida is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Florida
    • Valdez
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Valdez is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valdez
    • De Bary
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Enterprise
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Orange City Hills
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Orange City Hills is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange City Hills
    • Deltona
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Orange City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Lemon Bluff
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Lemon Bluff is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemon Bluff
    • Osteen
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Beresford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Beresford is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beresford
    • Cassadaga
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • De Land Southwest
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • De Land Southwest is located in Volusia County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Land Southwest

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

Cemeteries Near Paradise Heights ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Paradise Heights.

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 Paradise Heights - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • West Orange Memorial Gardens
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Florida Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Plymouth Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • West Orange Memorial Park
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Ocoee Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Edgewood - Greenwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Woodlawn Memorial Park
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Zellwood Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Highland Memory Gardens
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Memory Gardens
    • The Highland Memory Gardens has also been known as:
    • Highland Memorial Garden
    • Highland Memorial Gardens
  • Montverde Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Woodlawn Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (91 more) ...
    • Williams Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Winter Garden Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Bay Ridge Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)

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

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

  • Crown Point
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Crown Point is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
  • Clarcona
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Ocoee
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Ocoee is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocoee
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 49,168 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ocoee <1>
  • Winter Garden
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Minorville ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Minorville is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
  • Plymouth
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Apopka
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Tildenville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Tildenville is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tildenville
  • McDonald
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • McDonald is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald
  • Piedmont
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Piedmont is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piedmont
  • Oakland
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Gotha
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Montverde
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Killarney
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Windermere
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Paradise Heights ...

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 70 newspapers that have been published in the area around Paradise Heights.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Paradise Heights, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Paradise Heights.

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 Paradise Heights:

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