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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 College Park (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 College Park. 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 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.

College Park is located in Prince George's County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Prince George's County: Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Howard, Montgomery, Alexandria City (VA) & Fairfax (VA).

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

  • Prince George's County     (The home county of College Park)
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Berwyn
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Berwyn is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwyn
    • Berwyn Heights
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Berwyn Heights is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwyn Heights
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,249 people
    • Riverdale Park
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Riverdale
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Riverdale is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale
    • University Park
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • University Park is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Park
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,628 people
    • Greenbelt
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Greenbelt is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbelt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,229 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenbelt <1>
    • Boxwood Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Boxwood Village is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxwood Village
    • Adelphi
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Ducat Town
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Ducat Town is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ducat Town
    • Edmonston
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Edmonston is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,490 people
    • Hyattsville Hills
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • East Riverdale
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • East Riverdale is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Riverdale
    • Hyattsville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Anne Arundel County
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Maryland City
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Maryland City is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maryland City
    • Annapolis Junction
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Crofton Village Green
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Crofton Village Green is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crofton Village Green
    • Crofton
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Crofton is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crofton
    • Stonegate Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Stonegate Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonegate Village
    • Geraghty Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Geraghty Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geraghty Village
    • Crofton Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Crofton Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crofton Village
    • Jessup
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Odenton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Gambrills
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Hidden Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Hidden Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden Village
    • Lake Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lake Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
    • Meade Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Meade Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade Village
  • Baltimore City
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Beechfield
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Oaklee Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Oaklee Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklee Village
    • Violetville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Brooklyn
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Brooklyn is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
    • Carroll
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Carroll is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
    • Curtis Bay
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Curtis Bay is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis Bay
    • Edmondson Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Edmondson Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmondson Village
    • Baltimore
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Gwynn Oak
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Old Town
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Old Town is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
    • Charles Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Charles Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charles Village
    • Colonial Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Colonial Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Hampden
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Baltimore County
  • Calvert County
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Chaney
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Dunkirk Town Center
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Dunkirk Town Center is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunkirk Town Center
    • Dunkirk
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Penwick Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Penwick Village is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penwick Village
    • Apple Greene
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Owings Town Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Owings Town Center is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owings Town Center
    • Lower Marlboro Towne
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Lower Marlboro Towne is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Marlboro Towne
    • Owings
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Academy Hill
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Sunderland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Chesapeake Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • North Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Huntingtown Town Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Carroll County
  • Charles County
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Mattawoman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Mattawoman is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattawoman
    • White Oak Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • White Oak Village is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak Village
    • Acton Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Acton Village is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton Village
    • Waldorf
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Westlake Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Westlake Village is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake Village
    • Bennsville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Bennsville is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennsville
    • Bryans Road
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Freedom Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Freedom Village is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Village
    • Huntington Townhouses
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Saint Charles
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Saint Charles is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Charles
    • South Hampton Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Malcolm
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Pomonkey
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
  • Frederick County
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Smith Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Smith Village is located in Frederick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Village
    • Green Valley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Green Valley is located in Frederick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Valley
    • Mount Airy Village West
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Bartholows
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Howard County
  • Montgomery County
  • Alexandria City (VA)
  • Arlington County (VA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Colonial Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Colonial Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Lyon Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Lyon Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyon Village
    • Riverwood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Arlington Village
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Arlington Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington Village
    • Arlington
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Cherrydale
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Brandon Village
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Brandon Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandon Village
    • Buckingham
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Garden City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Garden City is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
    • Williamsburg Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Williamsburg Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg Village
  • Fairfax City (VA)
  • Fairfax County (VA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Langley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Salona Village
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Salona Village is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salona Village
    • McLean
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Baileys Crossroads
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Seven Corners
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Belle Haven
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Burgundy Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Burgundy Village is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burgundy Village
    • Huntington
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Huntington is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
    • Jefferson Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jefferson Village is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Village
    • Jefferson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jefferson is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
    • Lake Barcroft
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake Barcroft is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Barcroft
    • Pimmit Hills
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Pimmit Hills is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pimmit Hills
    • Ash Grove
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Ash Grove is located in Fairfax County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ash Grove
  • Falls Church City (VA)
  • Loudoun County (VA)
  • Prince William County (VA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from College Park, with the one closest to College Park listed first.
    • Lake Ridge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Marumsco Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Marumsco Village is located in Prince William County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marumsco Village
    • Woodbridge
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Agnewville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Yorkshire
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Yorkshire is located in Prince William County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkshire

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

Cemeteries Near College Park ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of College Park.

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 College Park - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, College Park had a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, College Park had a population of 32,173 people.

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

  • Branchville
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Branchville is located in Prince George's County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchville
  • Riverdale
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Riverdale is located in Prince George's County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale
  • Hyattsville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Bladensburg
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Beltsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Landover
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Ardwick
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Ardwick is located in Prince George's County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ardwick
  • Lanham
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Ammendale
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Ammendale is located in Prince George's County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ammendale
  • Burnt Mills
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Sligo
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Sligo is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sligo
  • Silver Spring
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Seabrook
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Muirkirk
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Muirkirk is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muirkirk
    • Fairland
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of College Park ...

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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around College Park.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of College Park. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of College Park and those printed in the larger area surrounding College Park.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 4 miles [6.4 km]<5> of College Park.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 College Park:

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 Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MIHP (for the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties). More information about the MHT and MIHP can be found on their website: mht.maryland.gov.
<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>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 College Park, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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 drawn from Point A (ie- College Park) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.