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 Belltown (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 Belltown. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.
Belltown is located in Cayuga County.
To see how the shape of New York's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Cayuga County: Cortland, Onondaga, Oswego, Seneca, Tompkins & Wayne.
Below are the counties that are near Belltown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Belltown:
- Cayuga County (The home county of Belltown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Atwaters
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Atwaters is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwaters
- East Genoa
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- East Genoa is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Genoa
- Ledyard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ledyard is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledyard
- Black Rock
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Black Rock is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Rock
- Poplar Ridge
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Willets
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Willets is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willets
- Locke
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Sherwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Sherwood is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood
- Aurora
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Scipioville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Scipioville is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipioville
- Cascade
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cascade is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cascade
- Montville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Montville is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montville
- Moravia
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Chemung County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Millport
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Sullivanville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Sullivanville is located in Chemung County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivanville
- Van Etten
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Cortland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Scott
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Scott is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott
- Munsons Corners
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Munsons Corners is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Munsons Corners
- Homer
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Cortland
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- East Scott
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- East Scott is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Scott
- Pratt Corners
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Pratt Corners is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt Corners
- Little York
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Little York is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little York
- East River
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- East River is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East River
- Preble
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Harford
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Slab City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Slab City is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab City
- Cummings Crossing
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Cummings Crossing is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cummings Crossing
- East Homer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- East Homer is located in Cortland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Homer
- Onondaga County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Mandana
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Mandana is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandana
- Spafford
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Spafford is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spafford
- Skaneateles
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Amber
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Amber is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amber
- Otisco Valley
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Otisco Valley is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otisco Valley
- Rose Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Rose Hill is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
- Thorn Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Thorn Hill is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorn Hill
- Mottville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Otisco
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Otisco is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otisco
- Assembly Park
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Assembly Park is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Assembly Park
- Marcellus
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Tully
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Cardiff
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cardiff is located in Onondaga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardiff
- Ontario County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Billsboro
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Billsboro is located in Ontario County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billsboro
- Geneva
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Dobbins Corner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dobbins Corner is located in Ontario County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dobbins Corner
- Hall
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- West Junius
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- West Junius is located in Ontario County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Junius
- Gorham
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Flint
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Flint is located in Ontario County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint
- Melvin Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Melvin Hill is located in Ontario County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melvin Hill
- Seneca Castle
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Schuyler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Searsburg
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Searsburg is located in Schuyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Searsburg
- Perry City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mecklenburg
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Logan
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Logan is located in Schuyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logan
- Hector
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cayutaville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Cayutaville is located in Schuyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayutaville
- Bennettsburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Bennettsburg is located in Schuyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennettsburg
- Burdett
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Odessa
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Reading Center
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Watkins Glen
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Watkins Glen is located in Schuyler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watkins Glen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,851 people
- Former names for Watkins Glen:
- Jefferson
- Salubria
- Watkins
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Watkins Glen <1>
- Alpine
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Montour Falls
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Seneca County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Kidders
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Kidders is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kidders
- Interlaken
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Interlaken is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Interlaken
- Population from the 2020 Census: 599 people
- Former names for Interlaken:
- Farmer Village
- Farmer
- Farmerville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Interlaken <1>
- Lodi
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Ovid
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- East Varick
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- East Varick is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Varick
- Romulus
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Willard
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Canoga
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Canoga is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canoga
- Kuneytown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Kuneytown is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kuneytown
- Seneca Falls
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Waterloo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Border City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Border City is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Border City
- Tyre
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Tyre is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyre
- Steuben County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Keuka
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Keuka is located in Steuben County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keuka
- Catawba
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Catawba is located in Steuben County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catawba
- Tioga County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- North Spencer
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- North Spencer is located in Tioga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Spencer
- Spencer
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- West Candor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- West Candor is located in Tioga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Candor
- Candor
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Tompkins County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Lake Ridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Ridge is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ridge
- North Lansing
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- North Lansing is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Lansing
- West Groton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- West Groton is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Groton
- Taughannock Falls
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Taughannock Falls is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taughannock Falls
- Willow Creek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Willow Creek is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
- East Lansing
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- East Lansing is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lansing
- Myers
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Myers is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myers
- Trumansburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Jacksonville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Jacksonville is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonville
- Lansing
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Groton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Cayuga Heights
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Cayuga Heights is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cayuga Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,526 people
- Peruville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Peruville is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peruville
- Yates County
- The following are listed by their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Dresden
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Himrod
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Glenora
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Glenora is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenora
- Angus
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Angus is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
- Dundee
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Seneca Mills
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Seneca Mills is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca Mills
- Bellona
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Penn Yan
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Barrington
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Barrington is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington
- Benton Center
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Benton Center is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Center
- Keuka Park
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Yatesville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Yatesville is located in Yates County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yatesville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Belltown, see our County-by-County Page for Belltown.
Cemeteries Near Belltown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Belltown.
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 Belltown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Belltown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Palmer Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Belltown Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Goodyears Corners Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Maplewood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Lake Ridge Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- German Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- West Genoa Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Our Lady of the Lake Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lansingville Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Ledyard Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Bower Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Genoa Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (449 more) ...
- Tuppers Corners Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- North Lansing Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- East Venice Cemetery
(5 miles [8 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>
While we didn't find Belltown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Belltown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Belltown, with the one closest to Belltown listed first.
- Five Corners
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Five Corners is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Corners
- Lake Ridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Ridge is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ridge
- Atwaters
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Atwaters is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atwaters
- Lansingville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Lansingville is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lansingville
- Genoa
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ledyard
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ledyard is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledyard
- East Genoa
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- East Genoa is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Genoa
- North Lansing
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- North Lansing is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Lansing
- Sheldrake
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Sheldrake is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheldrake
- Covert
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Covert is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covert
- Ludlowville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ludlowville is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ludlowville
- East Venice
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- East Venice is located in Cayuga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Venice
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Trumansburg
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Taughannock Falls
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Taughannock Falls is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taughannock Falls
- Willow Creek
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Willow Creek is located in Tompkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Belltown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Belltown.
Newspapers Published in Belltown ...
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 96 newspapers that have been published in the area around Belltown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Belltown, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Belltown.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Belltown:
- Websites specific to New York
- Pages specific to Cayuga County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Chemung County
- Cortland County
- Onondaga County
- Ontario County
- Schuyler County
- Seneca County
- Steuben County
- Tioga County
- Tompkins County
- Yates County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for New York
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 Belltown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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- Belltown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |