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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 Edgewater (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 Edgewater. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.

Edgewater is located in Erie 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 Erie County: Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Genesee, Niagara & Wyoming.

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

  • Erie County     (The home county of Edgewater)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgewater, with the one closest to Edgewater listed first.
    • Tonawanda
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Grandyle Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Grandyle Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandyle Village
    • Ferry Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Ferry Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferry Village
    • Kenmore
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Getzville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Amherst
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Swormville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
      • Swormville is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swormville
    • Williamsville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Buffalo
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Cheektowaga
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Sloan
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Sloan is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sloan
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,522 people
    • Clarence Center
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Bowmansville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgewater, with the one closest to Edgewater listed first.
    • Amherst
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Amherst is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
    • Indian Falls
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Indian Falls is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Falls
    • Alabama
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Alabama is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama
    • Basom
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Corfu
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Wheatville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Wheatville is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatville
    • North Pembroke
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • North Pembroke is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Pembroke
    • Sawens
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Sawens is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawens
    • Griswold
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Griswold is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Griswold
  • Niagara County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgewater, with the one closest to Edgewater listed first.
    • North Tonawanda
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • North Tonawanda is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Tonawanda
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 30,050 people
    • Saint Johnsburg
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Saint Johnsburg is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johnsburg
    • Martinsville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Martinsville is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Wurlitzer Park Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Bergholtz
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Bergholtz is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bergholtz
    • Black Creek Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Black Creek Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek Village
    • Park Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Park Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
    • Hoffman
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
    • Colonial Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Colonial Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Pletchers Corners
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Pletchers Corners is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pletchers Corners
    • Niagara Falls
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Pekin
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Pekin is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pekin
    • Pendleton Center
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Pendleton Center is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pendleton Center
  • Orleans County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgewater, with the one closest to Edgewater listed first.
    • Jeddo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jeddo is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
    • Lakewood Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Lakewood Village is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
    • Medina
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Wyoming County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Edgewater, with the one closest to Edgewater listed first.
    • Folsomdale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Folsomdale is located in Wyoming County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsomdale
    • Harris Corners
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Harris Corners is located in Wyoming County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Corners

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

Cemeteries Near Edgewater ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Edgewater.

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

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

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

  • White Haven Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
  • Maple Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • St. Jacobs Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • St. Stevens Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Francis Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • City Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for City Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the City Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tonawanda.
    • The City Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Tonawanda City Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #64209 <2>
  • Salem Church Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem Church Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Salem Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Tonawanda.
    • The Salem Church Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Salem Cemetery
    • Salem's Gemeinde Kirchhof
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2300968 <2>
  • St. Martin's Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • St. Paul Lutheran Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • St. Matthews Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Friedens Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (304 more) ...
    • St. Marks Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Holy Ghost Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • St. Pauls Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 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.<3>

While we didn't find Edgewater in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Edgewater.

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

  • Tonawanda
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • North Tonawanda
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • North Tonawanda is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Tonawanda
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 30,050 people
  • Saint Johnsburg
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Saint Johnsburg is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johnsburg
  • Bergholtz
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Bergholtz is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bergholtz
  • Martinsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Martinsville is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
  • La Salle
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • La Salle is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Salle
  • Hoffman
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
  • Kenmore
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Beach Ridge
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Beach Ridge is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach Ridge
  • Shawnee
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Shawnee is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawnee
  • Sanborn
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Eggertsville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Getzville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Wendelville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Wendelville is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wendelville
    • Mapleton
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Mapleton is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mapleton

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

Newspapers Published in Edgewater ...

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 77 newspapers that have been published in the area around Edgewater.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Edgewater, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Edgewater.

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 Edgewater:

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 Edgewater, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Edgewater) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.