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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 Sheenwater (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 Sheenwater. 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 northwest 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 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 west 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.

Sheenwater 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 Sheenwater. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Sheenwater:

  • Erie County     (The home county of Sheenwater)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sheenwater, with the one closest to Sheenwater listed first.
    • Grandyle Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Grandyle Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandyle Village
    • Ferry Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Ferry Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferry Village
    • Kenmore
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Tonawanda
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Buffalo
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Amherst
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Getzville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Sloan
      (13 miles [20.9 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
    • Williamsville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Cheektowaga
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Lackawanna
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Bay View
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Bay View is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
  • Chautauqua County
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sheenwater, with the one closest to Sheenwater listed first.
    • Amherst
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Amherst is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
    • Corfu
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Niagara County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Sheenwater, with the one closest to Sheenwater listed first.
    • Niagara Falls
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Black Creek Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Black Creek Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek Village
    • North Tonawanda
      (8 miles [12.9 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
    • Park Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Park Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Village
    • Pletchers Corners
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • Pletchers Corners is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pletchers Corners
    • Saint Johnsburg
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Saint Johnsburg is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johnsburg
    • Colonial Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Colonial Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Varsity Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Varsity Village is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Varsity Village
    • Bergholtz
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Bergholtz is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bergholtz
    • Martinsville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Martinsville is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Wurlitzer Park Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Hoffman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
  • Wyoming County
    • Folsomdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Folsomdale is located in Wyoming County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Folsomdale

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

Cemeteries Near Sheenwater ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Sheenwater.

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

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

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

  • White Haven Road Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Lapp Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapp Cemetery
    • The Lapp Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Lapp Family Burying Ground
    • Lapp Family Cemetery
    • Lapp / Hershey / Sayler Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2413956 <2>
  • Byer Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • St. Joseph's Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Joseph's RC Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Black Creek Pioneer Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • St. Stevens Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • United Brethren Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for United Brethren Cemetery
    • The United Brethren Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Beam United Brethren Cemetery
    • Beams Mills Cemetery
  • Maple Grove Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Weaver Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Battle of Chippawa Cemetery (War 1812-1814)
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Stevensville Reformed Mennonite Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (280 more) ...
    • St. John's Anglican Church Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Ft. Erie Coloured Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ft. Erie Coloured Cemetery
      • The Ft. Erie Coloured Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Curtis Road Cemetery
      • Dennahower Coloured Cemetery
    • Frenchman's Creek Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 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.<3>

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

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

  • La Salle
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • La Salle is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for La Salle
  • Niagara Falls
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Kenmore
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Tonawanda
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • North Tonawanda
    (8 miles [12.9 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
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Saint Johnsburg is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johnsburg
  • Martinsville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Martinsville is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
  • Bergholtz
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Bergholtz is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bergholtz
  • Buffalo
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Eggertsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Snyder
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Snyder is located in Erie County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snyder
  • Hoffman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Hoffman is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoffman
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Beach Ridge
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Beach Ridge is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach Ridge
    • Sanborn
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Getzville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)

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

Newspapers Published in Sheenwater ...

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 276 newspapers that have been published in the area around Sheenwater.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Sheenwater, 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 Sheenwater.

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 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 Sheenwater:

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