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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 Peaks Island (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 Peaks Island. 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 Peaks Island ...

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 have occurred.

Another variation: Peak Island.

  • A typical abbreviation for Peaks Island: Peaks Is. (in Canada, 'Isld.' is the more common abbreviation.)
  • While the name of this community is Peaks Island, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Peaks Island may originally have been Peak's Island.

    Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Peaks Island might be written as Peak Island.

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors 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.

Peaks Island is located in Cumberland 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 Cumberland County: Androscoggin, Oxford, Sagadahoc & York.

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

  • Cumberland County     (The home county of Peaks Island)
  • Androscoggin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Peaks Island, with the one closest to Peaks Island listed first.
    • Durham
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Durham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
      • Durham is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,044 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Durham <3>
    • Lisbon Falls
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Danville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Danville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danville
      • Danville is located in Androscoggin County
    • Lisbon
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lisbon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
      • Lisbon is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,053 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lisbon <3>
    • Penley Corner
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Rumford Junction
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Littlefield Corner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • West Poland
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Poland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Poland
      • West Poland is located in Androscoggin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Poland <3>
    • East Poland
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Poland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Poland
      • East Poland is located in Androscoggin County
    • Poland
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poland
      • Poland is located in Androscoggin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,683 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Poland <3>
    • Auburn
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Lewiston
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Lincoln County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Peaks Island, with the one closest to Peaks Island listed first.
    • Southport
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southport have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southport
      • Southport is located in Lincoln County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 603 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Southport <3>
    • Mouse Island
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Trevett
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trevett have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trevett
      • Trevett is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Trevett <3>
    • West Boothbay Harbor
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Boothbay Harbor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boothbay Harbor
      • West Boothbay Harbor is located in Lincoln County
  • Sagadahoc County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Peaks Island, with the one closest to Peaks Island listed first.
    • Small Point
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Small Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Small Point
      • Small Point is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Small Point <3>
    • Sebasco Estates
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sebasco Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sebasco Estates
      • Sebasco Estates is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sebasco Estates <3>
    • Popham Beach
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Sabino
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Topsham
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Topsham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topsham
      • Topsham is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,942 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Topsham <3>
    • Pejepscot
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Phippsburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Phippsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phippsburg
      • Phippsburg is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,275 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Phippsburg <3>
    • West Bath
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Bath have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bath
      • West Bath is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,932 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Bath <3>
    • Arrowsic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arrowsic have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arrowsic
      • Arrowsic is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 466 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Arrowsic <3>
    • Georgetown
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Georgetown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgetown
      • Georgetown is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,078 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Georgetown <3>
    • Bath
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Woolwich
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woolwich have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woolwich
      • Woolwich is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,218 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Woolwich <3>
  • York County

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

Cemeteries Near Peaks Island ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Peaks Island.

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 Peaks Island covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Peaks Island, with the one closest to Peaks Island 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 Peaks Island had a population of 400 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Long Island
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Island
    • Long Island is located in Cumberland County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 239 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Long Island <3>
  • Portland
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • South Portland
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Knightville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Knightville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knightville
    • Knightville is located in Cumberland County
  • East Deering
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Deering have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Deering
    • East Deering is located in Cumberland County
  • Pleasantdale
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Falmouth
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Woodfords
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodfords have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodfords
    • Woodfords is located in Cumberland County
  • Cash Corner
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cash Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cash Corner
    • Cash Corner is located in Cumberland County
  • Falmouth Foreside
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falmouth Foreside have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falmouth Foreside
    • Falmouth Foreside is located in Cumberland County
  • Deering
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deering have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deering
    • Deering is located in Cumberland County
  • Stroudwater
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Cape Elizabeth
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Chebeague Island
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chebeague Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chebeague Island
      • Chebeague Island is located in Cumberland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 350 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chebeague Island <3>
    • Cumberland
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cumberland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland
      • Cumberland is located in Cumberland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,298 people

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

Newspapers Published in Peaks Island ...

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 308 newspapers that have been published in the area around Peaks Island.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Peaks Island, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<7>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Peaks Island.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Peaks Island:

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

The official website for Cumberland County: www.cumberlandcounty.org/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>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.
<5>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.
<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 Peaks Island, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<7>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Peaks Island) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Peaks Island. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.6582, Longitude: -70.1962    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025