RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of New York >> Lewis County >> West Leyden >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
New York

The Commemorative Quarter for New York





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 Leyden (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 Leyden. 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 Leyden ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for West Leyden: W. Leyden

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 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.

West Leyden is located in Lewis County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Lewis County: Herkimer, Jefferson, Oneida, Oswego & Saint Lawrence.

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

  • Lewis County     (The home county of West Leyden)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Constableville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Leisher Mill
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisher Mill
      • Leisher Mill is located in Lewis County
    • Port Leyden
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Collinsville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Collinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
      • Collinsville is located in Lewis County
    • Michigan Mills
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Michigan Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Michigan Mills
      • Michigan Mills is located in Lewis County
    • Turin
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Turin have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turin
      • Turin is located in Lewis County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 226 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Turin <1>
    • Lyons Falls
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Lyonsdale
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonsdale
      • Lyonsdale is located in Lewis County
    • Greig
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Glendale
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Martinsburg
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • West Martinsburg
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Martinsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Martinsburg
      • West Martinsburg is located in Lewis County
    • Parkers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkers
      • Parkers is located in Lewis County
  • Herkimer County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Russia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Russia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Russia
      • Russia is located in Herkimer County
    • Poland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poland
      • Poland is located in Herkimer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 474 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Poland <1>
    • Cold Brook
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cold Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cold Brook
      • Cold Brook is located in Herkimer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 302 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cold Brook <1>
    • Thendara
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thendara
      • Thendara is located in Herkimer County
    • Gray
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gray have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gray
      • Gray is located in Herkimer County
    • Newport
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Newport have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
      • Newport is located in Herkimer County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 585 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Newport <1>
    • Norway
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norway
      • Norway is located in Herkimer County
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Worth Center
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Worth Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worth Center
      • Worth Center is located in Jefferson County
    • Worth
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Worth
      • Worth is located in Jefferson County
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Oneida Valley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oneida Valley
      • Oneida Valley is located in Madison County
    • Oneida
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Kenwood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kenwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenwood
      • Kenwood is located in Madison County
    • Canastota
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Wampsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Oneida County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Ava
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Redmond Corner
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redmond Corner
      • Redmond Corner is located in Oneida County
    • Boonville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Point Rock
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Rock
      • Point Rock is located in Oneida County
    • Frenchville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchville
      • Frenchville is located in Oneida County
    • Westernville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Brookfield
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookfield
      • Brookfield is located in Oneida County
    • Leisure Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leisure Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure Village
      • Leisure Village is located in Oneida County
    • Taberg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Camroden
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camroden
      • Camroden is located in Oneida County
    • Blossvale
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Humaston
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Humaston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Humaston
      • Humaston is located in Oneida County
    • Air City
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Air City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Air City
      • Air City is located in Oneida County
  • Oswego County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Leyden, with the one closest to West Leyden listed first.
    • Redfield
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Cleveland
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cleveland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland
      • Cleveland is located in Oswego County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 715 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cleveland <1>
    • Chateaugay
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chateaugay have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chateaugay
      • Chateaugay is located in Oswego County
    • Altmar
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altmar have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altmar
      • Altmar is located in Oswego County
      • Estimated population in 2015: 389 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altmar <1>
    • Orwell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Nicholsville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nicholsville
      • Nicholsville is located in Oswego County
    • Albion Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion Center
      • Albion Center is located in Oswego County
    • Gayville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gayville
      • Gayville is located in Oswego County
    • Constantia
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Dugway
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dugway have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dugway
      • Dugway is located in Oswego County

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

Newspapers Published in West Leyden ...

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 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Leyden.

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

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 Leyden:

Cemeteries Near West Leyden ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Leyden.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

  • West Leyden Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Ava Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ava Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ava Cemetery
  • Thorton Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Thorton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Thorton Cemetery
  • St. Michaels Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Michaels Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Michaels Cemetery
  • Smith Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smith Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smith Cemetery
  • St. Anns Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Anns Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Anns Cemetery
  • Welsh Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Welsh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Welsh Cemetery
  • Rogers Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rogers Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rogers Cemetery
  • Boonville Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Collins Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Collins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Collins Cemetery
  • Contableville Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Contableville Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northwest of Constableville.
    • The Contableville Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Contableville Rural Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Contableville Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #65888 <4>
  • Continue List   (213 more) ...
    • Rural Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Rural Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rural Cemetery
    • St. Marys Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Swancott Mill Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that West Leyden had a population of 394 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Ava
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Mohawk Hill
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mohawk Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mohawk Hill
    • Mohawk Hill is located in Lewis County
  • Point Rock
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Rock
    • Point Rock is located in Oneida County
  • West Branch
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Branch
    • West Branch is located in Oneida County
  • Dunn Brook
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunn Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunn Brook
    • Dunn Brook is located in Oneida County
  • Boonville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Constableville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Locust Grove
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Locust Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Grove
    • Locust Grove is located in Lewis County
  • North Western
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Western have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Western
    • North Western is located in Oneida County
  • Hawkinsville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hawkinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawkinsville
    • Hawkinsville is located in Oneida County
  • Glenmore
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glenmore have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenmore
    • Glenmore is located in Oneida County
  • Port Leyden
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Lee Center
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lee Center have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Center
      • Lee Center is located in Oneida County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lee Center <1>
    • Westernville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Big Brook
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Big Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Brook
      • Big Brook is located in Oneida County

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

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Leyden. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Lewis County: www.lewiscountyny.org/

The official website for State of New York: https://www.ny.gov/

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 location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- West Leyden) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Leyden. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.4594, Longitude: -75.4638    
<4>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.
<5>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 Leyden, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024