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 Bedford (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 Bedford. 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 northeast 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 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.
Bedford is located in Hillsborough County.
To see how the shape of New Hampshire's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Hillsborough County: Essex (MA), Middlesex (MA), Worcester (MA), Cheshire, Merrimack, Rockingham & Sullivan.
Below are the counties that are near Bedford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bedford:
- Hillsborough County (The home county of Bedford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Pinardville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Pinardville is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinardville
- Manchester
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Reeds Ferry
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Reeds Ferry is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry
- Grasmere
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Grasmere is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grasmere
- East Merrimack
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- East Merrimack is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Merrimack
- Merrimack
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Goffstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Massabesic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Massabesic is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massabesic
- Litchfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Amherst
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Mont Vernon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- New Boston
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- East Milford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- East Milford is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Milford
- Belknap County
- Barnstead
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Cheshire County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Bonds Corner
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Bonds Corner is located in Cheshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonds Corner
- Eastview
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Eastview is located in Cheshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastview
- Dublin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Jaffrey
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Rindge
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- West Rindge
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Rindge is located in Cheshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Rindge
- Harrisville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Mill Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Mill Village is located in Cheshire County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Village
- Merrimack County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- South Hooksett
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- South Hooksett is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hooksett
- Martin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Martin is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
- Hooksett
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Dunbarton
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Dunbarton is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbarton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,916 people
- Bow
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Bow is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,063 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bow <1>
- Suncook
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Pembroke
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Allenstown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Bow Junction
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Bow Junction is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow Junction
- Concord
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Hopkinton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- East Concord
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- East Concord is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Concord
- Horse Corner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Horse Corner is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horse Corner
- Rockingham County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Wilson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Wilson is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Auburn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Londonderry
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Derry Village
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Derry Village is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Derry Village
- Derry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Chester
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Hubbard
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Hubbard is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard
- Windham
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Candia
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- East Candia
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- East Candia is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Candia
- Sandown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- North Salem
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hampstead
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Strafford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Bow Lake Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bow Lake Village is located in Strafford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bow Lake Village
- Bow Lake Village has also been known as:
- Bow Lake
- Glenmere Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Glenmere Village is located in Strafford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmere Village
- Lee
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lee is located in Strafford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,597 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lee <1>
- Barrington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Essex County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Ayers Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ayers Village is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayers Village
- Tozier Corner
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Tozier Corner is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tozier Corner
- Methuen
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Methuen is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Methuen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 50,910 people
- Lawrence
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lawrence is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawrence
- Population from the 2020 Census: 80,007 people
- Ward Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ward Hill is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ward Hill
- Bradford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bradford is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
- Haverhill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Haverhill is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haverhill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 64,098 people
- North Andover
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- North Andover is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Andover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 31,460 people
- Haggetts
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Haggetts is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haggetts
- Shawsheen Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Shawsheen Village is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawsheen Village
- West Andover
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- West Andover is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Andover
- Andover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Andover is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 36,554 people
- Groveland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Groveland is located in Essex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groveland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,868 people
- Middlesex County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Dunstable
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Dunstable is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunstable
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,404 people
- Babbatasset Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Babbatasset Village is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babbatasset Village
- East Pepperell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- East Pepperell is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Pepperell
- Pepperell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Pepperell is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pepperell
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,043 people
- Tyngsbororough
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Tyngsbororough is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyngsbororough
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,646 people
- Collinsville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Collinsville is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
- Townsend Harbor
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Townsend Harbor is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townsend Harbor
- Dracut
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Dracut is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dracut
- Population from the 2020 Census: 31,423 people
- Townsend
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Townsend is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townsend
- Population from the 2020 Census: 9,448 people
- West Townsend
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- West Townsend is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Townsend
- North Chelmsford
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- North Chelmsford is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Chelmsford
- Paper Mill Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Paper Mill Village is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paper Mill Village
- Groton
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Groton is located in Middlesex County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,256 people
- Worcester County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Lunenburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Lunenburg is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,810 people
- Shaker Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Shaker Village is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaker Village
- Blackburn Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Blackburn Village is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn Village
- Fitchburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Fitchburg is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitchburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 40,310 people
- Lunenburg Station
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Lunenburg Station is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunenburg Station
- Ashburnham
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Ashburnham is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashburnham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,350 people
- Lane Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lane Village is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lane Village
- South Fitchburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- South Fitchburg is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Fitchburg
- Harvard
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Harvard is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,618 people
- Winchendon Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Winchendon Springs is located in Worcester County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchendon Springs
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bedford, see our County-by-County Page for Bedford.
Cemeteries Near Bedford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bedford.
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 Bedford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Bedford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Center Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- New St. Josephs Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Beals Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Pine Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Piscataquog Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Old St. Josephs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Goffs Falls Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- St. Augustine Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Hebrew Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- St. Augustine Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Valley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Shirley Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (455 more) ...
- Merrill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Manchester Center Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Faith Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 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 Bedford had a population of 350 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Bedford had a population of 22,957 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bedford, with the one closest to Bedford listed first.
- Goffs Falls
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Goffs Falls is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goffs Falls
- Reeds Ferry
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Reeds Ferry is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry
- Manchester
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Merrimack
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- North Londonderry
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- North Londonderry is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Londonderry
- Goffstown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Thorntons Ferry
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Thorntons Ferry is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorntons Ferry
- Wilson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Wilson is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Massabesic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Massabesic is located in Hillsborough County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Massabesic
- Martin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Martin is located in Merrimack County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
- Amherst
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Severance
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Severance is located in Rockingham County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Severance
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Londonderry
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Auburn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- New Boston
(9 miles [14.5 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 Bedford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bedford.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Bedford ...
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 177 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bedford.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Bedford. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Bedford and those printed in the larger area surrounding Bedford.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4> of Bedford.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Bedford:
- Websites specific to New Hampshire
- Pages specific to Hillsborough County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Belknap County
- Cheshire County
- Merrimack County
- Rockingham County
- Strafford County
- Essex County
- Middlesex County
- Worcester County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for New Hampshire
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 Bedford, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Bedford) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |