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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 Thompson (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 Thompson. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Thompson is primarily located in Ontario County. A portion of Thompson extends into Seneca 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 Ontario County: Livingston, Monroe, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne & Yates.

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

  • Ontario County     (The home county of Thompson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • West Junius
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • West Junius is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Junius
    • Phelps
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Dobbins Corner
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Dobbins Corner is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dobbins Corner
    • Melvin Hill
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Melvin Hill is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melvin Hill
    • Geneva
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Clifton Springs
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Seneca Castle
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Port Gibson
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Flint
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Flint is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint
    • Billsboro
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Billsboro is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Billsboro
    • Hopewell Center
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Hopewell Center is located in Ontario County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell Center
    • Manchester
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
  • Cayuga County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Cayuga
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Cross Roads
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cross Roads is located in Cayuga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Roads
    • Port Byron
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Port Byron is located in Cayuga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Byron
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,181 people
      • Former name for Port Byron:
      • Bucksville
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Port Byron <1>
    • Oakwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Oakwood is located in Cayuga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakwood
    • Union Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Throop
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Throop is located in Cayuga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Throop
    • Auburn
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Weedsport
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Victory
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Victory is located in Cayuga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victory
    • Sennett
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Aurora
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Cato
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Fairport
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Webster
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • East Rochester
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • East Rochester is located in Monroe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Rochester
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,458 people
    • Mendon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Penfield
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Ford Corner
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Ford Corner is located in Monroe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ford Corner
    • Pittsford
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Onondaga County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Jordan
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Elbridge
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Mottville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Skaneateles
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Halfway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Halfway is located in Onondaga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway
    • Jacks Reef
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Jacks Reef is located in Onondaga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacks Reef
    • Plainville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Mandana
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Mandana is located in Onondaga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mandana
    • Lysander
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Lysander is located in Onondaga County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lysander
    • Memphis
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Oswego County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Hannibal
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Fairdale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Fairdale is located in Oswego County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairdale
  • Seneca County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Tyre
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Tyre is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyre
    • Border City
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Border City is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Border City
    • Waterloo
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Seneca Falls
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Canoga
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Canoga is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canoga
    • Kuneytown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Kuneytown is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kuneytown
    • Romulus
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • East Varick
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • East Varick is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Varick
    • Willard
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Ovid
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Lodi
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Kidders
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Kidders is located in Seneca County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kidders
  • Wayne County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Lyons
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Clyde
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Mud Mills
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Mud Mills is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mud Mills
    • Newark
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Fairville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Fairville is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairville
    • Wayne Center
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Wayne Center is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne Center
    • South Sodus
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • South Sodus is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Sodus
    • East Palmyra
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • East Palmyra is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Palmyra
    • York
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • York is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
    • South Butler
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • South Butler is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Butler
    • Marion
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Palmyra
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Yates County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Thompson, with the one closest to Thompson listed first.
    • Bellona
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Angus
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Angus is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angus
    • Benton Center
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Benton Center is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benton Center
    • Rushville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Dresden
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Seneca Mills
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Seneca Mills is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca Mills
    • Penn Yan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Yatesville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Yatesville is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yatesville
    • Potter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Potter is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter
    • Vine Valley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Vine Valley is located in Yates County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vine Valley
    • Keuka Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Himrod
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Thompson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Thompson.

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

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

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

  • Hoffman Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Creager Bridge Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Newton Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Southwick Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Westfall Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Vandemark Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Humphrey Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • South Lyons Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Pinewood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Rural Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Burnett Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Armstrong Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (443 more) ...
    • Purchase Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • St. Francis Catholic Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Resthaven Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)

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

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

  • West Junius
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • West Junius is located in Ontario County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Junius
  • Marengo
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Marengo is located in Wayne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marengo
  • Lyons
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Phelps
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Lock Berlin
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Lock Berlin is located in Wayne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lock Berlin
  • Phelps Junction
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Phelps Junction is located in Ontario County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phelps Junction
  • Clyde
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Newark
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Waterloo
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Tyre
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Tyre is located in Seneca County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyre
  • Clifton Springs
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Orleans
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Orleans is located in Ontario County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Geneva
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Fairville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Fairville is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairville
    • Seneca Castle
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in Thompson ...

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 61 newspapers that have been published in the area around Thompson.

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

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 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 Thompson:

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 Thompson, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Thompson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.