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 West Gilgo Beach (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 West Gilgo Beach. 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 West Gilgo Beach ...
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 West Gilgo Beach: W. Gilgo Bch.
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 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.
West Gilgo Beach 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 West Gilgo Beach. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Gilgo Beach:
- Suffolk County (The home county of West Gilgo Beach)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Amity Harbor
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Amity Harbor is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amity Harbor
- Amityville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Copiague
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- North Amityville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- North Amityville is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Amityville
- Lindenhurst
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Gilgo - Oak Beach - Captree
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- North Lindenhurst
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- North Lindenhurst is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Lindenhurst
- Babylon
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- East Farmingdale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- East Farmingdale is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Farmingdale
- North Babylon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- North Babylon is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Babylon
- West Babylon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- West Babylon is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Babylon
- West Islip
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- West Islip is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Islip
- West Bay Shore
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- West Bay Shore is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Bay Shore
- Bronx County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Locust Point
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Locust Point is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Point
- Throggs Neck
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Throggs Neck is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Throggs Neck
- City Island
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- City Island is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for City Island
- Bronx
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bronx is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bronx
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,385,108 people
- Bronx has also been known as:
- Bronx
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bronx <1>
- Eastchester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Eastchester is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastchester
- Williams Bridge
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Williams Bridge is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Bridge
- Concourse Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Concourse Village is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concourse Village
- Fordham
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fordham is located in Bronx County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fordham
- Kings County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Canarsie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Canarsie is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canarsie
- Marcus Garvey Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Brownsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Brownsville is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brownsville
- Bushwick
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Bushwick is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushwick
- Flatlands
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Flatlands is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatlands
- Weeksville ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Weeksville is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weeksville
- Sheepshead Bay
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Sheepshead Bay is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheepshead Bay
- Brighton Beach
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Brighton Beach is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton Beach
- Brooklyn
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Flatbush
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Flatbush is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatbush
- Gravesend
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Gravesend is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravesend
- Greenpoint
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Greenpoint is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenpoint
- Williamsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Williamsburg is located in Kings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg
- Nassau County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Harbor Green
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Harbor Green is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbor Green
- East Massapequa
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- East Massapequa is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Massapequa
- Biltmore Shores
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Biltmore Shores is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biltmore Shores
- Massapequa Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Massapequa
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Seaford
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- North Massapequa
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- North Massapequa is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Massapequa
- Bellmore
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Wantagh
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- South Farmingdale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- South Farmingdale is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Farmingdale
- Merrick
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- North Wantagh
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- North Wantagh is located in Nassau County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Wantagh
- Farmingdale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- New York County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- East Harlem
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Harlem is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Harlem
- Yorkville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Yorkville is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorkville
- Delano Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Delano Village is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delano Village
- Harlem
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Harlem is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harlem
- East Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- East Village is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Village
- Kips Bay
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Kips Bay is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kips Bay
- Knickerbocker Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Manhattan
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Manhattan is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manhattan
- Peter Cooper Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Peter Cooper Village is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peter Cooper Village
- Seneca Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Seneca Village is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seneca Village
- Stuyvesant Town
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Stuyvesant Town is located in New York County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stuyvesant Town
- Queens County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Rosedale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Bayswater
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Bayswater is located in Queens County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayswater
- Far Rockaway
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Queens Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Douglaston
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Little Neck
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hollis
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Rochdale Village
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Rochdale Village is located in Queens County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochdale Village
- Bayside
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Broad Channel
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Broad Channel is located in Queens County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broad Channel
- Holland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Jamaica
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Queens
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Westchester County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Larchmont
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Milton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Milton is located in Westchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
- Eastchester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Mamaroneck
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- New Rochelle
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pelham Manor
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pelham
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rye
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Rye is located in Westchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rye
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,634 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rye <1>
- Harrison
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Vernon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Port Chester
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fairfield County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Belle Haven
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Belle Haven is located in Fairfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Haven
- Old Greenwich
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Shippan Point
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Shippan Point is located in Fairfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shippan Point
- Cos Cob
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Darien
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Darien is located in Fairfield County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darien
- Population from the 2020 Census: 21,693 people
- Greenwich
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Gilgo Beach, see our County-by-County Page for West Gilgo Beach.
Cemeteries Near West Gilgo Beach ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Gilgo Beach.
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 West Gilgo Beach - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Gilgo Beach covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Floyd - Jones Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Old Grace Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Old Town Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Catholic Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Brunn - Greene Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Brewster Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Payne Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Brewster Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Amityville Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Breslau Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Trinity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Bryant Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (248 more) ...
- Babylon Rural Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babylon Rural Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Babylon Rural Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Babylon.
- The Babylon Rural Cemetery has also been known as:
- Babylon Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1032904 <2>
- Mt. Ararat Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Wantagh Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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>
While we didn't find West Gilgo Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Gilgo Beach.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Gilgo Beach, with the one closest to West Gilgo Beach listed first.
- Amityville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lindenhurst
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Babylon
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Wyandanch
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Bay Shore
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Deer Park
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Melville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Islip
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Fire Island
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Brentwood
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Great River
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Central Islip
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Elwood
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Elwood is located in Suffolk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elwood
- Cedarhurst
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Huntington
(17 miles [27.4 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 West Gilgo Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Gilgo Beach.
Newspapers Published in West Gilgo Beach ...
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 294 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Gilgo Beach.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Gilgo Beach, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Gilgo Beach.
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 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 West Gilgo Beach:
- Websites specific to New York
- Pages specific to Suffolk County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bronx County
- Kings County
- Nassau County
- New York County
- Queens County
- Westchester County
- Fairfield County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for New York
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 West Gilgo Beach, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- West Gilgo Beach) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |