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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 Spruce Shores (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 Spruce Shores. 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 Spruce Shores ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Spruce Shores: Spruce Shrs.

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

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 north 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.

Spruce Shores is located in Lincoln 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 Lincoln County: Kennebec, Knox, Sagadahoc & Waldo.

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

  • Lincoln County     (The home county of Spruce Shores)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • Linekin
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Linekin is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linekin
    • Bayville
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Bayville is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayville
    • East Boothbay
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Boothbay Harbor
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • West Boothbay Harbor
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • West Boothbay Harbor is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Boothbay Harbor
    • Mouse Island
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Mouse Island is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mouse Island
    • South Bristol
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Boothbay
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Southport
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Pemaquid Point
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Pemaquid Point is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemaquid Point
    • Pemaquid Beach
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Pemaquid Beach is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemaquid Beach
    • Pemaquid Harbor
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Pemaquid Harbor is located in Lincoln County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemaquid Harbor
  • Androscoggin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • Lisbon Falls
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Durham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Durham is located in Androscoggin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,044 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Durham <1>
    • Lisbon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Lisbon is located in Androscoggin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisbon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,053 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lisbon <1>
  • Cumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • Cundys Harbor
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • East Harpswell
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • East Harpswell is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Harpswell
    • Harding
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Harding is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harding
    • Harpswell
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Pennellville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Pennellville is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pennellville
    • Brunswick
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Harpswell Center
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Harpswell Center is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harpswell Center
    • Orrs Island
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Bailey Island
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Bailey Island is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Island
    • Bunganuc Landing
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Bunganuc Landing is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunganuc Landing
    • Merepoint
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Merepoint is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merepoint
    • South Harpswell
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • South Harpswell is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Harpswell
  • Kennebec County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • East Pittston
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • East Pittston is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Pittston
    • South Gardiner
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • South Gardiner is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gardiner
    • Litchfield Corners
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Litchfield Corners is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Litchfield Corners
    • Pittston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Pittston is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittston
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,819 people
    • Litchfield
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Chelsea
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Gardiner
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Randolph
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Farmingdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Batchelders Crossing
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Batchelders Crossing is located in Kennebec County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Batchelders Crossing
  • Knox County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • Friendship
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Port Clyde
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Pleasant Point
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Pleasant Point is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Point
    • South Cushing
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • South Cushing is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Cushing
    • Martinsville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Martinsville is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Cushing
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Tenants Harbor
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Long Cove
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Long Cove is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Cove
    • Saint George
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Saint George is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint George
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,578 people
    • Warren Station
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Warren Station is located in Knox County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren Station
    • Spruce Head
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Thomaston
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Sagadahoc County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spruce Shores, with the one closest to Spruce Shores listed first.
    • MacMahan
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • MacMahan is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for MacMahan
    • Georgetown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Murphys Corner
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Murphys Corner is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murphys Corner
    • Arrowsic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Popham Beach
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Popham Beach is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popham Beach
    • Phippsburg
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Woolwich
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Bath
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Bath is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,335 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bath <1>
    • Days Ferry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Days Ferry is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Days Ferry
    • Small Point
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Sabino
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Sabino is located in Sagadahoc County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sabino
    • Sebasco Estates
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Spruce Shores ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Spruce Shores.

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 Spruce Shores - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Oaklawn Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Farnham Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Ocean View Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Wiley Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Main Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Wilson Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Jewett Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Ocean Hill Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Tarbox Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Oak Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • West Bristol Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (195 more) ...
    • Greenleaf Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Webber Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Knight Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)

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>

While we didn't find Spruce Shores in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Spruce Shores.

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

  • Ocean Point
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Ocean Point is located in Lincoln County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocean Point
  • Linekin
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Linekin is located in Lincoln County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linekin
  • East Boothbay
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Boothbay Harbor
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Mouse Island
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Mouse Island is located in Lincoln County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mouse Island
  • Boothbay
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • South Bristol
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Southport
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Pemaquid Beach
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Pemaquid Beach is located in Lincoln County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pemaquid Beach
  • West Southport
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Trevett
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Five Islands
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Five Islands is located in Sagadahoc County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Islands
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • New Harbor
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Pemaquid
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Georgetown
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Spruce Shores ...

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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Spruce Shores.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Spruce Shores, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Spruce Shores.

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 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 Spruce Shores:

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 Spruce Shores, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Spruce Shores) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.