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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 Jay (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 Jay. 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.

Jay is located in Franklin County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Franklin County: Androscoggin, Kennebec, Oxford & Somerset.

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

  • Franklin County     (The home county of Jay)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay listed first.
    • North Jay
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Jay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Jay
      • North Jay is located in Franklin County
    • Chisholm
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chisholm have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chisholm
      • Chisholm is located in Franklin County
    • Dryden
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Wilton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
      • Wilton is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,929 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilton <2>
    • East Dixfield
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Dixfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dixfield
      • East Dixfield is located in Franklin County
    • East Wilton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wilton
      • East Wilton is located in Franklin County
    • Chesterville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chesterville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterville
      • Chesterville is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,348 people
    • North Chesterville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Farmington Falls
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Farmington
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • West Farmington
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Farmington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Farmington
      • West Farmington is located in Franklin County
    • Temple
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Temple have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Temple
      • Temple is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 518 people
  • Androscoggin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay listed first.
    • Livermore Falls
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Shy Corner
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • North Livermore
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • East Livermore
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Livermore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Livermore
      • East Livermore is located in Androscoggin County
    • Livermore
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Livermore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore
      • Livermore is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,131 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Livermore <2>
    • South Livermore
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • North Turner
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Turner have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Turner
      • North Turner is located in Androscoggin County
    • Howes Corner
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Howes Corner. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howes Corner
      • Howes Corner is located in Androscoggin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Howes Corner
      • From Jay to Howes Corner
    • North Leeds
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for North Leeds. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Leeds
      • North Leeds is located in Androscoggin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to North Leeds
      • From Jay to North Leeds
    • Leeds
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leeds have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leeds
      • Leeds is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,320 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Leeds <2>
    • Turner Center
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Turner Center. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turner Center
      • Turner Center is located in Androscoggin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Turner Center
      • From Jay to Turner Center
    • Chase Mills
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Chase Mills. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chase Mills
      • Chase Mills is located in Androscoggin County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Chase Mills
      • From Jay to Chase Mills
  • Kennebec County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay listed first.
    • North Fayette
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Mount Vernon
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Vienna
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Fayette
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Kents Hill
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kents Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kents Hill
      • Kents Hill is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kents Hill <2>
    • North Wayne
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for North Wayne. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Wayne
      • North Wayne is located in Kennebec County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to North Wayne
      • From Jay to North Wayne
    • Locks Corner
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Wayne
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wayne have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne
      • Wayne is located in Kennebec County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,161 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wayne <2>
    • Readfield
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Readfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Readfield
      • Readfield is located in Kennebec County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,586 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Readfield <2>
    • Belgrade Lakes
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Maranacook
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • North Monmouth
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Monmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Monmouth
      • North Monmouth is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North Monmouth <2>
  • Oxford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay listed first.
    • Canton Point
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Canton Point. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton Point
      • Canton Point is located in Oxford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Canton Point
      • From Jay to Canton Point
    • Gilbertville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gilbertville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbertville
      • Gilbertville is located in Oxford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Gilbertville
      • From Jay to Gilbertville
    • Canton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
      • Canton is located in Oxford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,097 people
    • Peru
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Peru. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
      • Peru is located in Oxford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,509 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Peru <2>
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Peru
      • From Jay to Peru
    • Hartford
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
      • Hartford is located in Oxford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,229 people
    • Dixfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Dickvale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Dickvale. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickvale
      • Dickvale is located in Oxford County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Dickvale
      • From Jay to Dickvale
    • West Peru
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • East Sumner
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Sumner
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sumner. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumner
      • Sumner is located in Oxford County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 920 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sumner <2>
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sumner
      • From Jay to Sumner
    • South Rumford
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Buckfield
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Somerset County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay listed first.
    • Mercer
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Starks
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Starks have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starks
      • Starks is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 638 people
    • Smithfield
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Smithfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smithfield
      • Smithfield is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,008 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Smithfield <2>
    • Anson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Norridgewock
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norridgewock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norridgewock
      • Norridgewock is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,227 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norridgewock <2>
    • New Portland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Madison
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
      • Madison is located in Somerset County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,696 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madison <2>
    • East New Portland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Barron Corner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • North Anson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Anson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Anson
      • North Anson is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North Anson <2>
    • Skowhegan
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Jay ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Jay.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Jay, with the one closest to Jay 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Jay had a population of 147 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Jay had a population of 4,598 people.

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

  • North Jay
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Jay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Jay
    • North Jay is located in Franklin County
  • Livermore Falls
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Canton Point
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Canton Point. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton Point
    • Canton Point is located in Oxford County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Canton Point
    • From Jay to Canton Point
  • North Livermore
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Gilbertville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gilbertville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilbertville
    • Gilbertville is located in Oxford County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Gilbertville
    • From Jay to Gilbertville
  • Beans Corner
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beans Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans Corner
    • Beans Corner is located in Franklin County
  • Wilton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilton
    • Wilton is located in Franklin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,929 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wilton <2>
  • Canton
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
    • Canton is located in Oxford County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,097 people
  • East Dixfield
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Dixfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dixfield
    • East Dixfield is located in Franklin County
  • Livermore Center
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Livermore Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore Center
    • Livermore Center is located in Androscoggin County
  • East Livermore
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Livermore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Livermore
    • East Livermore is located in Androscoggin County
  • Chesterville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chesterville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chesterville
    • Chesterville is located in Franklin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,348 people
  • Continue List   (19 more) ...
    • North Chesterville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • East Wilton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Wilton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wilton
      • East Wilton is located in Franklin County
    • Livermore
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Livermore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livermore
      • Livermore is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,131 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Livermore <2>

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

Newspapers Published in Jay ...

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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Jay.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Jay, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Jay.

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 Jay:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Jay. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Maine: https://www.maine.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>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.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Jay) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Jay. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.5077, Longitude: -70.2186    
<6>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 Jay, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025