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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 (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. 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.

Charlestown is located in Washington County.

To see how the shape of the state's counties 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. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Charlestown:

  • Washington County     (The home county of Charlestown)
  • Bristol County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
    • Bristol
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Annawomscutt
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Barrington
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barrington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barrington
      • Barrington is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,015 people
    • Bristol
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bristol have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bristol
      • Bristol is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 21,866 people
    • Barrington
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Coggeshall
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Warren
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Warren have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
      • Warren is located in Bristol County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,469 people
  • Kent County
  • Newport County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
    • Clarks Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarks Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks Village
      • Clarks Village is located in Newport County
    • Brenton Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brenton Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brenton Village
      • Brenton Village is located in Newport County
    • Jamestown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jamestown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jamestown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jamestown
      • Jamestown is located in Newport County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,482 people
    • Newport
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Middletown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Lawtons
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Middletown
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middletown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
      • Middletown is located in Newport County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 15,803 people
    • Melville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Melville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melville
      • Melville is located in Newport County
    • Portsmouth
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Portsmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portsmouth
      • Portsmouth is located in Newport County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 17,108 people
    • Sakonnet
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Portsmouth
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Little Compton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Compton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Compton
      • Little Compton is located in Newport County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,462 people
  • Providence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
    • Kent ‑ Historic
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kent. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
      • Kent is located in Providence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Kent
      • From Charlestown to Kent
    • Oaklawn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Oaklawn. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklawn
      • Oaklawn is located in Providence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Oaklawn
      • From Charlestown to Oaklawn
    • Richmond ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Richmond. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
      • Richmond is located in Providence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Richmond
      • From Charlestown to Richmond
    • Clayville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Garden City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garden City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
      • Garden City is located in Providence County
    • Meshanticut
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Ashland ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ashland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
      • Ashland is located in Providence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Ashland
      • From Charlestown to Ashland
    • Rockland ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rockland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
      • Rockland is located in Providence County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rockland
      • From Charlestown to Rockland
    • Cranston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Foster
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Foster have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster
      • Foster is located in Providence County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,747 people
    • Simmonsville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Chopmist
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
    • Johnston
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johnston have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston
      • Johnston is located in Providence County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 29,366 people
  • New London County (CT)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
    • Pawcatuck
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pawcatuck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pawcatuck
      • Pawcatuck is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pawcatuck <3>
    • Clarks Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarks Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarks Village
      • Clarks Village is located in New London County (CT)
    • North Stonington
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Wequetequock
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • North Stonington
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Stonington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stonington
      • North Stonington is located in New London County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,197 people
    • Stonington
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stonington have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonington
      • Stonington is located in New London County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 18,566 people
    • Stonington
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Voluntown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Voluntown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voluntown
      • Voluntown is located in New London County (CT)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,500 people
    • Mystic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Old Mystic
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Mystic have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Mystic
      • Old Mystic is located in New London County (CT)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Old Mystic <3>
    • Glasgo
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Voluntown
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Mashantucket
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
  • Windham County (CT)
  • Bristol County (MA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
    • Acoaxet
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Westport Point
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westport Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport Point
      • Westport Point is located in Bristol County (MA)

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

Cemeteries Near Charlestown ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Charlestown.

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

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

  • Charlestown Indian Burying Ground
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Charlestown Indian Burying Ground
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Charlestown Indian Burying Ground have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Aldrich Potter Lot
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Royal Indian Burial Ground
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Royal Indian Burial Ground
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Royal Indian Burial Ground have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Burdick Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Burdick Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Burdick Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Allen Green Lot
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • White Brook Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the White Brook Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the White Brook Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hoxsie - Cayer Plot
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hoxsie - Cayer Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hoxsie - Cayer Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • George Babcock Plot
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the George Babcock Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the George Babcock Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Joseph Burdick Plot
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Joseph Burdick Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Joseph Burdick Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hall - Geer Plot
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hall - Geer Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hall - Geer Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gardiner - Green Plot
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gardiner - Green Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gardiner - Green Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Nathan Kinyon Plot
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nathan Kinyon Plot
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nathan Kinyon Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (567 more) ...
    • Hezekiah Collins Plot
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hezekiah Collins Plot
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hezekiah Collins Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Boss Plot
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Boss Plot
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Boss Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Witter Plot
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Witter Plot
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Witter Plot have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Charlestown had a population of 75 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Green Hill
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
    • Green Hill is located in Washington County
  • Quonochontaug
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Quonochontaug have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quonochontaug
    • Quonochontaug is located in Washington County
  • Perryville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Kenyon
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Shannock
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Wood River Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wood River Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wood River Junction
    • Wood River Junction is located in Washington County
  • Carolina
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carolina. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina
    • Carolina is located in Washington County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Carolina
    • From Charlestown to Carolina
  • Matunuck
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Matunuck have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matunuck
    • Matunuck is located in Washington County
  • Woodville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
    • Woodville is located in Washington County
  • Ashaway
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Point Judith
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Wakefield
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wakefield have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wakefield
    • Wakefield is located in Washington County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Peace Dale
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Rocky Brook
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Gould
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gould have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould
      • Gould is located in Washington County

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

Newspapers Published in Charlestown ...

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 81 newspapers that have been published in the area around Charlestown.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Charlestown, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<7>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Charlestown.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with 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:

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

The official website for State of Rhode Island: https://www.ri.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>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.
<5>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.
<6>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, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<7>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Charlestown) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Charlestown. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.3833, Longitude: -71.6425    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 22 Apr 2025