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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 Owls Head (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 Owls Head. 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.

Name Variations for Owls Head ...

When searching records, keep in mind that names and their spelling can change over time. Our sources include documents like maps, railroad schedules, Travel, Express and Shipping Guides. Many of these documents date from the 1800's and it's common to find spelling differences.

Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might have occurred.

While the name of this community is Owls Head, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Owls Head may originally have been Owl's Head.

Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Owls Head might be written as Owl Head.

If you have information about these names (such as the reason for the change, date of change, the origin of the name), please Contact Us.

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.

Owls Head is located in Franklin 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 Franklin County: Clinton, Essex, Hamilton & Saint Lawrence.

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

  • Franklin County     (The home county of Owls Head)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Owls Head, with the one closest to Owls Head listed first.
    • Whippleville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Malone
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Brainardsville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Skerry
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Skerry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skerry
      • Skerry is located in Franklin County
    • Burke
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Bangor
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Chateaugay
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • West Bangor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bangor
      • West Bangor is located in Franklin County
    • Constable
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Merrillsville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrillsville
      • Merrillsville is located in Franklin County
    • East Dickinson
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dickinson
      • East Dickinson is located in Franklin County
    • Brushton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Saint Regis Falls
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Clinton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Owls Head, with the one closest to Owls Head listed first.
    • Standish
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Standish
      • Standish is located in Clinton County
    • Lyon Mountain
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Harrigan
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harrigan have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrigan
      • Harrigan is located in Clinton County
    • Ellenburg Center
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Churubusco
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Redford
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Moffitsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitsville
      • Moffitsville is located in Clinton County
    • Dannemora
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Altona
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altona have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altona
      • Altona is located in Clinton County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altona <2>
    • Black Brook
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Brook
      • Black Brook is located in Clinton County
    • Morrisonville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • West Plattsburgh
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Plattsburgh
      • West Plattsburgh is located in Clinton County
    • Woods Falls
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods Falls
      • Woods Falls is located in Clinton County
  • Essex County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Owls Head, with the one closest to Owls Head listed first.
    • Bloomingdale
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Saranac Lake
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Ray Brook
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Whiteface
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteface
      • Whiteface is located in Essex County
  • Saint Lawrence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Owls Head, with the one closest to Owls Head listed first.
    • Nicholville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Hopkinton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopkinton
      • Hopkinton is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Helena
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Winthrop
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Owls Head ...

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 29 newspapers that have been published in the area around Owls Head.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Owls Head, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Owls Head.

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 Owls Head:

Cemeteries Near Owls Head ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Owls Head.

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

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

  • Chasm Falls Methodist Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Chasm Falls Methodist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Chasm Falls Methodist Cemetery
  • St. Helen's Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Helen's Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Helen's Cemetery
  • Hoose Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hoose Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hoose Cemetery
  • Kimpton Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kimpton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kimpton Cemetery
  • Ladd Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ladd Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ladd Cemetery
  • Bellmont Center Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • St. Josephs Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Josephs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Josephs Cemetery
  • Morningside Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morningside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morningside Cemetery
  • Bunker Hill Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bunker Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bunker Hill Cemetery
  • Merrill Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Merrill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Merrill Cemetery
  • Morningside Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Notre Dame Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (115 more) ...
    • Webster Street Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Webster Street Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Webster Street Cemetery
    • Pike Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pike Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pike Cemetery
    • St. John Bosco Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. John Bosco Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. John Bosco Cemetery

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.<6>

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

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

  • Chasm Falls
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chasm Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chasm Falls
    • Chasm Falls is located in Franklin County
  • Whippleville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Wolf Pond
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wolf Pond have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Pond
    • Wolf Pond is located in Franklin County
  • Malone
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Merrill
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merrill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrill
    • Merrill is located in Clinton County
  • Brainardsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Skerry
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Skerry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skerry
    • Skerry is located in Franklin County
  • Burke
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Standish
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Standish
    • Standish is located in Clinton County
  • Lyon Mountain
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
  • Bangor
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Loon Lake
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Loon Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loon Lake
    • Loon Lake is located in Franklin County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Chateaugay
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Thayer Corners
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thayer Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thayer Corners
      • Thayer Corners is located in Franklin County
    • North Bangor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Bangor have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bangor
      • North Bangor is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for North Bangor <2>

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

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

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

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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- Owls Head) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Owls Head. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.7345, Longitude: -74.1688       In this case, the coordinates for Owls Head have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<6>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 Owls Head, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024