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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 Charleston (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 Charleston. 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 and hospitals 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.

Charleston is located in Montgomery 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 Montgomery County: Fulton, Herkimer, Otsego, Schenectady & Schoharie.

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

  • Montgomery County     (The home county of Charleston)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Auriesville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Burtonsville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Burtonsville is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burtonsville
    • Randall
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Randall is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randall
    • Fonda
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Fonda is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fonda
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 750 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fonda <1>
    • Fultonville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Lykers
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Lykers is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lykers
    • Tribes Hill
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Flat Creek
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Flat Creek is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Creek
    • Amsterdam
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Fort Johnson
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Cranesville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Harrower
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Harrower is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrower
  • Albany County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Knox
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Altamont
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Berne
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • East Berne
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
      • East Berne is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Berne
    • Fullers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Fullers is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fullers
    • Meadowdale
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Meadowdale is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowdale
    • Guilderland
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Hartmans Corners
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Hartmans Corners is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartmans Corners
    • South Berne
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • South Berne is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Berne
    • Lisha Kill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Lisha Kill is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisha Kill
    • New Salem
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • New Salem is located in Albany County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Salem
    • Voorheesville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Fulton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Sammonsville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Sammonsville is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sammonsville
    • Johnstown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Progress
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Progress is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Progress
    • Perth
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Perth is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perth
    • Berkshire
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Berkshire is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkshire
    • Gloversville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Meco
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Meco is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meco
    • Ephratah
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Ephratah is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ephratah
    • Broadalbin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Garoga
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Garoga is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garoga
    • Rockwood
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Rockwood is located in Fulton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwood
    • Mayfield
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
  • Hamilton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Benson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Benson is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benson
    • Arietta
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Arietta is located in Hamilton County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arietta
  • Herkimer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Fort Plain
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Starkville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Starkville is located in Herkimer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starkville
    • Newville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Newville is located in Herkimer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newville
    • Dolgeville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Deck
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Deck is located in Herkimer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deck
    • Little Falls
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Paines Hollow
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Paines Hollow is located in Herkimer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paines Hollow
    • Salisbury Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Edicks
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Edicks is located in Herkimer County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edicks
  • Otsego County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Center Valley
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Center Valley is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Valley
    • South Valley
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • South Valley is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Valley
    • Cherry Valley
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Calcutta
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Calcutta is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calcutta
    • Decatur
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Decatur is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
    • Pleasant Brook
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Pleasant Brook is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Brook
    • Roseboom
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Middle Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Middle Village is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Village
    • Middlefield Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Middlefield Center is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield Center
    • Springfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Springfield is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springfield
    • Westford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Middlefield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Middlefield is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield
  • Saratoga County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • West Charlton
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • West Charlton is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Charlton
    • Charlton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Charlton is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlton
    • Galway
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Whiteside Corners
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Whiteside Corners is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteside Corners
    • Hagedorns Mills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Hagedorns Mills is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagedorns Mills
    • Birchton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Birchton is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birchton
    • Harmony Corners
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Harmony Corners is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Corners
    • Burnt Hills
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Mosherville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Mosherville is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mosherville
    • Ballston Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Ballston Center is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ballston Center
    • Groom Corners
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Groom Corners is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groom Corners
    • Elnora
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Elnora is located in Saratoga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elnora
  • Schenectady County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Braman Corners
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Braman Corners is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braman Corners
    • Mariaville Lake
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Mariaville Lake is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mariaville Lake
    • Mariaville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Delanson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Duanesburg
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Duanesburg is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duanesburg
    • Pattersonville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Rynex Corners
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Rynex Corners is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rynex Corners
    • Duane Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Duane Lake is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duane Lake
    • Pattersonville - Rotterdam Junction
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Princetown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Princetown is located in Schenectady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princetown
    • Glenville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Rotterdam Junction
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
  • Schoharie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charleston, with the one closest to Charleston listed first.
    • Esperance
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Central Bridge
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Argusville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Argusville is located in Schoharie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argusville
    • Howes Cave
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Schoharie
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Lawyersville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Lawyersville is located in Schoharie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawyersville
    • Gallupville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Cobleskill
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Mineral Springs
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Mineral Springs is located in Schoharie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral Springs
    • Greenbush
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Greenbush is located in Schoharie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbush
    • Sharon Springs
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Janesville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Janesville is located in Schoharie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janesville

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

Cemeteries Near Charleston ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Charleston.

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

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

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

  • First Baptist Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Kimball Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Wycoff Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Haight Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Friends Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Christian Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Eaton Corners Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • The Eaton Corners Cemetery is located on private property - be sure to secure permission before visiting.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eaton Corners Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #64409 <2>
  • County Line Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • County Line Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Gove Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Van Epps - Starin Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Village Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (495 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.<3>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Charleston had a population of 57 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Oak Ridge
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Oak Ridge is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Ridge
  • Glen
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Glen is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen
  • Charleston Four Corners
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Burtonsville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Burtonsville is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burtonsville
  • Auriesville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Rural Grove
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Rural Grove is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rural Grove
  • Sloansville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Esperance
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Braman Corners
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Braman Corners is located in Schenectady County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braman Corners
  • Minaville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Minaville is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minaville
  • Randall
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Randall is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randall
  • Currytown
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Currytown is located in Montgomery County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Currytown
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Lykers
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Lykers is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lykers
    • Fonda
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Fonda is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fonda
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 750 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fonda <1>
    • Fultonville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in Charleston ...

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 141 newspapers that have been published in the area around Charleston.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Charleston, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Charleston.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Charleston:

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 Charleston, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Charleston) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.