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 Willowdale (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 Willowdale. 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.
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 hospitals and 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.
Willowdale is located in Middlesex 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 Middlesex County : Essex , Norfolk , Suffolk , Worcester & Hillsborough (NH) .
Below are the counties that are near Willowdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Willowdale:
Middlesex County (The home county of Willowdale)
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Collinsville (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Collinsville is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville North Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
North Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Chelmsford Tyngsbororough (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Tyngsbororough is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyngsbororough Population from the 2020 Census: 12,646 people
Middlesex Village (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Middlesex Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex Village Princeton Village (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Princeton Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton Village Dracut (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
Dracut is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
Ayres City (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
Ayres City is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayres City Lowell (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
Lowell is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Population from the 2020 Census: 110,904 people
Dunstable (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Dunstable is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunstable Population from the 2020 Census: 3,404 people
Chelmsford (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelmsford Population from the 2020 Census: 35,528 people
Westford (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Westford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westford Population from the 2020 Census: 25,276 people
North Billerica (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
North Billerica is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Billerica East Littleton (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
East Littleton is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Littleton Essex County
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Haggetts (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
Haggetts is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haggetts Lawrence (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
Lawrence is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence Population from the 2020 Census: 80,007 people
Lowell Junction (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
Lowell Junction is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Junction Methuen (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
Methuen is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methuen Population from the 2020 Census: 50,910 people
West Andover (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
West Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Andover Andover (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andover Population from the 2020 Census: 36,554 people
North Andover (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
North Andover is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Andover Population from the 2020 Census: 31,460 people
Shawsheen Village (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
Shawsheen Village is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawsheen Village Tozier Corner (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Tozier Corner is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tozier Corner Ayers Village (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Ayers Village is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Village Ward Hill (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
Ward Hill is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward Hill West Boxford (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
West Boxford is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boxford Bradford (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
Bradford is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford Norfolk County
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Wellesley Farms (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
Wellesley Farms is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Farms Wellesley Hills (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
Wellesley Hills is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Hills Wellesley (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
Wellesley is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellesley Population from the 2020 Census: 28,684 people
Babson Park (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
Babson Park is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babson Park Needham Heights (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
Needham Heights is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needham Heights Needham (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
Needham is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needham Population from the 2020 Census: 31,537 people
Brookline Village (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
Brookline Village is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Village Brookline (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
Brookline is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookline Population from the 2020 Census: 59,022 people
Westbrook Village (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Westbrook Village is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook Village Charles River Village (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
Dover (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
Dover is located in Norfolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover Population from the 2020 Census: 6,119 people
Suffolk County
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Franklin Park (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
Franklin Park is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Park Allston (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
Allston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allston Brighton (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
Brighton is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton Charlestown (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
Charlestown is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown Chelsea (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
Chelsea is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea Population from the 2020 Census: 39,230 people
Revere (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
Revere is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Revere Population from the 2020 Census: 52,375 people
Bay Village (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
Bay Village is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Village Boston (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boston Population from the 2020 Census: 691,531 people
East Boston (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
East Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Boston Jamaica Plain (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Jamaica Plain is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamaica Plain Roxbury (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Roxbury is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxbury South Boston (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
South Boston is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Boston Winthrop (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Winthrop is located in Suffolk County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winthrop Population from the 2020 Census: 18,446 people
Worcester County
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Shaker Village (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
Shaker Village is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaker Village Harvard (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
Harvard is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard Population from the 2020 Census: 6,618 people
Still River (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
Still River is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Still River Lunenburg Station (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
Lunenburg Station is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg Station Lunenburg (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
Lunenburg is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg Population from the 2020 Census: 11,810 people
Bolton (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Bolton is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolton Population from the 2020 Census: 5,476 people
Lancaster (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Lancaster is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lancaster Population from the 2020 Census: 7,857 people
North Village (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
North Village is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Village Leominster (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
Leominster is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leominster Population from the 2020 Census: 41,548 people
Seventh Day Adventist Village (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
Fitchburg (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
Fitchburg is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitchburg Population from the 2020 Census: 40,310 people
South Fitchburg (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
