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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 Somerville (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 Somerville. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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.

Somerville is located in Somerset County and is the County Seat.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Somerset County: Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris & Union.

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

  • Somerset County     (The home county of Somerville)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Finderne
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Ukrainian Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ukrainian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ukrainian Village
      • Ukrainian Village is located in Somerset County
    • Blackwells Mills
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Middlebush
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Somerset
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Bedminster
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bedminster have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedminster
      • Bedminster is located in Somerset County
    • Harlingen
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Woodfern
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Union Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Union Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Village
      • Union Village is located in Somerset County
    • Gladstone
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Skillman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Bergen County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • North Arlington
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Lyndhurst
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyndhurst have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyndhurst
      • Lyndhurst is located in Bergen County
  • Burlington County
  • Essex County
  • Hudson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Bayonne
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Harrison
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Kearny
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Bergen
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bergen have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bergen
      • Bergen is located in Hudson County
    • Communipaw
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Hunterdon County
  • Mercer County
  • Middlesex County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Piscataway
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Society Hill
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Society Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Society Hill
      • Society Hill is located in Middlesex County
    • Samptown
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Franklin Park
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Franklin Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Park
      • Franklin Park is located in Middlesex County
    • New Brunswick
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Edison
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Lindenau
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Kendall Park
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kendall Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kendall Park
      • Kendall Park is located in Middlesex County
    • Berdines Corners
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Patricks Corners
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • North Edison
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Heathcote
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heathcote have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heathcote
      • Heathcote is located in Middlesex County
    • Paulas Corners
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Monmouth County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Cliffwood
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Cliffwood Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cliffwood Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffwood Beach
      • Cliffwood Beach is located in Monmouth County
    • Morganville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Yorketown
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Strathmore
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Strathmore have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strathmore
      • Strathmore is located in Monmouth County
    • Bradevelt
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bradevelt. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradevelt
      • Bradevelt is located in Monmouth County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Bradevelt
      • From Somerville to Bradevelt
    • Hazlet
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Tennent
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Sharon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Sharon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon
      • Sharon is located in Monmouth County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Sharon
      • From Somerville to Sharon
    • North Middletown
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Middletown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Middletown
      • North Middletown is located in Monmouth County
    • Imlaystown
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • East Freehold
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Freehold
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Morris County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Green Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Village
      • Green Village is located in Morris County
    • Brookside
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Hacklebarney
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Morristown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Rosedale Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rosedale Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale Village
      • Rosedale Village is located in Morris County
    • Yardley Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yardley Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yardley Village
      • Yardley Village is located in Morris County
    • Crestmoore
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Long Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Long Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Valley
      • Long Valley is located in Morris County
    • Naughright
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Littleton
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Littleton. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleton
      • Littleton is located in Morris County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Littleton
      • From Somerville to Littleton
    • Millbrook
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Succasunna
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Whippany
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Whippany. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whippany
      • Whippany is located in Morris County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Whippany
      • From Somerville to Whippany
  • Passaic County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Little Falls
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Singac
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Singac. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Singac
      • Singac is located in Passaic County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Singac
      • From Somerville to Singac
    • The Village at Little Falls
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for The Village at Little Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Village at Little Falls
      • The Village at Little Falls is located in Passaic County
    • Clifton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Wayne
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • 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 Passaic County
    • Borough of Woodland Park
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Borough of Woodland Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borough of Woodland Park
      • Borough of Woodland Park is located in Passaic County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,655 people
  • Sussex County
  • Union County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Plainfield
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Berkeley Heights
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Benders Corner
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Scotch Plains
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotch Plains have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotch Plains
      • Scotch Plains is located in Union County
    • Feltville ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Westfield
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Clark
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Rahway
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Summit
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Cranford
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Park Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
      • Park Village is located in Union County
    • Springfield
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
      • Springfield is located in Union County
    • Linden
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Warren County
  • Kings County (NY)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Bay Ridge
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Fort Hamilton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Richmond County (NY)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville listed first.
    • Tottenville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tottenville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tottenville
      • Tottenville is located in Richmond County (NY)
    • Annadale
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Annadale. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annadale
      • Annadale is located in Richmond County (NY)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Annadale
      • From Somerville to Annadale
    • Bloomfield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bloomfield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomfield
      • Bloomfield is located in Richmond County (NY)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,303 people
    • Graniteville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Great Kills
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Heartland Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heartland Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heartland Village
      • Heartland Village is located in Richmond County (NY)
    • Port Richmond
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Port Richmond have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Richmond
      • Port Richmond is located in Richmond County (NY)
    • Staten Island
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Oakwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Westerleigh
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Grant City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grant City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant City
      • Grant City is located in Richmond County (NY)
    • New Brighton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Old Town Station
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Town Station have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town Station
      • Old Town Station is located in Richmond County (NY)
  • Bucks County (PA)

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

Cemeteries Near Somerville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Somerville.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Somerville, with the one closest to Somerville 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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Somerville had a population of 3,861 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Finderne
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • South Somerville ‑ Historic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Somerville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Somerville
    • South Somerville is located in Somerset County
  • Weston
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weston
    • Weston is located in Somerset County
  • Martinsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Martinsville is located in Somerset County
  • East Millstone
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Millstone have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Millstone
    • East Millstone is located in Somerset County
  • North Branch
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Branch
    • North Branch is located in Somerset County
  • North Branch Depot
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Branch Depot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Branch Depot
    • North Branch Depot is located in Somerset County
  • South Branch
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Branch
    • South Branch is located in Somerset County
  • Flagtown
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flagtown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flagtown
    • Flagtown is located in Somerset County
  • Frankfort
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frankfort have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort
    • Frankfort is located in Somerset County
  • Pluckemin
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pluckemin have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pluckemin
    • Pluckemin is located in Somerset County
  • Hillsborough
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillsborough have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillsborough
    • Hillsborough is located in Somerset County
  • Continue List   (21 more) ...
    • Blackwells Mills
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Middlebush
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Warrenville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warrenville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrenville
      • Warrenville is located in Somerset County

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

Newspapers Published in Somerville ...

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 90 newspapers that have been published in the area around Somerville.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Somerville, there are papers which were published within 10 miles [16.1 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Somerville.

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 websites either 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 Somerville:

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>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.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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 Somerville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Somerville) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Somerville. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.5662, Longitude: -74.6037