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 Southwick (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 Southwick. 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 Southwick ...
While it's still very early in our research, we found that:
- Southwick was settled in 1770.
- It was incorporated in 1775.
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 doctors 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.
Southwick is located in Hampden County.
To see how the shape of Massachusetts' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Hampden County: Hartford (CT), Litchfield (CT), Tolland (CT), Berkshire, Hampshire & Worcester.
Below are the counties that are near Southwick. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Southwick:
- Hampden County (The home county of Southwick)
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Hosmer Corner
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Hosmer Corner is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hosmer Corner
- Feeding Hills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Feeding Hills is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Feeding Hills
- Westfield
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Westfield is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41,063 people
- Granville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Granville is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,606 people
- Hampton Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Hampton Village is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton Village
- Agawam
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Agawam is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agawam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,467 people
- Woronoco
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Woronoco is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woronoco
- Merrick
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Merrick is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrick
- West Springfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- West Springfield is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Springfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,397 people
- Springfield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Springfield is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 152,646 people
- West Granville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- West Granville is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Granville
- Longmeadow
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Longmeadow is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longmeadow
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,624 people
- Chicopee
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Chicopee is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chicopee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54,825 people
- Berkshire County
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- East Otis
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- East Otis is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Otis
- Otis
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Otis is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otis
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,531 people
- Sandisfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Sandisfield is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandisfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 887 people
- South Sandisfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- South Sandisfield is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Sandisfield
- North Otis
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- North Otis is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Otis
- West Becket
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- West Becket is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Becket
- Southfield
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Southfield is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southfield
- Becket
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Becket is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becket
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,707 people
- Monterey
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Monterey is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monterey
- Population from the 2020 Census: 918 people
- New Marlborough
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- New Marlborough is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Marlborough
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,450 people
- Tyringham
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Tyringham is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyringham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 310 people
- Mill River
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Mill River is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill River
- Clayton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Clayton is located in Berkshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayton
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Whately
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Whately is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whately
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,583 people
- Smiths ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Smiths is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smiths
- South Deerfield
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- South Deerfield is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Deerfield
- Sunderland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Sunderland is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunderland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,634 people
- Leverett
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Leverett is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leverett
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,836 people
- Hampshire County
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Southampton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Southampton is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southampton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,162 people
- Huntington
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Huntington is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,159 people
- Easthampton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Easthampton is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easthampton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,750 people
- West Farms
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- West Farms is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Farms
- Westhampton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Westhampton is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westhampton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,630 people
- Mount Tom
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Tom is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Tom
- South Hadley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- South Hadley is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hadley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,539 people
- Bay State
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Bay State is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay State
- Northampton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Northampton is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northampton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,362 people
- Granby
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Granby is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,262 people
- Florence
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Florence is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Leeds
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Leeds is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
- Hadley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hadley is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hadley
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,327 people
- Worcester County
- West Warren
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- West Warren is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Warren
- Hartford County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Rising Corner
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Rising Corner is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rising Corner
- North Granby
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Salmon Brook
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Salmon Brook is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salmon Brook
- Suffield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Suffield is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suffield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,812 people
- West Suffield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- East Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- East Granby is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Granby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,120 people
- Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Suffield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- East Hartland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Granby is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,558 people
- West Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Chatsworth Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Chatsworth Village is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatsworth Village
- East Granby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Litchfield County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Hampsted
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Hampsted is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampsted
- Barkhamsted
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Barkhamsted
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Barkhamsted is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barkhamsted
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,587 people
- Pleasant Valley
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Riverton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- New Hartford
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Pine Meadow
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Puddle Town
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Puddle Town is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puddle Town
- Colebrook
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Colebrook is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colebrook
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,396 people
- Winsted
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Colebrook
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- North Colebrook
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- North Colebrook is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Colebrook
- Browns Corner
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Browns Corner is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Corner
- Tolland County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Somersville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Somers
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Somers is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somers
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,741 people
- Somers
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Ellington
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Ellington is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,652 people
- Ellington
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Windermere
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Windermere is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windermere
- Rockville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Crystal Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Crystal Lake is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Lake
- Vernon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Vernon is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 29,400 people
- Quarryville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Quarryville is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarryville
- Vernon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Stafford
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Stafford is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stafford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,834 people
- State Line
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- State Line is located in Tolland County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Southwick, see our County-by-County Page for Southwick.
Cemeteries Near Southwick ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Southwick.
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 Southwick - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Southwick covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Old Southwick Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- New Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Cooley Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- West Side of the Mountain Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Pine Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Northeast Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Silver Street Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Street Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Silver Street Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 7 miles [11.3 km]<4> to the southwest of Westfield.
- The Silver Street Cemetery has also been known as:
- Granville Cemetery
- Southeast Cemetery
- Jump to the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System: MACRIS ID #GRN.806 <2>
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91031 <3>
- Baptist Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Copper Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Zions Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Zion Hill Cemetery Association
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Smith Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Continue List (417 more) ...
- Pratt Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Granby Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Prisoners Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
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.<5>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Southwick had a population of 275 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Southwick had a population of 9,715 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Southwick, with the one closest to Southwick listed first.
- Feeding Hills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Feeding Hills is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Feeding Hills
- Westfield
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Westfield is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 41,063 people
- Granville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Granville is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,606 people
- North Granby
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- West Suffield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- East Hartland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- West Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Granby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Suffield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mittineague
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Mittineague is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mittineague
- East Granby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Agawam
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Agawam is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Agawam
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,467 people
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- West Springfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- West Springfield is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Springfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 28,397 people
- Merrick
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Merrick is located in Hampden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrick
- Thompsonville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Thompsonville is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsonville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Southwick. See our List of 1890's Communities around Southwick.
Newspapers Published in Southwick ...
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 174 newspapers that have been published in the area around Southwick.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Southwick, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Southwick.
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 Southwick:
- Websites specific to Massachusetts
- Pages specific to Hampden County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Berkshire County
- Franklin County
- Hampshire County
- Worcester County
- Hartford County
- Litchfield County
- Tolland County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Massachusetts
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 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.
|
| <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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Southwick) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <5> | 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 Southwick, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |