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 Potsdam (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 Potsdam. 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 Potsdam ...

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 Potsdam: W. Potsdam

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 Potsdam is located in Saint Lawrence 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 Saint Lawrence County: Franklin, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson & Lewis.

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

• Saint Lawrence County     (The home county of West Potsdam)
  • The following are listed by their distance from West Potsdam, with the one closest to West Potsdam listed first.
  • Slab City
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Slab City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slab City
    • Slab City is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Madrid Springs
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madrid Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madrid Springs
    • Madrid Springs is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Potsdam
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potsdam
    • Potsdam is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,796 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Potsdam <2>
  • Norwood
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood
    • Norwood is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,550 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwood <2>
  • Hannawa Falls
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hannawa Falls
    • Hannawa Falls is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hannawa Falls <2>
  • Canton
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
    • Canton is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,482 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Canton <2>
  • Coney Island
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coney Island have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coney Island
    • Coney Island is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • West Parishville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Parishville
    • West Parishville is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Sandfordville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandfordville
    • Sandfordville is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • West Stockholm
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Stockholm
    • West Stockholm is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Stockholm <2>
  • Norfolk
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norfolk have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norfolk
    • Norfolk is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norfolk <2>
  • North Stockholm
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stockholm
    • North Stockholm is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Willisville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willisville
    • Willisville is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Franklin County
  • The following are listed by their distance from West Potsdam, with the one closest to West Potsdam listed first.
  • Alburg
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alburg
    • Alburg is located in Franklin County
  • Saint Regis Falls
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Regis Falls
    • Saint Regis Falls is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Regis Falls <2>
  • Moira
    (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moira
    • Moira is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moira <2>
  • Hogansburg
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hogansburg have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hogansburg
    • Hogansburg is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hogansburg <2>
  • Brushton
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brushton
    • Brushton is located in Franklin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 430 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brushton <2>
  • East Dickinson
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Dickinson
    • East Dickinson is located in Franklin County
  • Bombay
    (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bombay
    • Bombay is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bombay <2>

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

Newspapers Published in West Potsdam ...

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 Potsdam.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Potsdam, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Potsdam.

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 West Potsdam:

• Websites specific to New York
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails
  • Website for the New York State Archives

• Pages specific to Saint Lawrence County
  • Jump to Cyndi's List
  • Jump to Family Search
  • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Genealogy information for nearby counties
  • Franklin County
    • Jump to Cyndi's List
    • Jump to Family Search
    • Jump to Genealogy Trails

• Cemetery Information and Directories for New York
  • Cemetery Junction: Cemeteries of New York
  • Cyndi's List
  • Cemeteries of New York
  • Cemeteries of Saint Lawrence County
  • FamilySearch.org: Cemeteries of New York
  • Find-A-Grave: Home Page
  • Interment.net
  • Cemeteries of New York
  • Cemeteries of Saint Lawrence County

Cemeteries Near West Potsdam ...

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

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 Potsdam covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

• West Potsdam Cemetery
  (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Potsdam Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Potsdam Cemetery
• South Potsdam Cemetery
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the South Potsdam Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the South Potsdam Cemetery
• St. James Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. James Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. James Cemetery
• Doran Cemetery
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Doran Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Doran Cemetery
• Morley Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morley Cemetery
• Trinity Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Trinity Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Trinity Cemetery
• Olin Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Olin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Olin Cemetery
• Leet Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Leet Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Leet Cemetery
• Madrid Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Madrid Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2174907 <4>
• Bayside Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bayside Cemetery
  • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #63928 <4>
• Union Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Cemetery
• Riverside Cemetery
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverside Cemetery
• Continue List   (159 more) ...
  • Haskell Ridge Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Haskell Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Haskell Ridge Cemetery
  • St. Marys Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the St. Marys Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the St. Marys Cemetery
  • Bridge Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bridge Cemetery

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 Potsdam had a population of 72 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

• Bucks Bridge
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bucks Bridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucks Bridge
  • Bucks Bridge is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Madrid
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madrid have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madrid
  • Madrid is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madrid <2>
• Madrid Springs
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Madrid Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madrid Springs
  • Madrid Springs is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Morley
  (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Morley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morley
  • Morley is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Potsdam
  (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potsdam
  • Potsdam is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,796 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Potsdam <2>
• Sisson
  (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sisson have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sisson
  • Sisson is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Norwood
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood
  • Norwood is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,550 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwood <2>
• Canton
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Canton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canton
  • Canton is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,482 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Canton <2>
• Crary Mills
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crary Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crary Mills
  • Crary Mills is located in Saint Lawrence County
• Hannawa Falls
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hannawa Falls
  • Hannawa Falls is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hannawa Falls <2>
• West Parishville
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Parishville
  • West Parishville is located in Saint Lawrence County
• West Stockholm
  (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Stockholm
  • West Stockholm is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Stockholm <2>
• Continue List   (17 more) ...
  • North Stockholm
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stockholm
    • North Stockholm is located in Saint Lawrence County
  • Norfolk
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norfolk have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norfolk
    • Norfolk is located in Saint Lawrence County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norfolk <2>
  • Pierrepont
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierrepont
    • Pierrepont is located in Saint Lawrence County

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

Off-the-Road Links ...

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

The official website for Saint Lawrence County: www.co.st-lawrence.ny.us/

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