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 Jefferson (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 Jefferson. 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 Jefferson ...
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 Jefferson: W. Jefferson
You might be interested in other communities that are also named West Jefferson. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for West Jefferson.
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.
West Jefferson is located in Schoharie 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 Schoharie County: Albany, Delaware, Greene, Montgomery, Otsego & Schenectady.
Below are the counties that are near West Jefferson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Jefferson:
- Schoharie County (The home county of West Jefferson)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Jefferson
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- South Jefferson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- South Jefferson is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Jefferson
- Summit
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- North Blenheim
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Beards Hollow
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Beards Hollow is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beards Hollow
- Richmondville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Breakabeen
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Breakabeen is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breakabeen
- Vintonton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Vintonton is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vintonton
- West Conesville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- West Conesville is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Conesville
- Warnerville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Broome Center
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Broome Center is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Broome Center
- Greenbush
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Greenbush is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbush
- Cobleskill
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Albany County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Potter Hollow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Potter Hollow is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter Hollow
- Preston Hollow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Preston - Potter Hollow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Cooksburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Cooksburg is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooksburg
- Medusa
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Rensselaerville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Berne
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- South Berne
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- South Berne is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Berne
- East Berne
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- East Berne is located in Albany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Berne
- Knox
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Delaware County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Harpersfield
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Stamford
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- North Kortright
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- North Kortright is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Kortright
- Simpsonville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Simpsonville is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simpsonville
- Hobart
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- South Kortright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Grand Gorge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bloomville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Roxbury
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Davenport Center
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Bovina
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Bovina is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bovina
- Shackport
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Shackport is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shackport
- Bovina Center
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Red Falls
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Red Falls is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Falls
- Lexington
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Jewett
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- West Kill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jewett Center
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Jewett Center is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewett Center
- Windham
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Brooksburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Brooksburg is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooksburg
- Cornwallville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Spruceton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Spruceton is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spruceton
- Hunter
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Norton Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Norton Hill is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norton Hill
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Lykers
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Lykers is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lykers
- Ames
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Buel
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Buel is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buel
- Flat Creek
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Flat Creek is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Creek
- Sprout Brook
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Brookman Corners
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Brookman Corners is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookman Corners
- Canajoharie
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Palatine Bridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Burtonsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Burtonsville is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burtonsville
- Otsego County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Worcester
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Calcutta
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Calcutta is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calcutta
- Schenevus
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Decatur
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Decatur is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Decatur
- Maryland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Westford
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Westville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Westville is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westville
- South Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- South Valley is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Valley
- Milford
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Colliersville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Portlandville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Brook
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Brook is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Brook
- Middlefield
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Middlefield is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefield
- Schenectady County
- Delanson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ulster County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- Highmount
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Pine Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Bushnellsville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Bushnellsville is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bushnellsville
- Belle Ayr
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Belle Ayr is located in Ulster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Ayr
- Big Indian
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Shandaken
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Oliverea
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Jefferson, see our County-by-County Page for West Jefferson.
Cemeteries Near West Jefferson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Jefferson.
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 Jefferson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Jefferson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- West Jefferson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- North Harpersfield Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Stevens Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Potter Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Jefferson Old Village Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Harpersfield Center Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Cowley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Maynard Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Holy Cross Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Welch's Corners Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Dugway Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (419 more) ...
- Titus Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Methodist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- North Kortright 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.<2>
While we didn't find West Jefferson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Jefferson.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Jefferson, with the one closest to West Jefferson listed first.
- North Harpersfield
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- North Harpersfield is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Harpersfield
- Jefferson
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Harpersfield
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Stamford
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- South Jefferson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- South Jefferson is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Jefferson
- Charlotteville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- North Kortright
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- North Kortright is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Kortright
- South Worcester
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- South Worcester is located in Otsego County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Worcester
- South Gilboa
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- South Gilboa is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Gilboa
- Eminence
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Eminence is located in Schoharie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eminence
- Hobart
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Summit
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Fergusonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Fergusonville is located in Delaware County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fergusonville
- South Kortright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Worcester
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around West Jefferson. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Jefferson.
Newspapers Published in West Jefferson ...
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 50 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Jefferson.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Jefferson, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Jefferson.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 West Jefferson:
- Websites specific to New York
- Pages specific to Schoharie County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Albany County
- Delaware County
- Greene County
- Montgomery County
- Otsego County
- Schenectady County
- Ulster 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> | 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 Jefferson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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- West Jefferson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |