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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 Downsville (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 Downsville. 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 southwest 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 south.

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 south 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.

Downsville is located in Delaware County.

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 Delaware County: Broome, Chenango, Greene, Otsego, Schoharie, Sullivan, Ulster & Wayne (PA).

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

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

Cemeteries Near Downsville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Downsville.

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

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

  • Paige Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Paige Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Paige Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Wilson Hollow Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilson Hollow Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wilson Hollow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gregorytown Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gregorytown Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gregorytown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Long Flat Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Long Flat Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Long Flat Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Harvard Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Harvard Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Harvard Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Horton Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Horton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Horton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hamden Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Cooks Falls Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Shaver Hollow Road Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shaver Hollow Road Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shaver Hollow Road Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fall Clove Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fall Clove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fall Clove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Walton Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Walton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Walton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old East Branch Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old East Branch Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old East Branch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (228 more) ...
    • East Branch Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the East Branch Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the East Branch Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Bostwick Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bostwick Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bostwick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Read Creek Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Read Creek Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Read Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Downsville had a population of 516 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Colchester
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Colchester have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colchester
    • Colchester is located in Delaware County
  • Hawleys
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hawleys have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawleys
    • Hawleys is located in Delaware County
  • Harvard
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Harvard. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvard
    • Harvard is located in Delaware County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Harvard
    • From Downsville to Harvard
  • Horton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Hamden
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Peakville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Peakville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peakville
    • Peakville is located in Delaware County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Peakville
    • From Downsville to Peakville
  • Chiloway
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Chiloway. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chiloway
    • Chiloway is located in Delaware County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Chiloway
    • From Downsville to Chiloway
  • Butternut Grove
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • De Lancey
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Lancey have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Lancey
    • De Lancey is located in Delaware County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for De Lancey <1>
  • East Branch
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for East Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Branch
    • East Branch is located in Delaware County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for East Branch <1>
  • Cooks Falls
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
  • Walton
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Walton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walton
    • Walton is located in Delaware County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,776 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Walton <1>
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Beerston
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beerston have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beerston
      • Beerston is located in Delaware County
    • Rockland
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rockland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
      • Rockland is located in Sullivan County
    • Beaverkill
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Beaverkill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverkill
      • Beaverkill is located in Sullivan County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Beaverkill
      • From Downsville to Beaverkill

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Downsville ...

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 92 newspapers that have been published in the area around Downsville.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Downsville. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Downsville and those printed in the larger area surrounding Downsville.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 23 miles [37 km]<6> of Downsville.

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 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 Downsville:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Downsville. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Delaware County: www.co.delaware.ny.us/

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

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>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.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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 Downsville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Downsville) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Downsville. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.0821, Longitude: -74.9964    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 19 Aug 2025