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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 Southold (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 Southold. 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.

Southold is located in Suffolk County.

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

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

  • Suffolk County     (The home county of Southold)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Southold, with the one closest to Southold listed first.
    • Westmoreland
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Westmoreland is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westmoreland
    • Peconic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Shelter Island Heights
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Shelter Island
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Dering Harbor
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Dering Harbor is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dering Harbor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11 people
    • Greenport
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Cutchogue
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • New Suffolk
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • East Marion
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • North Haven
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • North Haven is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Haven
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 894 people
    • Noyack
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Bay Point
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Bay Point is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay Point
    • Mattituck
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Middlesex County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Southold, with the one closest to Southold listed first.
    • Fenwick
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Fenwick is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fenwick
    • Grove Beach
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Grove Beach is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Beach
    • Plum Bank Beach
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
      • Plum Bank Beach is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Bank Beach
    • Clinton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Old Saybrook
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Old Saybrook is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Saybrook
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,028 people
    • Old Saybrook
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Saybrook Manor
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Saybrook Manor is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saybrook Manor
    • Westbrook
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Clinton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Clinton is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clinton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,881 people
    • Westbrook
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Westbrook is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,842 people
    • Centerbrook
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Essex
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Essex is located in Middlesex County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essex
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,634 people
    • Essex
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
  • New Haven County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Southold, with the one closest to Southold listed first.
    • Madison
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • East River
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • East River is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East River
    • Guilford
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Madison
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Madison is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,924 people
    • Stony Creek
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Stony Creek is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Creek
    • Guilford
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Guilford is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guilford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 22,043 people
    • North Madison
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • North Madison is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Madison
    • Pine Orchard
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Pine Orchard is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Orchard
    • Branford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Branford is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 27,736 people
    • Branford
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • North Branford
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Short Beach
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Short Beach is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Beach
    • North Branford
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • North Branford is located in New Haven County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Branford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 14,066 people
  • New London County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Southold, with the one closest to Southold listed first.
    • Old Lyme
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Old Lyme is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Lyme
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,280 people
    • Old Lyme
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • South Lyme
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Niantic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Hamburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Hamburg is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
    • Sterling City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Sterling City is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sterling City
    • East Lyme
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • East Lyme is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lyme
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,525 people
    • East Lyme
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Pleasure Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Pleasure Beach is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasure Beach
    • Lyme
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Lyme is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyme
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,304 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyme <1>
    • Lyme
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Lyme is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyme
    • Hadlyme
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Waterford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Waterford is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,865 people

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

Cemeteries Near Southold ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Southold.

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

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

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

  • First Presbyterian Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Willow Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • St. Patrick's Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Hashamomack Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hashamomack Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Hashamomack Cemetery is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the southwest of Greenport.
    • The Hashamomack Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Arshamomaque Cemetery
    • Hashamomack Old Families Burying Ground
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2272519 <3>
  • Sacred Heart Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Cutchogue Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Old Burying Ground
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Shelter Island Presbyterian Church Burial Ground
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Shelter Island Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • St. Mary's Episcopal Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Quaker Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Our Lady of the Isle Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (223 more) ...
    • St. Agnes Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Green Hill Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Stirling Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Southold had a population of 1,292 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

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

  • Peconic
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Shelter Island Heights
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Cutchogue
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Shelter Island
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Greenport
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • New Suffolk
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • East Marion
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Mattituck
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Sag Harbor
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Orient
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Bridgehampton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Jamesport
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Watermill
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Watermill is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watermill
    • Orient Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Orient Point is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orient Point
    • Shinnecock Hills
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Shinnecock Hills is located in Suffolk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shinnecock Hills

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Southold ...

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 117 newspapers that have been published in the area around Southold.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Southold. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Southold and those printed in the larger area surrounding Southold.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 18 miles [29 km]<2> of Southold.

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 Southold:

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 '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- Southold) 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 Southold, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.