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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 Centralia (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 Centralia. 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.

Centralia is located in Chautauqua 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 Chautauqua County: Cattaraugus, Erie, Erie (PA) & Warren (PA).

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

  • Chautauqua County     (The home county of Centralia)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Centralia, with the one closest to Centralia listed first.
    • South Stockton
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • South Stockton is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Stockton
    • Moons
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Moons is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moons
    • Sinclairville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Maple Springs
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Cassadaga
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Bemus Point
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Gerry
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Bayview
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Bayview is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayview
    • Hartfield
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Hartfield is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartfield
    • Wooglin
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Wooglin is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooglin
    • Phillips Mills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Phillips Mills is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phillips Mills
    • Mayville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Belleview
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Belleview is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleview
  • Cattaraugus County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Centralia, with the one closest to Centralia listed first.
    • Conewango
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Conewango is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conewango
    • South Dayton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Leon
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Axeville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Axeville is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Axeville
    • Cottage
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Cottage is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage
    • Randolph
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • East Randolph
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • East Randolph is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Randolph
      • Estimated population in 2012: 615 people
    • Perrysburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Persia
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Persia is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Persia
    • Napoli
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Napoli is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Napoli
    • Onoville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Onoville is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onoville
    • Cattaraugus
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Gowanda
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Gowanda is located in Cattaraugus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gowanda
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,524 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gowanda <1>
  • Erie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Centralia, with the one closest to Centralia listed first.
    • Farnham
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Brant
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Lake Erie Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Lake Erie Beach is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Erie Beach
    • Angola
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Erie County (PA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Centralia, with the one closest to Centralia listed first.
    • Freeport
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Freeport is located in Erie County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeport
    • North East
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Corry
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Corry is located in Erie County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corry
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,180 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Corry <1>
    • Hornby
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Hornby is located in Erie County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hornby
    • Wattsburg
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Beaver Dam
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Beaver Dam is located in Erie County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Dam
  • Warren County (PA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Centralia, with the one closest to Centralia listed first.
    • Sugar Grove
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Bear Lake
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Lottsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Lottsville is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lottsville
    • Putnamville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Putnamville is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Putnamville
    • Columbus
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Colza
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Colza is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colza
    • Youngsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Irvine
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Pittsfield
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • East Warren
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • East Warren is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Warren
    • Garland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Garland is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garland
    • Warren
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Warren is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,974 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Warren <1>
    • West Spring Creek
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • West Spring Creek is located in Warren County (PA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Spring Creek

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

Cemeteries Near Centralia ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Centralia.

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 Centralia - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Union Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Red Bird Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Pleasantville Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Stockton Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Dewittville Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Lewis Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Pickett Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Cassadaga Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Kelley Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Bemus Point Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (185 more) ...
    • Gerry Village Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Charlotte Center Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Bachelor Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Centralia had a population of 119 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • South Stockton
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • South Stockton is located in Chautauqua County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Stockton
  • Moons
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Moons is located in Chautauqua County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moons
  • Sinclairville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Stockton
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Dewittville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Maple Springs
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Burnhams
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Burnhams is located in Chautauqua County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnhams
  • Chautauqua
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Bayview
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Bayview is located in Chautauqua County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayview
  • Bemus Point
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Gerry
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Charlotte Center
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Charlotte Center is located in Chautauqua County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlotte Center
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Cassadaga
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Lily Dale
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Hartfield
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Hartfield is located in Chautauqua County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartfield

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

Newspapers Published in Centralia ...

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 54 newspapers that have been published in the area around Centralia.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Centralia, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Centralia.

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 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 Centralia:

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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Centralia) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<3>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.
<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 Centralia, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.