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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 Smithville Center (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 Smithville Center. 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 Smithville Center ...

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 occur.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Smithville Center: Smithville Ctr. (or less commonly used: Smithville Cen., Smithville Cent. or Smithville Cntr.)

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 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.

Smithville Center is located in Chenango 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 Chenango County: Broome, Cortland, Delaware, Madison & Otsego.

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

  • Chenango County     (The home county of Smithville Center)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Adams Corner
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Adams Corner is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams Corner
    • Smithville Flats
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Oxford
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Greene
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Haynes
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Haynes is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes
    • Union Valley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Union Valley is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Valley
    • West Bainbridge
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • West Bainbridge is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bainbridge
    • Guilford
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Yaleville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Yaleville is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yaleville
    • Kirk
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Kirk is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirk
    • Norwich
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Pitcher
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Bainbridge
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Broome County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Triangle
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Triangle is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Triangle
    • North Colesville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • North Colesville is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Colesville
    • Quinneville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Quinneville is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quinneville
    • Upper Lisle
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Upper Lisle is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Lisle
    • Whitney Point
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Belden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Belden is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belden
    • Killawog
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Lisle
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Castle Creek
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Castle Creek is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Castle Creek
    • Creekside Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Creekside Village is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creekside Village
    • Harpursville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Kattellville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Kattellville is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kattellville
    • Manningville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Manningville is located in Broome County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manningville
  • Cortland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Marathon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Lapeer
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Lapeer is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lapeer
    • Messengerville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Messengerville is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Messengerville
    • Solon
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Solon is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Solon
    • McGraw
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Crains Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Crains Mills is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crains Mills
    • Harford Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Harford Mills is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harford Mills
    • East Homer
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • East Homer is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Homer
    • East River
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • East River is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East River
    • Truxton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Harford
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Cortland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Homer
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Homer is located in Cortland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,080 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer <1>
  • Delaware County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Sidney
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Masonville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • China
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • China is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for China
    • Sidney Center
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Barbourville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Barbourville is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barbourville
    • Tacoma
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Tacoma is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacoma
    • Hambletville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Hambletville is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hambletville
    • Franklin
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Merrickville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Merrickville is located in Delaware County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrickville
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Earlville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • DeRuyter
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • DeRuyter is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for DeRuyter
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 518 people
    • Puckerville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Puckerville is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puckerville
    • Randallsville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Randallsville is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randallsville
    • Hamilton Center
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Hamilton Center is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamilton Center
    • South Hamilton
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • South Hamilton is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hamilton
    • East Hamilton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • East Hamilton is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Hamilton
    • Hamilton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • New Woodstock
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • New Woodstock is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Woodstock
    • West Eaton
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • West Eaton is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Eaton
  • Otsego County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Copes Corner
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Copes Corner is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copes Corner
    • Gilbertsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Unadilla
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Wells Bridge
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Youmans Corner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Youmans Corner is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youmans Corner
    • Morris
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Pittsfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Pittsfield is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsfield
    • Otego
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
    • South Edmeston
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • South Edmeston is located in Otsego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Edmeston
  • Tioga County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Ketchumville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Ketchumville is located in Tioga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ketchumville
    • Newark Valley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Hullsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Hullsville is located in Tioga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hullsville
    • West Newark
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • West Newark is located in Tioga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Newark
    • Gaskill
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Gaskill is located in Tioga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaskill
    • Weltonville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Weltonville is located in Tioga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weltonville
  • Tompkins County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Dryden
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
    • Caroline Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Caroline Center is located in Tompkins County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroline Center
    • McLean
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Susquehanna County (PA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville Center, with the one closest to Smithville Center listed first.
    • Brackney
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Great Bend
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Smithville Center ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Smithville Center.

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 Smithville Center - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Towsley and Moore Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Cowles Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Knickerbocker Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Miller Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Peaceful Forest Graveyard
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Loomis Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Wilcox Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Smithville Flats Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Maple Grove Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Horton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Brisben Baptist Church Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Ten Broeck Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (440 more) ...
    • Moore Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Genegantslet Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • North Canal Street Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)

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 Smithville Center in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Smithville Center.

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

  • Tyner
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Tyner is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyner
  • Smithville Flats
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • South Oxford
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • South Oxford is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Oxford
  • Greene
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • McDonough
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Oxford
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • East McDonough
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • East McDonough is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East McDonough
  • Coventry
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Coventry is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventry
  • Penelope
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Penelope is located in Broome County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penelope
  • Triangle
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Triangle is located in Broome County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Triangle
  • Coventryville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Coventryville is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventryville
  • Preston
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Preston is located in Chenango County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Preston
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Page Brook
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Page Brook is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Page Brook
    • Haynes
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Haynes is located in Chenango County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes
    • East Pharsalia
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)

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

Newspapers Published in Smithville Center ...

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 96 newspapers that have been published in the area around Smithville Center.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Smithville Center, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Smithville Center.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Smithville Center:

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