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 East Thorndike (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 East Thorndike. 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 East Thorndike ...
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 East Thorndike: E. Thorndike
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 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.
East Thorndike is located in Waldo County.
To see how the shape of Maine's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Waldo County: Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Penobscot & Somerset.
Below are the counties that are near East Thorndike. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to East Thorndike:
- Waldo County (The home county of East Thorndike)
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Knox Ledge Corner
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Knox Ledge Corner is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox Ledge Corner
- Thorndike
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Jackson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Jackson is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 588 people
- Brooks
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Troy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Knox
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Knox is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox
- Population from the 2020 Census: 791 people
- Freedom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Unity
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Monroe Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Monroe Center is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe Center
- Monroe
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Monroe is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe
- Population from the 2020 Census: 948 people
- Winnecook
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Winnecook is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winnecook
- Morrill
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Waldo
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Waldo is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 872 people
- Hancock County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Bucksport Center
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Bucksport Center is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucksport Center
- Bucksport
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Verona Island
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Verona Island is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verona Island
- Population from the 2020 Census: 555 people
- Former name for Verona Island:
- Verona
- Orland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- West Penobscot
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- West Penobscot is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Penobscot
- Castine
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Penobscot
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- East Orland
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Harborside
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- West Brooksville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- West Brooksville is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Brooksville
- Cape Rosier
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Cape Rosier is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cape Rosier
- Dedham
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- North Penobscot
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- North Penobscot is located in Hancock County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Penobscot
- Kennebec County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Albion
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Clinton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- China
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Benton Falls
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Benton Falls is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Falls
- Benton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Benton is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,720 people
- Branch Mills
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Branch Mills is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branch Mills
- Benton Station
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Benton Station is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Station
- Morrison Corner
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Morrison Corner is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison Corner
- Winslow
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- North Vassalboro
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- North Vassalboro is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Vassalboro
- Waterville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- East Vassalboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- East Vassalboro is located in Kennebec County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Vassalboro
- South China
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- West Appleton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- West Appleton is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Appleton
- Appleton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Burkettville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Burkettville is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burkettville
- Hope
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Lucas Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Lucas Corner is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucas Corner
- Washington
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Razorville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Razorville is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Razorville
- Lake City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lake City is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake City
- Stickney Corner
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Stickney Corner is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stickney Corner
- Globe
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Globe is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Globe
- South Hope
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- South Hope is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hope
- Union
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Camden
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lincoln County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Somerville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Somerville is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 569 people
- Coopers Mills
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Flanders Corner
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Flanders Corner is located in Lincoln County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flanders Corner
- Jefferson
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Penobscot County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Dixmont
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Dixmont is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,119 people
- East Dixmont
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- East Dixmont is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dixmont
- South Newburgh
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- South Newburgh is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Newburgh
- Plymouth
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Newburgh
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Newburgh is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburgh
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,530 people
- Newburgh Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Newburgh Village is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newburgh Village
- East Newport
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- East Newport is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Newport
- Carmel
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- North Newburgh
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- North Newburgh is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Newburgh
- Etna
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Etna is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,194 people
- Newport
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Hampden Center
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Hampden Center is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampden Center
- Hampden
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Somerset County
- The following are listed by their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Detroit
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Houston Corner
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Houston Corner is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston Corner
- Pittsfield
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dogtown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dogtown is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogtown
- Palmyra
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- West Palmyra
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- West Palmyra is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Palmyra
- Fairfield
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Shawmut
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Shawmut is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawmut
- Nyes Corner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Nyes Corner is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nyes Corner
- Canaan
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hinckley
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Hinckley is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinckley
- Hartland
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Saint Albans
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to East Thorndike, see our County-by-County Page for East Thorndike.
Cemeteries Near East Thorndike ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of East Thorndike.
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 East Thorndike - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for East Thorndike covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Wing Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Cates Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Cole Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Thorndike Center Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- East Thorndike Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Saywood Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Leonard Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Styles Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Jewel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Webster Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Mt. Holly Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (319 more) ...
- Fairview Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fogg Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Mudgett Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<3>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that East Thorndike had a population of 27 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from East Thorndike, with the one closest to East Thorndike listed first.
- Thorndike
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Brooks
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jackson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Jackson is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 588 people
- Knox Center
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Knox Center is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox Center
- Knox
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Knox is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox
- Population from the 2020 Census: 791 people
- East Knox
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- East Knox is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Knox
- Troy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- North Monroe
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- North Monroe is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Monroe
- East Troy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- East Troy is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Troy
- Freedom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Halldale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Halldale is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halldale
- Dixmont
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Dixmont is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixmont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,119 people
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Unity
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Monroe Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Monroe Center is located in Waldo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe Center
- Dixmont Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Dixmont Center is located in Penobscot County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixmont Center
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around East Thorndike. See our List of 1890's Communities around East Thorndike.
Newspapers Published in East Thorndike ...
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 49 newspapers that have been published in the area around East Thorndike.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of East Thorndike, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for East Thorndike.
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 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 East Thorndike:
- Websites specific to Maine
- Pages specific to Waldo County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Hancock County
- Kennebec County
- Knox County
- Lincoln County
- Penobscot County
- Somerset County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Maine
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> | 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 East Thorndike, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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- East Thorndike) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |