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 West Royalston (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 West Royalston. 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 West Royalston ...
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.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for West Royalston: W. Royalston
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.
West Royalston is located in Worcester 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 Worcester County: Tolland (CT), Windham (CT), Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Middlesex, Norfolk, Cheshire (NH), Hillsborough (NH) & Providence (RI).
Below are the counties that are near West Royalston. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Royalston:
- Worcester County (The home county of West Royalston)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Royalston
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Royalston is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royalston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,278 people
- Athol
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Athol is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athol
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,698 people
- Waterville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Waterville is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterville
- Winchendon
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Winchendon is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchendon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,835 people
- Baldwinville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Baldwinville is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baldwinville
- Winchendon Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Winchendon Springs is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchendon Springs
- Brooks Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Brooks Village is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks Village
- Phillipston
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Phillipston is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillipston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,739 people
- Pequoig
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Pequoig is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pequoig
- Goulding Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Goulding Village is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goulding Village
- East Templeton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- East Templeton is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Templeton
- Templeton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Templeton is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Templeton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,134 people
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Tully
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Tully is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tully
- Mayo Corners
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Mayo Corners is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayo Corners
- North Orange
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- North Orange is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Orange
- Warwick
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Warwick is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warwick
- Population from the 2020 Census: 768 people
- Orange
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Orange is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,581 people
- Wendell Depot
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wendell Depot is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wendell Depot
- Erving
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Erving is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erving
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,749 people
- Northfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Northfield is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,958 people
- Morse Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Morse Village is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morse Village
- West Northfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- West Northfield is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Northfield
- Wendell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wendell is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wendell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 881 people
- Mount Hermon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Mount Hermon is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hermon
- Hampshire County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Pelham
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Pelham is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,305 people
- North Amherst
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- North Amherst is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Amherst
- West Pelham
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- West Pelham is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pelham
- East Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- East Village is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- Enfield ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Enfield is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enfield
- Amherst Center
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Amherst Center is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst Center
- Amherst
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Amherst is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 40,643 people
- North Hadley
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- North Hadley is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hadley
- North Hatfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- North Hatfield is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hatfield
- South Amherst
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- South Amherst is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Amherst
- Hatfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hatfield is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,243 people
- Belchertown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Belchertown is located in Hampshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belchertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,103 people
- Middlesex County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Ashby
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Ashby is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashby
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,204 people
- South Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- South Village is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Village
- West Townsend
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- West Townsend is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Townsend
- Old City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Old City is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old City
- Townsend
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Townsend is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townsend
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,448 people
- Townsend Harbor
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Townsend Harbor is located in Middlesex County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townsend Harbor
- Cheshire County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Richmond
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Fitzwilliam Depot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Fitzwilliam Depot is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitzwilliam Depot
- Fitzwilliam
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Winchester
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Troy
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Troy is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,117 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Troy <1>
- East Swanzey
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- East Swanzey is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Swanzey
- Ashuelot
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- West Rindge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- West Rindge is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Rindge
- Rindge
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Swanzey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- West Swanzey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Hinsdale
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Hillsborough County (NH)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Sharon
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Sharon is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 370 people
- West Peterborough
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- West Peterborough is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Peterborough
- Peterborough
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- New Ipswich
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- North Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- North Village is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Village
- Temple
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Temple is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Temple
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,434 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Temple <1>
- Greenville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Hancock
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Hancock is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,650 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hancock <1>
- Mason
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Mason is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,433 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mason <1>
- Elmwood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Elmwood is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood
- West Wilton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- West Wilton is located in Hillsborough County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Wilton
- Greenfield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Windham County (VT)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- South Vernon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- South Vernon is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Vernon
- Vernon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Vernon is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,190 people
- Guilford
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Brattleboro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Fairview Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Fairview Village is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Village
- Guilford
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Guilford is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,102 people
- West Brattleboro
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Brattleboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Brattleboro is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brattleboro
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,257 people
- East Dummerston
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- East Dummerston is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dummerston
- Ames Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ames Hill is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ames Hill
- Dummerston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Dummerston is located in Windham County (VT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dummerston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,739 people
- West Dummerston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Royalston, see our County-by-County Page for West Royalston.
Cemeteries Near West Royalston ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Royalston.
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 West Royalston - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Royalston covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Bliss Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Newton Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Gale & Gates Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- South Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Center Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Royalston Center Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Warwick Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warwick Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Warwick Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<4> to the south of Warwick.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91820 <2>
- Middletown Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Perry Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Chestnut Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lawrence Brook Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jonas Alliene Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Continue List (401 more) ...
- Barus Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Pine Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mt. Pleasant 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>
While we didn't find West Royalston in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Royalston.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Royalston, with the one closest to West Royalston listed first.
- Tully
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Tully is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tully
- Royalston
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Royalston is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royalston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,278 people
- Warwick
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Warwick is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warwick
- Population from the 2020 Census: 768 people
- North Orange
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- North Orange is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Orange
- Richmond
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- North Richmond
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- North Richmond is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Richmond
- South Royalston
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- South Royalston is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Royalston
- Fitzwilliam Depot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Fitzwilliam Depot is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitzwilliam Depot
- Athol
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Athol is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Athol
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,698 people
- Fitzwilliam
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Wendell Depot
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wendell Depot is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wendell Depot
- Orange
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Orange is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,581 people
- Continue List (21 more) ...
- State Line
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- State Line is located in Cheshire County (NH)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
- Winchester
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Waterville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Waterville is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around West Royalston. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Royalston.
Newspapers Published in West Royalston ...
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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Royalston.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Royalston, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Royalston.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 West Royalston:
- Websites specific to Massachusetts
- Pages specific to Worcester County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Franklin County
- Hampshire County
- Middlesex County
- Cheshire County
- Hillsborough County
- Windham 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 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> | 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.
|
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- West Royalston) 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 West Royalston, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |