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 California (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 California. 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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
California is located in Montour County.
To see how the shape of Pennsylvania's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Montour County: Columbia, Lycoming & Northumberland.
Below are the counties that are near California. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to California:
- Montour County (The home county of California)
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Washingtonville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Washingtonville is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washingtonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 270 people
- Exchange
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Exchange is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exchange
- Mooresburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mooresburg is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mooresburg
- Danville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mechanicsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Mechanicsville is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanicsville
- Centre County
- Livonia
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Livonia is located in Centre County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livonia
- Clinton County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Rauchtown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Rauchtown is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rauchtown
- Loganton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Columbia County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Jerseytown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Jerseytown is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerseytown
- Eyers Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Eyers Grove is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eyers Grove
- Millville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Mordansville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Mordansville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mordansville
- Iola
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Iola is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iola
- Buckhorn
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Buckhorn is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buckhorn
- Grovania
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Grovania is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grovania
- Greenwood
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Greenwood is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Welliversville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Welliversville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welliversville
- Bloomsburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Fernville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Fernville is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fernville
- Rupert
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rupert is located in Columbia County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rupert
- Catawissa
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Dauphin County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Erdman
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Erdman is located in Dauphin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erdman
- Pillow
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Luzerne County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- New Columbus
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- New Columbus is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Columbus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 227 people
- Register
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Register is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Register
- Clarks View
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Clarks View is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks View
- Fairmount Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Fairmount Springs is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount Springs
- East Berwick
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- East Berwick is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Berwick
- Nescopeck
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Waterton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Waterton is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterton
- Harveyville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Harveyville is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harveyville
- Red Rock
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Red Rock is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Rock
- Huntington Mills
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mountain Grove
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mountain Grove is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Grove
- Mossville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mossville is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mossville
- Beach Haven
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Beach Haven is located in Luzerne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach Haven
- Lycoming County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Muncy
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Montgomery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Muncy
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Muncy is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muncy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,191 people
- Lairdsville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Lairdsville is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lairdsville
- Maple Hill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Maple Hill is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Hill
- Unityville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Biggerstown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Biggerstown is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biggerstown
- Montoursville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Beaver Lake
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beaver Lake is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Lake
- Richarts Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Richarts Grove is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richarts Grove
- Lungerville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Lungerville is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lungerville
- Faxon
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Faxon is located in Lycoming County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faxon
- South Williamsport
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Northumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Turbotville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- McEwensville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Milton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Milton is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,550 people
- Potts Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Watsontown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Chulasky
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Chulasky is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chulasky
- Dewart
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Riverside
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Rushtown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rushtown is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushtown
- Northumberland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Keefers
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Keefers is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keefers
- Snydertown
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Snydertown is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snydertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
- Sunbury
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Schuylkill County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Pitman
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Rough and Ready
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Rough and Ready is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rough and Ready
- Ashland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lavelle - Locustdale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Lavelle - Locustdale is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavelle - Locustdale
- Lavelle
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Klingerstown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Ferndale
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Ferndale is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferndale
- Haas
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Haas is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haas
- Zion Grove
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Fountain Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Fountain Springs is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Springs
- Gordon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ringtown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Beurys Lake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Beurys Lake is located in Schuylkill County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beurys Lake
- Snyder County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Shamokin Dam
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Kratzerville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Kratzerville is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kratzerville
- Hummels Wharf
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Selinsgrove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Globe Mills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Globe Mills is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Globe Mills
- Kreamer
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Penns Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Freeburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Freeburg is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 566 people
- Dundore
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Dundore is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dundore
- Port Trevorton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Middleburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Coon Hunter
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Coon Hunter is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coon Hunter
- Chapman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Chapman is located in Snyder County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
- Sullivan County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Beech Glen
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Beech Glen is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Glen
- Sonestown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ogdonia
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Ogdonia is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ogdonia
- Eagles Mere
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Long Brook
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Long Brook is located in Sullivan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Brook
- Hillsgrove
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Laporte
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Forksville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- New Columbia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- West Milton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- West Milton is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Milton
- Allenwood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Lewisburg
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Linntown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Linntown is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linntown
- Alvira ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Alvira is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alvira
- Former name for Alvira:
- Wisetown
- Mazeppa
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Mazeppa is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mazeppa
- Dry Valley Crossroads
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- New Berlin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mifflinburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Red Bank
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Red Bank is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
- Millmont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hartleton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hartleton is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartleton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 275 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to California, see our County-by-County Page for California.
Cemeteries Near California ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of California.
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 California - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for California covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Billmeyer Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Turbotville Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Old Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Chillisquaque Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Stitzel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- St. James Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Milton Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- St. Josephs Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Center Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Highland Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Harmony Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Grandview Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (152 more) ...
- Brights Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Old St. Josephs Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Wilson Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
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 in 1895, California had railroad service and no post office.
These communities are listed based on their distance from California, with the one closest to California listed first.
- Schuyler
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Schuyler is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schuyler
- Ottawa
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Ottawa is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottawa
- Limestoneville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Limestoneville is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limestoneville
- Washingtonville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Washingtonville is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washingtonville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 270 people
- Dieffenbach
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Dieffenbach is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dieffenbach
- Strawberry Ridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Strawberry Ridge is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strawberry Ridge
- Comly
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Comly is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comly
- Exchange
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Exchange is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exchange
- Turbotville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Warrior Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Warrior Run is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrior Run
- McEwensville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Mooresburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mooresburg is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mooresburg
- Continue List (19 more) ...
- Milton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Milton is located in Northumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,550 people
- Potts Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- White Hall
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- White Hall is located in Montour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Hall
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around California. See our List of 1890's Communities around California.
Newspapers Published in California ...
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 53 newspapers that have been published in the area around California.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of California, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for California.
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 professional and volunteer 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 California:
- Websites specific to Pennsylvania
- Pages specific to Montour County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Centre County
- Clinton County
- Columbia County
- Dauphin County
- Luzerne County
- Lycoming County
- Northumberland County
- Schuylkill County
- Snyder County
- Sullivan County
- Union County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Pennsylvania
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 California, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- California) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |