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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 Valencia Lakes (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 Valencia Lakes. 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 Valencia Lakes ...

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 Valencia Lakes: Valencia Lks.

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 northwest 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 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.

Valencia Lakes is located in Hillsborough 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 Hillsborough County: Hardee, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas & Polk.

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

  • Hillsborough County     (The home county of Valencia Lakes)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valencia Lakes, with the one closest to Valencia Lakes listed first.
    • Sun City Center
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Wimauma
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Freedom Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Freedom Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Village
    • Cypress Creek Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Cypress Creek Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress Creek Village
    • Montero Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Montero Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montero Village
    • Stelling Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Stelling Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stelling Village
    • Summerfield Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Summerfield Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerfield Village
    • Balm
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Apollo Beach
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Edgewater Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Edgewater Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater Village
    • Park Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Park Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
    • Bayou Pass Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Bayou Pass Village is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayou Pass Village
    • Adamsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Adamsville is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
  • Hardee County
  • Manatee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valencia Lakes, with the one closest to Valencia Lakes listed first.
    • Parrish
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Duette
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Ellenton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Terra Ceia
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Waterbury
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Waterbury is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterbury
    • Memphis
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Memphis is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Memphis
    • Palmetto
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Lakewood Ranch
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Bradenton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Samoset
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Samoset is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samoset
    • West Samoset
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • West Samoset is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Samoset
    • Verna
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Verna is located in Manatee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verna
    • Oneco
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
  • Pinellas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valencia Lakes, with the one closest to Valencia Lakes listed first.
    • Saint Petersburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Gandy
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Gandy is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gandy
    • Lealman
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Lealman is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lealman
    • Gulfport
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Feather Sound
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Kenneth City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Pinellas Park
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Tierra Verde
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Saint Pete Beach
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • South Pasadena
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • South Pasadena is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Pasadena
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,067 people
    • High Point
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • High Point is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point
    • South Highpoint
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • South Highpoint is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Highpoint
    • Four Corners
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Four Corners is located in Pinellas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valencia Lakes, with the one closest to Valencia Lakes listed first.
    • Bradley Junction
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Bradley Junction is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradley Junction
    • Brewster ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Brewster is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brewster
    • Nichols
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Willow Oak
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Willow Oak is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Oak
    • Mulberry
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Medulla
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Medulla is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medulla
    • Lakeland Highlands
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lakeland Highlands is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeland Highlands
    • Winston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Winston is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winston
    • Armour ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Armour is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armour
    • Lyle Corner
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Lyle Corner is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyle Corner
  • Sarasota County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Valencia Lakes, with the one closest to Valencia Lakes listed first.
    • Desoto Lakes
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Desoto Lakes is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Desoto Lakes
    • The Meadows
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • The Meadows is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Meadows
    • Kensington Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Kensington Park is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kensington Park
    • North Sarasota
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • North Sarasota is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Sarasota
    • Fruitville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Pinecraft
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Sarasota
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lake Sarasota
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Lake Sarasota is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Sarasota
    • Sarasota Springs
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Sarasota Springs is located in Sarasota County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sarasota Springs

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

Cemeteries Near Valencia Lakes ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Valencia Lakes.

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 Valencia Lakes - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Ruskin Memorial Gardens
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Ruskin Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Samford Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Hackney - Riverview Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackney - Riverview Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hackney - Riverview Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tampa.
    • The Hackney - Riverview Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hackney Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #72067 <2>
  • Serenity Meadows Memorial Park
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Fortner Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Keen Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Lithia Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Brandon Family Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
  • Commemorative Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
  • Hillsboro Memorial Gardens
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Limona Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limona Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Limona Cemetery is located in Brandon.
  • Continue List   (84 more) ...
    • Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery is located 6 miles [9.7 km]<3> to the southwest of Bradley Junction.
      • The Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Bethlehem Cemetery
    • Hunter Cemetery
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tampa.
      • The Centro Asturiano Memorial Park Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Centro Asturiano Cemetery
      • Centro Asturiano Memorial Park
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #71836 <2>

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

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

  • Gulf City
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Gulf City is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf City
  • Peru ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Peru is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
  • Bloomingdale
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Bloomingdale is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomingdale
  • Erie
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Erie is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
  • Brandon
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
  • Limona
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Limona is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limona
  • Rye
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Rye is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye
  • Valrico
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
  • Port Tampa
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Port Tampa is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Tampa
  • Ybor City
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Ybor City is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ybor City
  • Tampa
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Tampa is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tampa
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 407,599 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tampa <1>
  • Keysville
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Keysville is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keysville
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Valencia Lakes ...

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 4 newspapers that have been published in the area around Valencia Lakes.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Valencia Lakes, there are papers which were published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Valencia Lakes.

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 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 Valencia Lakes:

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>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- Valencia Lakes) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Valencia Lakes, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.