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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 Albany (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 Albany. 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 doctors 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.

Albany is located in Albany County and is the County Seat.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Albany County: Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady & Schoharie.

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

  • Albany County     (The home county of Albany)
  • Columbia County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Niverville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Niverville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Niverville
      • Niverville is located in Columbia County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Niverville <3>
    • Riders Mills
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Valatie
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Kinderhook
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Chatham Center
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • New Britain ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Britain. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Britain
      • New Britain is located in Columbia County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Britain
      • From Albany to New Britain
    • Rock City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
      • Rock City is located in Columbia County
    • New Concord
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for New Concord. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Concord
      • New Concord is located in Columbia County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to New Concord
      • From Albany to New Concord
    • Chatham
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chatham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham
      • Chatham is located in Columbia County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,623 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chatham <3>
    • Ghent
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ghent have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ghent
      • Ghent is located in Columbia County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ghent <3>
    • Canaan
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Moorhouse Corner
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
  • Greene County
  • Montgomery County
  • Rensselaer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Rensselaer
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rensselaer have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rensselaer
      • Rensselaer is located in Rensselaer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,142 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rensselaer <3>
    • Defreestville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Hampton Manor
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hampton Manor have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton Manor
      • Hampton Manor is located in Rensselaer County
    • Couse
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • East Greenbush
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Greenbush have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Greenbush
      • East Greenbush is located in Rensselaer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for East Greenbush <3>
    • Wyantskill
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wyantskill came from an uncertain source and they still need to be verified:<4>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyantskill
      • Wyantskill is located in Rensselaer County
    • Albia
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Troy
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Wynantskill
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wynantskill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wynantskill
      • Wynantskill is located in Rensselaer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wynantskill <3>
    • Best
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Luther
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • West Sand Lake
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Sand Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Sand Lake
      • West Sand Lake is located in Rensselaer County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Sand Lake <3>
  • Saratoga County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Halfmoon Beach
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Waterford
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Halfmoon
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Clifton Park
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clifton Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifton Park
      • Clifton Park is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clifton Park <3>
    • Elnora
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Elnora. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elnora
      • Elnora is located in Saratoga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Elnora
      • From Albany to Elnora
    • Country Knolls
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Country Knolls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Knolls
      • Country Knolls is located in Saratoga County
    • Jonesville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Mechanicville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Burnt Hills
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Coons
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coons. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coons
      • Coons is located in Saratoga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Coons
      • From Albany to Coons
    • Willow Glen
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Willow Glen. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Glen
      • Willow Glen is located in Saratoga County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Willow Glen
      • From Albany to Willow Glen
    • Round Lake
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Round Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Lake
      • Round Lake is located in Saratoga County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 793 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Round Lake <3>
  • Schenectady County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Niskayuna
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Rotterdam
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rotterdam have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rotterdam
      • Rotterdam is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rotterdam <3>
    • Aqueduct
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Schenectady
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Alplaus
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Scotia
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotia
      • Scotia is located in Schenectady County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,618 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Scotia <3>
    • East Glenville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Princetown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Duane Lake
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Duane Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duane Lake
      • Duane Lake is located in Schenectady County
    • Rynex Corners
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Duanesburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Duanesburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duanesburg
      • Duanesburg is located in Schenectady County
    • Mariaville Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mariaville Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mariaville Lake
      • Mariaville Lake is located in Schenectady County
  • Schoharie County
  • Washington County
  • Berkshire County (MA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Hancock
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hancock. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
      • Hancock is located in Berkshire County (MA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 695 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Hancock
      • From Albany to Hancock
    • New Ashford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Ashford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Ashford
      • New Ashford is located in Berkshire County (MA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 223 people
    • Shaker Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shaker Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaker Village
      • Shaker Village is located in Berkshire County (MA)
    • Lanesborough
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lanesborough have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lanesborough
      • Lanesborough is located in Berkshire County (MA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,925 people
    • Williamstown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamstown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamstown
      • Williamstown is located in Berkshire County (MA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,631 people
    • Richmond
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Stevens Corner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Pittsfield
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Berkshire
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berkshire have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkshire
      • Berkshire is located in Berkshire County (MA)
    • Farnams
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Farnams. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farnams
      • Farnams is located in Berkshire County (MA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Farnams
      • From Albany to Farnams
    • West Stockbridge
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Bennington County (VT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany listed first.
    • Pownal Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Pownal
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pownal have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pownal
      • Pownal is located in Bennington County (VT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,386 people

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

Cemeteries Near Albany ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Albany.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Albany, with the one closest to Albany 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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Albany had a population of 94,923 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Albany had a population of 95,429 people.

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

  • Normansville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • West Albany
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for West Albany. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Albany
    • West Albany is located in Albany County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to West Albany
    • From Albany to West Albany
  • Glenmont
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Defreestville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Loudonville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Loudonville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loudonville
    • Loudonville is located in Albany County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Loudonville <3>
  • Delmar
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delmar have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delmar
    • Delmar is located in Albany County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Delmar <3>
  • Bethlehem Center
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Couse
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Newtonville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Slingerlands
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Wemple
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wemple have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wemple
    • Wemple is located in Albany County
  • Watervliet
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (19 more) ...
    • Luther
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Shakers
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shakers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shakers
      • Shakers is located in Albany County
    • Best
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Albany ...

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 370 newspapers that have been published in the area around Albany.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Albany. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Albany and those printed in the larger area surrounding Albany.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<7> of Albany.

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 Albany:

The official website for Albany: www.albanyny.org/

The official website for Albany County: www.albanycounty.com/

The official website for State of New York: https://www.ny.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<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>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>If we found a location and have questions about the accuracy of our information, we will simply say that the marker is 'in the vicinity'. We are not confident about the location and the position of our marker is only a rough guide. If we have too many doubts about the location, we will not include it in our database.
<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 Albany, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<7>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Albany) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Albany. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.6568, Longitude: -73.7632    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025