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 Wilson (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 Wilson. 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 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.
Wilson is located in Niagara 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 Niagara County: Erie, Genesee & Orleans.
Below are the counties that are near Wilson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Wilson:
- Niagara County (The home county of Wilson)
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Roosevelt Beach
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Roosevelt Beach is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roosevelt Beach
- Pleasant Corners
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Corners is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Corners
- Olcott
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Coomer
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Coomer is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coomer
- Newfane
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Ransomville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Corwin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Corwin is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corwin
- Warrens Corners
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Warrens Corners is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrens Corners
- Porter Center
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Porter Center is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Porter Center
- Harrison Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Harrison Grove is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrison Grove
- Hess Road
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hess Road is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hess Road
- Dickersonville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Dickersonville is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickersonville
- Erie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Swormville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Swormville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swormville
- Wolcottsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Wolcottsburg is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolcottsburg
- Getzville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Tonawanda
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Amherst
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Grandyle Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Grandyle Village is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandyle Village
- Clarence Center
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ferry Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Ferry Village is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferry Village
- Kenmore
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Williamsville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Harris Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Harris Hill is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Hill
- Akron Junction
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Akron Junction is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akron Junction
- Genesee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Amherst
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Amherst is located in Genesee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Alabama
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Alabama is located in Genesee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama
- Basom
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wheatville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Wheatville is located in Genesee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatville
- Indian Falls
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Falls is located in Genesee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Falls
- Orleans County
- The following are listed by their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Jeddo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Jeddo is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jeddo
- Lakewood Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Lakewood Village is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood Village
- Lyndonville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Medina
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Shadigee
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Shadigee is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shadigee
- Kenyonville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Kenyonville is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenyonville
- Kuckville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Kuckville is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kuckville
- Eagle Harbor
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Eagle Harbor is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Harbor
- Gaines
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Gaines is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaines
- West Barre
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- West Barre is located in Orleans County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Barre
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Wilson, see our County-by-County Page for Wilson.
Cemeteries Near Wilson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Wilson.
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 Wilson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Wilson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- Greenwood Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Halsted Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lakeview Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- West Lake Road Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Pioneer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- North Ridge Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- St. Peter Lutheran Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Molyneaux Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Northeast Cambria Union Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- St. Bridgets Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Corwin Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- St. Charles Borromeo Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (247 more) ...
- Oakland Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Towers Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Hillside Cemetery of Cambria
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Wilson had a population of 683 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Wilson had a population of 1,211 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Wilson, with the one closest to Wilson listed first.
- South Wilson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- South Wilson is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Wilson
- East Wilson
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- East Wilson is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Wilson
- Coomer
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Coomer is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coomer
- Olcott
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Ransomville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- North Ridge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- North Ridge is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ridge
- Newfane
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Warrens Corners
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Warrens Corners is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrens Corners
- Hess Road
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hess Road is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hess Road
- Hickory Corners
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hickory Corners is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Corners
- Wrights Corners
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wrights Corners is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wrights Corners
- Pekin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Pekin is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pekin
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Youngstown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Lockport Junction
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Lockport Junction is located in Niagara County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lockport Junction
- Lockport
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Wilson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Wilson.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Wilson ...
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 46 newspapers that have been published in the area around Wilson.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Wilson. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Wilson and those printed in the larger area surrounding Wilson.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4> of Wilson.
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 Wilson:
- Websites specific to New York
- Pages specific to Niagara County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Erie County
- Genesee County
- Orleans 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 Wilson, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Wilson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |