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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 Saint James (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 Saint James. 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 Saint James ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Saint James: St. James

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 northeast 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 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 east 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.

Saint James is located in Suffolk County.

To see how the shape of New York's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

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

  • Suffolk County     (The home county of Saint James)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
    • Head-of-the-Harbor
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Head-of-the-Harbor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Head-of-the-Harbor
      • Head-of-the-Harbor is located in Suffolk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,452 people
    • Nesconset
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nesconset have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nesconset
      • Nesconset is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nesconset <2>
    • Nissequogue
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nissequogue have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nissequogue
      • Nissequogue is located in Suffolk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,727 people
    • Lake Grove
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Grove
      • Lake Grove is located in Suffolk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,055 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Grove <2>
    • The Branch
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for The Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Branch
      • The Branch is located in Suffolk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,789 people
      • The Branch has also been known as:
      • Village of the Branch
    • Smithtown
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Centereach
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Centereach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centereach
      • Centereach is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Centereach <2>
    • Stony Brook
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Lake Ronkonkoma
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Ronkonkoma have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ronkonkoma
      • Lake Ronkonkoma is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lake Ronkonkoma <2>
    • Islandia
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Islandia have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Islandia
      • Islandia is located in Suffolk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,309 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Islandia <2>
    • Ronkonkoma
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Hauppauge
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hauppauge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hauppauge
      • Hauppauge is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hauppauge <2>
  • Nassau County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
    • Laurel Hollow
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laurel Hollow have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Hollow
      • Laurel Hollow is located in Nassau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,027 people
    • Woodbury
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Old Bethpage
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Bethpage have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Bethpage
      • Old Bethpage is located in Nassau County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Old Bethpage <2>
    • Plainview
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plainview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainview
      • Plainview is located in Nassau County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plainview <2>
    • Cove Neck
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cove Neck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Neck
      • Cove Neck is located in Nassau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 299 people
    • Farmingdale
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • South Farmingdale
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for South Farmingdale have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Farmingdale
      • South Farmingdale is located in Nassau County
    • Swedetown Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swedetown Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swedetown Village
      • Swedetown Village is located in Nassau County
    • Oyster Bay Cove
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oyster Bay Cove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oyster Bay Cove
      • Oyster Bay Cove is located in Nassau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,243 people
    • Syosset
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Syosset have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Syosset
      • Syosset is located in Nassau County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Syosset <2>
    • Bethpage
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Centre Island
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Centre Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre Island
      • Centre Island is located in Nassau County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 404 people
  • Westchester County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
    • Port Chester
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Milton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
      • Milton is located in Westchester County
    • Rye
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Scotts Corners
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotts Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts Corners
      • Scotts Corners is located in Westchester County
    • Rye Brook
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rye Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye Brook
      • Rye Brook is located in Westchester County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,573 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rye Brook <2>
    • Mamaroneck
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Fairfield County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
    • Black Rock
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Fairfield
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Southport
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Compo
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Greens Farms
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Rowayton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Westport
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport
      • Westport is located in Fairfield County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 28,444 people
    • Darien
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Darien have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darien
      • Darien is located in Fairfield County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,693 people
    • East Norwalk
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Norwalk
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norwalk have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwalk
      • Norwalk is located in Fairfield County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 88,655 people
    • Saugatuck
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Saugatuck. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saugatuck
      • Saugatuck is located in Fairfield County (CT)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Saugatuck
      • From Saint James to Saugatuck
    • South Norwalk
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
  • New Haven County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint James, with the one closest to Saint James listed first.
    • Milford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
      • Milford is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,781 people
    • Milford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milford
      • Milford is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 53,259 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Milford <2>
    • Orange
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orange have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange
      • Orange is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 13,882 people
    • Orange
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orange have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange
      • Orange is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Orange <2>
    • West Haven
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Haven have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Haven
      • West Haven is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,367 people
    • West Haven
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Allingtown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Short Beach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Saint James ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Saint James.

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

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

  • St. James Methodist Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. James Methodist Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. James Methodist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. James Episcopal Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. James Episcopal Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. James Episcopal Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Smithtown Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Mills Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mills Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mills Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • St. Patricks Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Newton Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Newton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Newton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • New Village Congregation Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Village Congregation Church Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Village Congregation Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Landing Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Lake Ronkonkoma Cemetery II
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • UMC Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Nassakeage - Hawkins Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nassakeage - Hawkins Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nassakeage - Hawkins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oak Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oak Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oak Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (308 more) ...
    • Methodist Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Methodist Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Methodist Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Hauppauge Methodist Episcopal Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hauppauge Methodist Episcopal Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hauppauge Methodist Episcopal Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Cenacle Convent Graveyard
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cenacle Convent Graveyard
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cenacle Convent Graveyard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 Saint James had a population of 136 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Saint James ...

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 176 newspapers that have been published in the area around Saint James.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Saint James. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Saint James and those printed in the larger area surrounding Saint James.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<6> of Saint James.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer 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 Saint James:

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

The official website for Suffolk County: www.co.suffolk.ny.us/

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

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<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 Saint James, 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- Saint James) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Saint James. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.8757, Longitude: -73.1563    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025