South Fitchburg is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Fitchburg Pratts Junction (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
Pratts Junction is located in Worcester County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratts Junction Hillsborough County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Pelham (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
Pelham is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham Population from the 2020 Census: 14,306 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pelham <1>
Hudson (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
Hudson is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson Population from the 2020 Census: 25,620 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hudson <1>
Nashua (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
Nashua is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashua Population from the 2020 Census: 89,167 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nashua <1>
Hollis Depot (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
Hollis Depot is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Depot Hollis (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
Hollis is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Population from the 2020 Census: 8,123 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hollis <1>
Litchfield (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
South Merrimack (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
South Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Merrimack East Merrimack (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
East Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Merrimack Merrimack (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
Brookline (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
Reeds Ferry (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
Reeds Ferry is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry East Milford (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
East Milford is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Milford Milford (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
Milford is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford Population from the 2020 Census: 16,515 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milford <1>
Merrimack County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
South Hooksett (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
South Hooksett is located in Merrimack County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hooksett Martin (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
Martin is located in Merrimack County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin Hooksett (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
Rockingham County (NH)
The following are listed by their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Windham (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
Windham is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windham Population from the 2020 Census: 14,865 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Windham <1>
Salem (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Salem is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem Population from the 2020 Census: 30,641 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Salem <1>
Londonderry (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
North Salem (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Wilson Corners (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Wilson Corners is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson Corners Derry (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
Derry is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry Population from the 2020 Census: 33,442 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Derry <1>
Derry Village (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
Derry Village is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry Village Wilson (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
Wilson is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson Atkinson (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
Hubbard (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
Hubbard is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard Hampstead (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Westville (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Westville is located in Rockingham County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville Plaistow (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Willowdale, see our County-by-County Page for Willowdale .
Cemeteries Near Willowdale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willowdale.
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 Willowdale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willowdale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Gould Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Sherburne Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the west)
Flint Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
Fairview Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Riverside Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Woodbine Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
New Boston Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
Oak Grove Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
School Street Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Hamblett Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamblett Cemetery The Hamblett Cemetery has also been known as:
Garrison House Burial Ground Little Burial Ground Jump to the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System: MACRIS ID #LOW.807 <2>
Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91050 <3>
Hildreth Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hildreth Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the Hildreth Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Lowell . Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #91080 <3>
Hildreth Family Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Continue List (572 more) ...
Israel Brotherhood Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
St. Casimirs Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
Gibson Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
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 Willowdale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Willowdale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Willowdale, with the one closest to Willowdale listed first.
Collinsville (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Collinsville is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville North Chelmsford (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
North Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Chelmsford Tyngsbororough (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Tyngsbororough is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyngsbororough Population from the 2020 Census: 12,646 people
West Chelmsford (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
West Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chelmsford Middlesex Village (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Middlesex Village is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex Village Lowell (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
Lowell is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell Population from the 2020 Census: 110,904 people
Dracut (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
Dracut is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
Dunstable (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Dunstable is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunstable Population from the 2020 Census: 3,404 people
Westford Station (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
Westford Station is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westford Station Chelmsford (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelmsford Population from the 2020 Census: 35,528 people
Bleachery (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Bleachery is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bleachery Pelham (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
Pelham is located in Hillsborough County (NH) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelham Population from the 2020 Census: 14,306 people
Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pelham <1>
Continue List (13 more) ...
East Groton (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
East Groton is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Groton Graniteville (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Graniteville is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graniteville Westford (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Westford is located in Middlesex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westford Population from the 2020 Census: 25,276 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Willowdale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Willowdale .
Newspapers Published in Willowdale ...
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 102 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willowdale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willowdale, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<5> Extended Newspaper List for Willowdale.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Willowdale:
Websites specific to Massachusetts Pages specific to Middlesex County Genealogy information for nearby counties
Essex County Norfolk County Suffolk County Worcester County Hillsborough County Merrimack County Rockingham County Cemetery Information and Directories for Massachusetts Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Willowdale. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page .
The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/
Footnotes ...
<1> While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. 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 . 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 . 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 Willowdale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Willowdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.