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 Bluelight (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 Bluelight. 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 doctors 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.
Bluelight is primarily located in Klickitat County. A portion of Bluelight extends into Yakima County.
To see how the shape of Washington's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Klickitat County: Gilliam (OR), Hood River (OR), Morrow (OR), Sherman (OR), Wasco (OR), Benton, Skamania & Yakima.
Below are the counties that are near Bluelight. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Bluelight:
- Klickitat County (The home county of Bluelight)
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluelight, with the one closest to Bluelight listed first.
- Bickleton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cleveland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Dot
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Dot. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dot
- Dot is located in Klickitat County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Dot
- From Bluelight to Dot
- Roosevelt
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Benton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluelight, with the one closest to Bluelight listed first.
- Prosser
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Paterson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Yakima County
- The following are listed by their distance from Bluelight, with the one closest to Bluelight listed first.
- Mabton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Satus
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Satus have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Satus
- Satus is located in Yakima County
- Byron
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Grandview
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Granger
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Outlook
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Sunnyside
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Toppenish
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Zillah
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Buena
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Harrah
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wapato
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Gilliam County (OR)
- Arlington
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Morrow County (OR)
- Boardman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boardman have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boardman
- Boardman is located in Morrow County (OR)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,794 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boardman <1>
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Bluelight, see our County-by-County Page for Bluelight.
Cemeteries Near Bluelight ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Bluelight.
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 Bluelight covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Bluelight, with the one closest to Bluelight listed first.
- Glade Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Glade Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Glade Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- IOOF Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the IOOF Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Beaver Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beaver Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beaver Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Onepennee Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Onepennee Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Onepennee Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Huit - Juniper Canyon Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Sixprong Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sixprong Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sixprong Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Mabton Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mabton Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mabton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Meninik Cemetery
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Meninik Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Meninik Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Smina Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smina Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Smina Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Toweatmy Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Toweatmy Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Toweatmy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Sampson Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Outlook Cemetery
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Outlook Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Outlook Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Continue List (11 more) ...
- Grandview Cemetery
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Arlington Masonic Cemetery
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Arlington Masonic Cemetery
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Arlington Masonic Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Lower Valley Memorial Gardens
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lower Valley Memorial Gardens
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lower Valley Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<3> 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.<7>
While we didn't find Bluelight in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Bluelight.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Bluelight, with the one closest to Bluelight listed first.
- Bickleton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Cleveland
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Dot
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Dot. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dot
- Dot is located in Klickitat County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Dot
- From Bluelight to Dot
- Mabton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Satus
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Satus have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Satus
- Satus is located in Yakima County
- Byron
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Willows
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willows have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willows
- Willows is located in Gilliam County (OR)
- Arlington
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Toppenish
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Bluelight. See our List of 1890's Communities around Bluelight.
Newspapers Published in Bluelight ...
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 27 newspapers that have been published in the area around Bluelight.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Bluelight, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Bluelight.
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 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 Bluelight:
- Websites specific to Washington
- Pages specific to Klickitat County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Benton County
- Yakima County
- Gilliam County
- Morrow County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Washington
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bluelight. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Klickitat County: www.klickitatcounty.org/
The official website for State of Washington: https://wa.gov/
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> | 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> | 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. |
<4> | To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Goldendale and Toppenish. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location. |
<5> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Bluelight) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bluelight. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.0415, Longitude: -120.1775 |
<6> | 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. |
<7> | 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 Bluelight, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |