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 Rock Ridge (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 Rock Ridge. 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 Rock Ridge ...
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 Rock Ridge: Rock Rdg. (or less commonly used: Rock Rdge. or Rock Ridg.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Rock Ridge. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rock Ridge.
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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Rock Ridge is located in Polk 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 Polk County: Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lake, Manatee, Orange, Osceola, Pasco & Sumter.
Below are the counties that are near Rock Ridge. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rock Ridge:
- Polk County (The home county of Rock Ridge)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Fox Town
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Fox Town is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Town
- Polk City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Gibsonia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Gibsonia is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibsonia
- Kathleen
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Combee Settlement
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Combee Settlement is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Combee Settlement
- Acton ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Acton is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
- Fussels Corner
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Fussels Corner is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fussels Corner
- Lakeland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Crystal Lake
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Crystal Lake is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Lake
- Kossuthville
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Kossuthville is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kossuthville
- Auburndale
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Winston
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Winston is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winston
- Lake Alfred
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Hernando County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Richloam ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Richloam is located in Hernando County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richloam
- Ridge Manor
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Lake
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Lake is located in Hernando County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Lake
- Hill 'n Dale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hill 'n Dale is located in Hernando County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hill 'n Dale
- Nobleton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hillsborough County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Knights
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Knights is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knights
- Colonial Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Colonial Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
- Kings Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Kings Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Village
- Kingston City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Kingston City is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston City
- Plant City Heights
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Plant City Heights is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plant City Heights
- Plant City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Strawberry Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Strawberry Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strawberry Village
- Cedar Run
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Cedar Run is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Run
- South Plant City Farms
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- South Plant City Farms is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Plant City Farms
- West Plant City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- West Plant City is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Plant City
- Woodfield Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Woodfield Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodfield Village
- Pebble Creek Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pebble Creek Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pebble Creek Village
- Bay Hills Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Bay Hills Village is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Hills Village
- Lake County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Four Corners
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Groveland
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Mascotte
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Clermont
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Minneola
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mohawk
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mohawk is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohawk
- Waits Junction
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Waits Junction is located in Lake County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waits Junction
- Montverde
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Ferndale
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Howey-in-the-Hills
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Okahumpka
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Astatula
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Orange County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Bay Lake
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Bay Lake is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 48 people
- Killarney
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Buena Vista
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Lake Buena Vista is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Buena Vista
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26 people
- Oakland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Tildenville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Tildenville is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tildenville
- Lake Butter
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Butter is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Butter
- Windermere
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Doctor Phillips
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Doctor Phillips is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doctor Phillips
- Bay Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Bay Hill is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Hill
- Winter Garden
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Crown Point
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Crown Point is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crown Point
- Gotha
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Minorville ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Minorville is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
- Osceola County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- ChampionsGate
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- ChampionsGate is located in Osceola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for ChampionsGate
- Reunion
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Celebration
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Intercession City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Campbell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Campbell is located in Osceola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
- Poinciana Place
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Poinciana Place is located in Osceola County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poinciana Place
- Poinciana
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Pasco County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Richland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Richland is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Crystal Springs
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Crystal Springs is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Springs
- Zephyrhills
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Dade City
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Lacoochee
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Moss Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Moss Town is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss Town
- Trilby
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Leo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Blanton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Blanton is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanton
- San Antonio
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- 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 <1>
- Wesley Chapel South
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- 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 west)
- Sumter County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Linden
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Linden is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
- Tarrytown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Tarrytown is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarrytown
- Mabel
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Mabel is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabel
- Bucker Womans Town ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Bucker Womans Town is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucker Womans Town
- Webster
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Center Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Bushnell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Wahoo
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wahoo is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wahoo
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rock Ridge, see our County-by-County Page for Rock Ridge.
Cemeteries Near Rock Ridge ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rock Ridge.
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 Rock Ridge - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rock Ridge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery is located 17 miles [27.4 km]<2> to the north of Lakeland.
- The Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Hancock - Raulerson Cemetery
- Little Flock Church Cemetery
- Greenpond Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Socrum Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Socrum Cemetery
- The Socrum Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bethel Baptist Cemetery
- Bethel Baptist Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #521310 <3>
- Withlacoochee Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Mt. Olive Baptist Church Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Withlacoochee Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Tucker Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Griffin Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griffin Cemetery
- The Griffin Cemetery has also been known as:
- Galloway Cemetery
- Sleepy Hill Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72061 <3>
- Carpenters Home Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Collins Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Fender Family Cemetery
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Crystal Springs Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (106 more) ...
- Serenity Gardens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Dade City Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Chapel Hill Gardens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
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.<4>
While we didn't find Rock Ridge in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rock Ridge.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rock Ridge, with the one closest to Rock Ridge listed first.
- Green Pond
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Green Pond is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Pond
- Ellerslie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Ellerslie is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellerslie
- Richland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Richland is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Kathleen
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Lakeland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Linden
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Linden is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linden
- Auburndale
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Tarrytown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Tarrytown is located in Sumter County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarrytown
- Lacoochee
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Keene
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Keene is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keene
- Knights
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Knights is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knights
- Mascotte
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Saint Leo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Blanton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Blanton is located in Pasco County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanton
- San Antonio
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- 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 <1>
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rock Ridge. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rock Ridge.
Newspapers Published in Rock Ridge ...
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 51 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rock Ridge.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rock Ridge, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rock Ridge.
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 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 Rock Ridge:
- Websites specific to Florida
- Pages specific to Polk County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Hernando County
- Hillsborough County
- Lake County
- Orange County
- Osceola County
- Pasco County
- Sumter County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Florida
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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Rock Ridge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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> | 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 Rock Ridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |