RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of New York >> Niagara County >> South Wilson >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 South Wilson (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 South Wilson. 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 South Wilson ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for South Wilson: S. Wilson

You might be interested in other communities that are also named South Wilson. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for South Wilson.

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 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.

South Wilson is located in Niagara 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 Niagara County: Erie, Genesee & Orleans.

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

  • Niagara County     (The home county of South Wilson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Wilson, with the one closest to South Wilson listed first.
    • Pleasant Corners
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Pleasant Corners is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Corners
    • Warrens Corners
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Warrens Corners is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrens Corners
    • Wilson
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Coomer
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Coomer is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coomer
    • Ransomville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Newfane
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Roosevelt Beach
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Roosevelt Beach is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roosevelt Beach
    • Corwin
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Corwin is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corwin
    • Wrights Corners
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Wrights Corners is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wrights Corners
    • Lockport Junction
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Lockport Junction is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockport Junction
    • Dickersonville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Dickersonville is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickersonville
    • Pekin
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Pekin is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pekin
  • Erie County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Wilson, with the one closest to South Wilson listed first.
    • Getzville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Tonawanda
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Swormville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Swormville is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swormville
    • Wolcottsburg
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Wolcottsburg is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolcottsburg
    • Amherst
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Grandyle Village
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Grandyle Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandyle Village
    • Clarence Center
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Ferry Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Ferry Village is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferry Village
    • Kenmore
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Williamsville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Harris Hill
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Harris Hill is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Hill
    • Akron Junction
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Akron Junction is located in Erie County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akron Junction
  • Genesee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Wilson, with the one closest to South Wilson listed first.
    • Amherst
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Amherst is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
    • Alabama
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Alabama is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama
    • Basom
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Wheatville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Wheatville is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatville
    • Indian Falls
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Indian Falls is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Falls
    • Corfu
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • North Pembroke
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • North Pembroke is located in Genesee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Pembroke
    • Oakfield
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Orleans County
    • The following are listed by their distance from South Wilson, with the one closest to South Wilson listed first.
    • Jeddo
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Jeddo is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
    • Lakewood Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Lakewood Village is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
    • Medina
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Lyndonville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Shadigee
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Shadigee is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shadigee
    • Kenyonville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Kenyonville is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenyonville
    • Eagle Harbor
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Eagle Harbor is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Harbor
    • Kuckville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Kuckville is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kuckville
    • West Barre
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • West Barre is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Barre
    • Gaines
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Gaines is located in Orleans County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaines

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

Cemeteries Near South Wilson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of South Wilson.

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 South Wilson - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • St. Peter Lutheran Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • North Ridge Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Molyneaux Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Northeast Cambria Union Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Hillside Cemetery of Cambria
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Campbell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Pomeroy Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Pioneer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Mt. View Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Andrew Lutheran Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Weaver Cemetery #1
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (279 more) ...
    • St. Bridgets Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Halsted Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, South Wilson had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • North Ridge
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • North Ridge is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ridge
  • East Wilson
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • East Wilson is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wilson
  • Warrens Corners
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Warrens Corners is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrens Corners
  • Hickory Corners
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Hickory Corners is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Corners
  • Coomer
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Coomer is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coomer
  • Wilson
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Ransomville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Newfane
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Pekin
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Pekin is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pekin
  • Lockport Junction
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Lockport Junction is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockport Junction
  • Wrights Corners
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Wrights Corners is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wrights Corners
  • Shawnee
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Shawnee is located in Niagara County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawnee
  • Continue List   (19 more) ...
    • Lockport
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Sanborn
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Mapleton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Mapleton is located in Niagara County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mapleton

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

Newspapers Published in South Wilson ...

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 51 newspapers that have been published in the area around South Wilson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of South Wilson, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for South Wilson.

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 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 South Wilson:

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 South Wilson, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- South Wilson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.