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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 Spanish Springs (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 Spanish Springs. 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 Spanish Springs ...

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 Spanish Springs: Spanish Spgs. (or less commonly used: Spanish Spngs. or Spanish Sprngs.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Spanish Springs. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Spanish Springs.

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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Spanish Springs is located in Washoe County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Washoe County: Lassen (CA), Modoc (CA), Nevada (CA), Placer (CA), Sierra (CA), Carson City, Churchill, Humboldt, Lyon, Pershing, Storey, Harney (OR) & Lake (OR).

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

  • Washoe County     (The home county of Spanish Springs)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Sun Valley
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Panther Valley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Panther Valley is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panther Valley
    • Golden Valley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Golden Valley is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden Valley
    • Sparks
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Lemmon Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Lemmon Valley is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemmon Valley
    • Vista
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Vista is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vista
    • Raleigh Heights
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Raleigh Heights is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raleigh Heights
    • Reno
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Reno is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 259,290 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reno <1>
    • Nashville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Nashville is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nashville
    • Hidden Valley
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Hidden Valley is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden Valley
    • Hafed
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Hafed is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hafed
    • Copperfield ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Copperfield is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copperfield
  • Carson City
    • Lakeview Summit
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Lakeview Summit is located in Carson City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Summit
  • Lyon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Fernley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Carson Rapids City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Carson Rapids City is located in Lyon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carson Rapids City
    • Silver City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Silver City is located in Lyon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
    • Sutro ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Sutro is located in Lyon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sutro
    • Stagecoach
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Stagecoach is located in Lyon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stagecoach
    • Johntown ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Johntown is located in Lyon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johntown
    • Dayton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Mound House
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Silver Springs
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Storey County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Lockwood
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Lockwood is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockwood
    • Clark
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Clark is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clark
    • Thisby
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Thisby is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thisby
    • Lousetown ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Lousetown is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lousetown
    • Virginia City Highlands
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Flowery City ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Flowery City is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flowery City
    • Virginia City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Gold Hill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Gold Hill is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Hill
    • American City ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • American City is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for American City
    • American Flat ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • American Flat is located in Storey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for American Flat
  • Nevada County (CA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Mystic ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Mystic is located in Nevada County (CA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mystic
    • Bronco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Bronco is located in Nevada County (CA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bronco
    • Floriston
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Plumas County (CA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Chilcoot - Vinton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Chilcoot - Vinton is located in Plumas County (CA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chilcoot - Vinton
    • Chilcoot
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Vinton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Sierra County (CA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs listed first.
    • Calvada ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Calvada is located in Sierra County (CA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvada
    • Loyalton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)

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

Cemeteries Near Spanish Springs ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Spanish Springs.

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 Spanish Springs - one of the links might be able to help.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Spanish Springs, with the one closest to Spanish Springs 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.<4>

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

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

  • Vista
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Vista is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vista
  • Reno
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Reno is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 259,290 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Reno <1>
  • Hafed
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Hafed is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hafed
  • Anderson ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Anderson is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson
    • Anderson has also been known as:
    • Junction House
    • Sparks Ranch
  • Huffakers ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Huffakers is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huffakers
  • Clarks ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Clarks is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks
  • Lawton
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Lawton is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawton
  • Thisby
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Thisby is located in Storey County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thisby
  • Verdi
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Steamboat
    (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Steamboat is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steamboat
  • Marmol ‑ Historic
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Marmol is located in Washoe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marmol
  • Mystic ‑ Historic
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Mystic is located in Nevada County (CA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mystic
  • Continue List   (12 more) ...
    • Wadsworth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Washoe City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Washoe City is located in Washoe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washoe City
    • Virginia City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Spanish Springs ...

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 114 newspapers that have been published in the area around Spanish Springs.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Spanish Springs, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Spanish Springs.

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 Spanish Springs:

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