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 Hillsdale (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 Hillsdale. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Hillsdale is located in Columbia 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 Columbia County: Litchfield (CT), Berkshire (MA), Albany, Dutchess, Greene, Rensselaer & Ulster.
Below are the counties that are near Hillsdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Hillsdale:
- Columbia County (The home county of Hillsdale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Craryville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Copake Lake
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Copake Lake is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copake Lake
- Copake Falls
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Copake
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Green River
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Green River is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green River
- Martindale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Martindale is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martindale
- Harlemville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Harlemville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harlemville
- Philmont
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Weed Mines
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Weed Mines is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weed Mines
- Mellenville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Hollowville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Taghkanic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Albany County
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Coeymans
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ravena
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Aquetuck
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Aquetuck is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aquetuck
- Coeymans Hollow
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Alcove
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Selkirk
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Beckers Corners
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Beckers Corners is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckers Corners
- South Bethlehem
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- South Bethlehem is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Bethlehem
- Dutchess County
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Irondale
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Irondale is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irondale
- Spencer Corners
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Spencer Corners is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencer Corners
- Millerton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Jackson Corners
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Jackson Corners is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jackson Corners
- Mount Ross
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Ross is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Ross
- Pine Plains
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Bethel
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Bethel is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Upper Red Hook
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Upper Red Hook is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Red Hook
- Smithfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Smithfield is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smithfield
- Milan
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Milan is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milan
- Rock City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rock City is located in Dutchess County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
- Red Hook
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Athens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Catskill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Catskill is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Catskill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,815 people
- Coxsackie
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Jefferson Heights
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Jefferson Heights is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Heights
- Leeds
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Kiskatom
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Kiskatom is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kiskatom
- Medway
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Medway is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Medway
- Cairo Junction
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cairo Junction is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cairo Junction
- South Cairo
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- South Cairo is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Cairo
- Gayhead
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gayhead is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gayhead
- Cairo
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Palenville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Rensselaer County
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Brainard
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Nassau
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- East Nassau
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- East Nassau is located in Rensselaer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Nassau
- Population from the 2020 Census: 566 people
- Wyomanock
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Wyomanock is located in Rensselaer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyomanock
- Schodack Landing
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hoag Corners
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Hoag Corners is located in Rensselaer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoag Corners
- Schodack Center
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Schodack Center is located in Rensselaer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schodack Center
- Stephentown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Castleton-on-Hudson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- East Schodack
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- West Stephentown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- West Stephentown is located in Rensselaer County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Stephentown
- East Greenbush
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ulster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Malden
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Malden is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malden
- Malden has also been known as:
- Malden-on-Hudson
- Saugerties
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Glasco
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Quarryville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Quarryville is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quarryville
- Mount Marion
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Marion Park
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Mount Marion Park is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Marion Park
- East Kingston
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- East Kingston is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Kingston
- Lake Katrine
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Ruby
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- High Woods
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- High Woods is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Woods
- Lincoln Park
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lincoln Park is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Park
- Ponck Hockie
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ponck Hockie is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ponck Hockie
- Hartford County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- West Hartland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Hartland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hartland is located in Hartford County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Litchfield County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Taconic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Twin Lakes
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Twin Lakes is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
- Salisbury
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Salisbury is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,584 people
- Salisbury
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Canaan
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- North Canaan
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- North Canaan is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Canaan
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,235 people
- Wangum Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wangum Village is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wangum Village
- Lakeville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Ore Hill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Ore Hill is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ore Hill
- Clayton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Clayton is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayton
- Amesville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Amesville is located in Litchfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amesville
- East Canaan
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Berkshire County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Egremont
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Egremont is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egremont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,202 people
- North Egremont
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- North Egremont is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Egremont
- Egremont Plain
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Egremont Plain is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egremont Plain
- South Egremont
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- South Egremont is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Egremont
- Alford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Alford is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 485 people
- Mount Washington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Washington is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Washington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
- Great Barrington
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Great Barrington is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,976 people
- Van Deusenville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Van Deusenville is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Deusenville
- Housatonic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Housatonic is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Housatonic
- Sheffield
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Sheffield is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheffield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,112 people
- Rockdale Mills
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rockdale Mills is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale Mills
- Glendale
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Glendale is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
- Hampden County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Tolland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Tolland is located in Hampden County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 506 people
- North Blandford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- North Blandford is located in Hampden County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Blandford
- Chester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Chester is located in Hampden County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chester
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,365 people
- Blandford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Blandford is located in Hampden County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blandford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,249 people
- West Granville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- West Granville is located in Hampden County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Granville
- Hampshire County (MA)
- Middlefield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Middlefield is located in Hampshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 538 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Hillsdale, see our County-by-County Page for Hillsdale.
Cemeteries Near Hillsdale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Hillsdale.
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 Hillsdale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Hillsdale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Williams Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Collins Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Hillsdale Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Old St. Bridget's Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Niver Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Riverside Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- West Copake Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Copake Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Crum Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Harlemville Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Sacred Heart Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Churchill Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (282 more) ...
- Austerlitz Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Union Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Our Lady Of The Valley Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
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>
While we didn't find Hillsdale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Hillsdale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Hillsdale, with the one closest to Hillsdale listed first.
- Craryville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- North Egremont
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- North Egremont is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Egremont
- North Hillsdale
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- North Hillsdale is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hillsdale
- Copake
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- South Egremont
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- South Egremont is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Egremont
- Egremont Plain
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Egremont Plain is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egremont Plain
- West Copake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Copake is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Copake
- Mount Washington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Washington is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Washington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
- Alford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Alford is located in Berkshire County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 485 people
- Green River
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Green River is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green River
- Martindale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Martindale is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martindale
- Weed Mines
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Weed Mines is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weed Mines
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Harlemville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Harlemville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harlemville
- Philmont
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Taghkanic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Hillsdale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Hillsdale.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Hillsdale ...
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 87 newspapers that have been published in the area around Hillsdale.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Hillsdale. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Hillsdale and those printed in the larger area surrounding Hillsdale.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<5> of Hillsdale.
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 helpful 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 Hillsdale:
- Websites specific to New York
- Pages specific to Columbia County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Albany County
- Dutchess County
- Greene County
- Rensselaer County
- Ulster County
- Hartford County
- Litchfield County
- Berkshire County
- Hampden County
- Hampshire 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 Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MACRIS (for the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System). More information about the MHC and MACRIS can be found on their website: mhc-macris.net.
When visiting the MACRIS website, you might encounter their page requiring the 'Acceptance of Terms'. With your acceptance, you'll be transfered to the desired page.
|
| <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 Hillsdale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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- Hillsdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |