RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of New Mexico >> Colfax County >> Sunny Side >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
New Mexico

The Commemorative Quarter for New Mexico





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 Sunny Side (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 Sunny Side. 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 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.

Sunny Side is located in Colfax County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Colfax County: Costilla (CO), Las Animas (CO), Harding, Mora, Taos & Union.

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

  • Colfax County     (The home county of Sunny Side)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunny Side, with the one closest to Sunny Side listed first.
    • Miami
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Cimarron
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Springer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springer
      • Springer is located in Colfax County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 910 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Springer <1>
    • Ute Park
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Colmor ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colmor
      • Colmor is located in Colfax County
    • Dawson ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
      • Dawson is located in Colfax County
    • Angel Fire
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Lauretta ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Lauretta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lauretta
      • Lauretta is located in Colfax County
    • Maxwell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maxwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxwell
      • Maxwell is located in Colfax County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 213 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maxwell <1>
    • Eagle Nest
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Nest have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Nest
      • Eagle Nest is located in Colfax County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 251 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eagle Nest <1>
    • Virginia City ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Virginia City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia City
      • Virginia City is located in Colfax County
    • Lakeview Pines
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Pines
      • Lakeview Pines is located in Colfax County
  • Mora County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sunny Side, with the one closest to Sunny Side listed first.
    • Ocate
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Los Huerros
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Los Huerros
      • Los Huerros is located in Mora County
    • Guadalupita
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Ojo Feliz
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Wagon Mound
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Chacon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Taos County

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

Newspapers Published in Sunny Side ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sunny Side.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sunny Side, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Sunny Side.

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 Sunny Side:

Cemeteries Near Sunny Side ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sunny Side.

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

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

  • Abreu Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Abreu Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Abreu Cemetery
  • Miami Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Miami Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Miami Cemetery
  • Cimmarron Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Cimmarron Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the southwest of Cimarron.
    • The Cimmarron Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Mountain View Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cimmarron Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #38005 <5>
  • Halls Peak Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Strong Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Calhoun Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
  • Ocate Catholic Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ocate Catholic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ocate Catholic Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #38283 <5>
  • Los LeFebres Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Jackson Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Jackson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jackson Cemetery
  • Mountain View Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Black Lake Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Black Lake Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Black Lake Cemetery
  • Church of Christ Cemetery
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (11 more) ...

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>

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

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

  • Cimarron
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Halls Peak ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Halls Peak have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halls Peak
    • Halls Peak is located in Mora County
  • Ocate
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Colmor ‑ Historic
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colmor
    • Colmor is located in Colfax County
  • Springer
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Springer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springer
    • Springer is located in Colfax County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 910 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Springer <1>
  • Levy
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Levy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levy
    • Levy is located in Mora County
  • Maxwell
    (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maxwell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maxwell
    • Maxwell is located in Colfax County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 213 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Maxwell <1>
  • Guadalupita
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Wagon Mound
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Elizabethtown ‑ Historic
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elizabethtown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabethtown
    • Elizabethtown is located in Colfax County

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

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

The official website for State of New Mexico: www.newmexico.gov/

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 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>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>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- Sunny Side) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sunny Side. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.3636, Longitude: -104.9019       In this case, the coordinates for Sunny Side have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Sunny Side, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024