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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 Edgartown (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 Edgartown. 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.

A Few Details for Edgartown ...

While it's still very early in our research, we found that:

  • Edgartown was settled in 1642.
  • It was incorporated in 1671.

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 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.

Edgartown is located in Dukes County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of Massachusetts' counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Dukes County: Barnstable, Bristol, Nantucket & Plymouth.

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

  • Dukes County     (The home county of Edgartown)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgartown, with the one closest to Edgartown listed first.
    • Katama
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Katama. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Katama
      • Katama is located in Dukes County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Katama
      • From Edgartown to Katama
    • Oak Bluffs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Tisbury
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Vineyard Haven
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • West Chop
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Chop have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chop
      • West Chop is located in Dukes County
    • North Tisbury
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • West Tisbury
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Christian Town
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Christian Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christian Town
      • Christian Town is located in Dukes County
    • Chilmark
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chilmark have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilmark
      • Chilmark is located in Dukes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 930 people
    • Menemsha
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Menemsha have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Menemsha
      • Menemsha is located in Dukes County
    • Squibnocket
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Gosnold
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gosnold have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gosnold
      • Gosnold is located in Dukes County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 75 people
  • Barnstable County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgartown, with the one closest to Edgartown listed first.
    • Acapesket
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Maushop Village
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maushop Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maushop Village
      • Maushop Village is located in Barnstable County
    • Monomoscoy Island
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Monomoscoy Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monomoscoy Island
      • Monomoscoy Island is located in Barnstable County
    • New Seabury
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Seabury have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Seabury
      • New Seabury is located in Barnstable County
    • Popponesset
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Popponesset have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popponesset
      • Popponesset is located in Barnstable County
    • Seconsett Island
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Seconsett Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seconsett Island
      • Seconsett Island is located in Barnstable County
    • Teaticket
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Teaticket have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teaticket
      • Teaticket is located in Barnstable County
    • Falmouth
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Woods Hole
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • East Falmouth
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Popponesset Island
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Popponesset Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popponesset Island
      • Popponesset Island is located in Barnstable County
    • Seabrook
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Seabrook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seabrook
      • Seabrook is located in Barnstable County
  • Bristol County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgartown, with the one closest to Edgartown listed first.
    • Nonquitt
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Bliss Corner
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bliss Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bliss Corner
      • Bliss Corner is located in Bristol County
    • Fairhaven
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairhaven have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhaven
      • Fairhaven is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,103 people
    • South Dartmouth
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Dartmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Dartmouth
      • South Dartmouth is located in Bristol County
    • Apponagansett
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • New Bedford
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Acushnet Center
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Acushnet
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Acushnet have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acushnet
      • Acushnet is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,673 people
    • Dartmouth
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dartmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dartmouth
      • Dartmouth is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 33,926 people
    • North Dartmouth
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Dartmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Dartmouth
      • North Dartmouth is located in Bristol County
    • Gidleys Corner
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Long Plain
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Nantucket County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgartown, with the one closest to Edgartown listed first.
    • Nantucket
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Pocomo
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Siasconset
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Siasconset have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siasconset
      • Siasconset is located in Nantucket County
  • Plymouth County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgartown, with the one closest to Edgartown listed first.
    • Marion
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Mattapoisett
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mattapoisett have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattapoisett
      • Mattapoisett is located in Plymouth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,427 people
    • Onset
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • East Wareham
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Wareham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wareham
      • East Wareham is located in Plymouth County
    • Briarwood Beach
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Weweantic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weweantic have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weweantic
      • Weweantic is located in Plymouth County
    • Wareham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wareham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wareham
      • Wareham is located in Plymouth County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 22,778 people
    • White Island Shores
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Island Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Island Shores
      • White Island Shores is located in Plymouth County
    • Rochester
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Wareham Center
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wareham Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wareham Center
      • Wareham Center is located in Plymouth County
    • West Wareham
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Wareham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Wareham
      • West Wareham is located in Plymouth County

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

Cemeteries Near Edgartown ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Edgartown.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

  • Westside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Westside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Westside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • New Westside Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Westside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Westside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Town Hill Burying Ground
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Town Hill Burying Ground
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Town Hill Burying Ground have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sacred Heart Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sacred Heart Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sacred Heart Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Chop Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Chop Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Chop Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tisbury Village Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tisbury Village Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tisbury Village Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • South End Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the South End Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the South End Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Grove Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lambert's Cove Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Christiantown Memorial Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Christiantown Memorial Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Christiantown Memorial Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Tisbury Village Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (128 more) ...

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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Edgartown had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Edgartown had a population of 4,383 people.

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

  • Katama
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Katama. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Katama
    • Katama is located in Dukes County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Katama
    • From Edgartown to Katama
  • Vineyard Highlands
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vineyard Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineyard Highlands
    • Vineyard Highlands is located in Dukes County
  • Oak Bluffs
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Vineyard Haven
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • West Chop
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Chop have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chop
    • West Chop is located in Dukes County
  • North Tisbury
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • West Tisbury
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Falmouth Heights
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falmouth Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth Heights
    • Falmouth Heights is located in Barnstable County
  • Chilmark
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chilmark have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilmark
    • Chilmark is located in Dukes County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 930 people
  • Teaticket
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Teaticket have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teaticket
    • Teaticket is located in Barnstable County
  • Falmouth
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Squibnocket
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • East Falmouth
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Aquinnah
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • West Falmouth
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Falmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Falmouth
      • West Falmouth is located in Barnstable County

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

Newspapers Published in Edgartown ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Edgartown.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Edgartown, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Edgartown.

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 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 Edgartown:

The official website for Edgartown: www.edgartown-ma.us/

The official website for Dukes County: www.dukescounty.org/

The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Edgartown) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Edgartown. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.3918, Longitude: -70.5135    
<4>The Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MACRIS (for the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System). More information about the MHC and MACRIS can be found on their website: mhc-macris.net.

When visiting the MACRIS website, you might encounter their page requiring the 'Acceptance of Terms'. With your acceptance, you'll be transfered to the desired page.

<5>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.
<6>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 Edgartown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025