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 Rochester (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 Rochester. 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.
Rochester is located in Lorain County.
To see how the shape of Ohio's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Lorain County: Ashland, Cuyahoga, Erie, Huron & Medina.
Below are the counties that are near Rochester. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rochester:
- Lorain County (The home county of Rochester)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Brighton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Brighton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- Huntington
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Huntington is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
- Wellington
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Kipton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Kipton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kipton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
- Pheasant Run Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Pheasant Run Village is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pheasant Run Village
- Oberlin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Lagrange
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Nickelplate ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Nickelplate is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nickelplate
- Henrietta
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Henrietta is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henrietta
- South Amherst
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- South Amherst is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Amherst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,663 people
- Belden
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Belden is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belden
- Grafton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ashland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Nova
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Ruggles
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ruggles is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruggles
- Savannah
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Bailey Lakes
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Bailey Lakes is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 364 people
- Albion
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Albion is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Polk
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Polk is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polk
- Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
- Ashland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Redhaw
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Redhaw is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redhaw
- Rowsburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Rowsburg is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowsburg
- Jeromesville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Hayesville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Hayesville is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayesville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 459 people
- Mifflin
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Mifflin is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mifflin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 135 people
- Champaign County
- Rochester
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Rochester is located in Champaign County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rochester
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- North Auburn
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- North Auburn is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Auburn
- Tiro
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- New Washington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Cuyahoga County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Olmsted Falls
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Strongsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Berea
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Binola
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Binola is located in Cuyahoga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Binola
- North Olmsted
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Bennetts Corners
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bennetts Corners is located in Cuyahoga County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bennetts Corners
- Middleburg Heights
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Westlake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Erie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Birmingham
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Florence
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Florence is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Berlin Heights
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Berlinville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Berlinville is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlinville
- Shinrock
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Shinrock is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shinrock
- Milan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- North Milan
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- North Milan is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Milan
- Avery
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Avery is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery
- Huron
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bogart
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bogart is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bogart
- Fairview Lanes
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Fairview Lanes is located in Erie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Lanes
- Sandusky
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Huron County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- White Fox
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- White Fox is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Fox
- New London
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- West Clarksfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- West Clarksfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Clarksfield
- Fitchville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Fitchville is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitchville
- Wakeman
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Hartland
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Hartland is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland
- Hartland Station
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hartland Station is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartland Station
- East Townsend
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- East Townsend is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Townsend
- Greenwich
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Olena
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Olena is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olena
- Collins
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Collins is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
- Delphi
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Delphi is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delphi
- Medina County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Spencer
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- River Corners
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- River Corners is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Corners
- Homer
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Homer is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
- Pawnee
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Pawnee is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pawnee
- Risley ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Risley is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Risley
- Litchfield
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Lodi
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Friendsville
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Friendsville is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendsville
- Westfield Center
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Westfield Center is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westfield Center
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,188 people
- Valley City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Briarwood Beach ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Briarwood Beach is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briarwood Beach
- Chippewa Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Chippewa Lake is located in Medina County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chippewa Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 749 people
- Former name for Chippewa Lake:
- Chippewa-on-the-Lake
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Chippewa Lake <1>
- Richland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Olivesburg
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Olivesburg is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivesburg
- Shenandoah
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Shenandoah is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shenandoah
- Shiloh
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Ganges
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ganges is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ganges
- Plymouth
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Plymouth is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,789 people
- Forest ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Forest is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest
- Shelby
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mansfield
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Vernon Junction
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Vernon Junction is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon Junction
- Maybee
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Maybee is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maybee
- Lucas
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Bethlehem
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Bethlehem is located in Richland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
- Sandusky County
- Bellevue
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Seneca County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Attica Junction
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Attica Junction is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attica Junction
- Flat Rock
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Flat Rock is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Omar
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Omar is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omar
- Attica
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Caroline
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Caroline is located in Seneca County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caroline
- Wayne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- West Salem
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Aukerman
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Aukerman is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aukerman
- Burbank
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Congress
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Congress is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Congress
- Population from the 2020 Census: 177 people
- Lattasburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lattasburg is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lattasburg
- New Pittsburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- New Pittsburg is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Pittsburg
- Creston
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Devil Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Devil Town is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devil Town
- Jefferson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Jefferson is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Sterling
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Funk
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Funk is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Funk
- Boys Village
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Boys Village is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boys Village
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rochester, see our County-by-County Page for Rochester.
Cemeteries Near Rochester ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rochester.
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 Rochester - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rochester covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Rochester Station Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Rochester Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- East Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Old Brighton Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Day Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dry Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- New Brighton Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Beckley Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Universalist Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Huntington Center Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Grove Street Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (456 more) ...
- Close Street Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Greenwood Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Pioneer Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
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 Rochester had a population of 218 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Rochester had a population of 175 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rochester, with the one closest to Rochester listed first.
- Semples
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Semples is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Semples
- Brighton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Brighton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- Huntington
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Huntington is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntington
- White Fox
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- White Fox is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Fox
- Wellington
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- New London
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Nova
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Ruggles
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Ruggles is located in Ashland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruggles
- Sullivan
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Clarksfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Clarksfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksfield
- West Clarksfield
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- West Clarksfield is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Clarksfield
- Pittsfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Pittsfield is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pittsfield
- Continue List (18 more) ...
- Fitchville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Fitchville is located in Huron County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitchville
- Spencer
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Kipton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Kipton is located in Lorain County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kipton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 233 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rochester. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rochester.
Newspapers Published in Rochester ...
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 64 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rochester.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rochester, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rochester.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Rochester:
- Websites specific to Ohio
- Pages specific to Lorain County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Ashland County
- Champaign County
- Crawford County
- Cuyahoga County
- Erie County
- Huron County
- Medina County
- Richland County
- Sandusky County
- Seneca County
- Wayne County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Ohio
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 Rochester, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Rochester) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |