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 Charlestown Beach (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 Charlestown Beach. 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 Charlestown Beach ...
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 occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Charlestown Beach: Charlestown Bch.
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 doctors 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.
Charlestown Beach is located in Washington County.
To see how the shape of the state's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Washington County: New London (CT), Windham (CT), Dukes (MA), Suffolk (NY), Bristol, Kent & Newport.
Below are the counties that are near Charlestown Beach. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Charlestown Beach:
- Washington County (The home county of Charlestown Beach)
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Charlestown
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Charlestown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown
- Charlestown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Charlestown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,836 people
- Perryville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Perryville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perryville
- Jerusalem
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jerusalem is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jerusalem
- Kenyon
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Kenyon is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenyon
- Shannock
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Shannock is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shannock
- Carolina
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Carolina is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina
- Alton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Alton is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alton
- Burdickville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Burdickville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burdickville
- Bradford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Bradford is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bradford
- Curtis Corner
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Curtis Corner is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis Corner
- Langworthy Corner
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Langworthy Corner is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Langworthy Corner
- Bristol County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Bristol
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bristol is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
- Annawomscutt
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Annawomscutt is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annawomscutt
- Barrington
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Barrington is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,015 people
- Bristol
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bristol is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
- Population from the 2020 Census: 21,866 people
- Barrington
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Barrington is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington
- Coggeshall
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Coggeshall is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coggeshall
- Warren
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Warren is located in Bristol County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
- Kent County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- West Greenwich
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- West Greenwich is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Greenwich
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,418 people
- Kitts Corner
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Kitts Corner is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kitts Corner
- East Greenwich
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- East Greenwich is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Greenwich
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,141 people
- Shippee Corner
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Shippee Corner is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shippee Corner
- Gortons Corner
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Gortons Corner is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gortons Corner
- Spring Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Spring Lake is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Lake
- Coventry
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Coventry is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventry
- East Greenwich
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- East Greenwich is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Greenwich
- Coventry
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Coventry is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventry
- Population from the 2020 Census: 34,931 people
- Cowesett
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cowesett is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowesett
- Greene
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Greene is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greene
- Quidnick
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Quidnick is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quidnick
- Newport County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Clarks Village
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Clarks Village is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks Village
- Jamestown
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Jamestown is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Brenton Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Brenton Village is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brenton Village
- Jamestown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Jamestown is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,482 people
- Newport
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Newport is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 24,412 people
- Newport East
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Newport East is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport East
- Middletown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Middletown is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Lawtons
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Lawtons is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawtons
- Middletown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Middletown is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,803 people
- Melville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Melville is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melville
- Portsmouth
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Portsmouth is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portsmouth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,108 people
- Prudence Island
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Prudence Island is located in Newport County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prudence Island
- Providence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Kent ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Kent is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
- Oaklawn
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Oaklawn is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklawn
- Richmond ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Richmond is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
- Sockanosset
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Sockanosset is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sockanosset
- Clayville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Clayville is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayville
- Garden City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Garden City is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Meshanticut
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Meshanticut is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meshanticut
- Ashland ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ashland is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
- Bellefonte
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bellefonte is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellefonte
- Knightsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Knightsville is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knightsville
- Rockland ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Rockland is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
- Cranston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Cranston is located in Providence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cranston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 81,142 people
- New London County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Pawcatuck
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Clarks Village
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Clarks Village is located in New London County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks Village
- Wequetequock
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Wequetequock is located in New London County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wequetequock
- North Stonington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- North Stonington is located in New London County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stonington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,197 people
- North Stonington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Stonington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Stonington is located in New London County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonington
- Population from the 2020 Census: 18,566 people
- Stonington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Mystic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Old Mystic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Glasgo
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Mashantucket
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Voluntown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Voluntown is located in New London County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voluntown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,500 people
- Windham County (CT)
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Ekonk
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Ekonk is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ekonk
- Oneco
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Sterling
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Sterling is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,764 people
- Sterling
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Plainfield
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Plainfield is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield
- Population from the 2020 Census: 15,084 people
- Plainfield Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Plainfield Village is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainfield Village
- Plainfield
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Almyville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Almyville is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almyville
- Moosup
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Canterbury
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Central Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Canterbury
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Canterbury is located in Windham County (CT)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canterbury
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,088 people
- Bristol County (MA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Acoaxet
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Acoaxet is located in Bristol County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acoaxet
- Westport Point
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Westport Point is located in Bristol County (MA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport Point
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Charlestown Beach, see our County-by-County Page for Charlestown Beach.
Cemeteries Near Charlestown Beach ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Charlestown Beach.
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 Charlestown Beach - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Charlestown Beach covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Charlestown Indian Burying Ground
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Aldrich Potter Lot
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aldrich Potter Lot
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Aldrich Potter Lot is located outside and to the west of Charlestown.
- Jump to the Rhode Island Historical Cemetery Commission: RIHCC ID #CH032 <2>
- Royal Indian Burial Ground
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Burdick Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Allen Green Lot
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Hoxsie - Cayer Plot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- George Babcock Plot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Joseph Burdick Plot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hall - Geer Plot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Gardiner - Green Plot
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- White Brook Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Brown Chapel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (551 more) ...
- Nathan Kinyon Plot
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Boss Plot
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Elias Lewis Plot
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
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.<4>
While we didn't find Charlestown Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Charlestown Beach.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Charlestown Beach, with the one closest to Charlestown Beach listed first.
- Green Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Green Hill is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
- Charlestown
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Charlestown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlestown
- Quonochontaug
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Quonochontaug is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quonochontaug
- Matunuck
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Matunuck is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matunuck
- Perryville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Perryville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perryville
- Kenyon
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Kenyon is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenyon
- Wood River Junction
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Wood River Junction is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wood River Junction
- Shannock
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Shannock is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shannock
- Carolina
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Carolina is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina
- Point Judith
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Point Judith is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Judith
- Woodville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Woodville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
- Wakefield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Wakefield is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakefield
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Peace Dale
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Peace Dale is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peace Dale
- Rocky Brook
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Rocky Brook is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Brook
- Gould
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Gould is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Charlestown Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around Charlestown Beach.
Newspapers Published in Charlestown Beach ...
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 57 newspapers that have been published in the area around Charlestown Beach.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Charlestown Beach, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Charlestown Beach.
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 Charlestown Beach:
- Websites specific to Rhode Island
- Pages specific to Washington County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bristol County
- Kent County
- Newport County
- Providence County
- New London County
- Windham County
- Bristol County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Rhode Island
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 Rhode Island Historical Cemetery Commission (RIHCC) has created and maintains a database of cemeteries. More information about the RIHCC can be found on their website: rihistoriccemeteries.org. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Charlestown Beach, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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 from Point A (ie- Charlestown Beach) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |