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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 Chaffee (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 Chaffee. 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.

Chaffee is located in Benton 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 Benton County: Morrow (OR), Umatilla (OR), Franklin, Grant, Klickitat, Walla Walla & Yakima.

Below are the counties that are near Chaffee. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Chaffee:

  • Benton County     (The home county of Chaffee)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chaffee, with the one closest to Chaffee listed first.
    • Benton City
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Prosser
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • West Richland
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Richland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Kennewick
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Paterson
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Highland
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland
      • Highland is located in Benton County
    • Plymouth
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plymouth
      • Plymouth is located in Benton County
    • Finley
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Finley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finley
      • Finley is located in Benton County
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chaffee, with the one closest to Chaffee listed first.
    • West Pasco
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Pasco have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pasco
      • West Pasco is located in Franklin County
    • Pasco
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasco
      • Pasco is located in Franklin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 77,095 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pasco <1>
    • Ainsworth Junction
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ainsworth Junction. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ainsworth Junction
      • Ainsworth Junction is located in Franklin County
  • Walla Walla County
  • Yakima County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chaffee, with the one closest to Chaffee listed first.
    • Byron
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byron
      • Byron is located in Yakima County
    • Grandview
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Mabton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Sunnyside
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Outlook
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Outlook
      • Outlook is located in Yakima County
    • Satus
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Satus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Satus
      • Satus is located in Yakima County
    • Granger
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Morrow County (OR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chaffee, with the one closest to Chaffee listed first.
    • Irrigon
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Irrigon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irrigon
      • Irrigon is located in Morrow County (OR)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,799 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Irrigon <1>
    • Boardman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boardman have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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>
  • Umatilla County (OR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Chaffee, with the one closest to Chaffee listed first.
    • Umatilla
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Umatilla
      • Umatilla is located in Umatilla County (OR)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,360 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Umatilla <1>
    • Power City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Power City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Power City
      • Power City is located in Umatilla County (OR)

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

Cemeteries Near Chaffee ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Chaffee.

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

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

  • Evergreen Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Evergreen Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Evergreen Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Prosser Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Grandview Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • 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.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sunset Memorial Gardens
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunset Memorial Gardens
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunset Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Resthaven Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Resthaven Cemetery
    • The Resthaven Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Rest Haven Cemetery
  • Mabton Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • 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.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Desert Lawn Memorial Park
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
  • Sunnyside Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunnyside Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunnyside Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sunnyside Memorial Gardens
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunnyside Memorial Gardens
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunnyside Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lower Valley Memorial Gardens
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • 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.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Riverview Heights Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Riverview Heights Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Riverview Heights Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Columbia Memorial Gardens
    (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Columbia Memorial Gardens
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Columbia Memorial Gardens have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (10 more) ...
    • Outlook Cemetery
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • 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.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • City View Cemetery
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the City View Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the City View Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northeast of Pasco.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76739 <4>
    • Irrigon Cemetery
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Irrigon Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Irrigon Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2252861 <4>

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.<5>

While we didn't find Chaffee in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Chaffee.

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

  • Byron
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byron
    • Byron is located in Yakima County
  • Mabton
    (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
  • Pasco
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pasco
    • Pasco is located in Franklin County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 77,095 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pasco <1>
  • Glade
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glade have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glade
    • Glade is located in Franklin County
  • Satus
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Satus have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Satus
    • Satus is located in Yakima County
  • Umatilla
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Umatilla
    • Umatilla is located in Umatilla County (OR)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,360 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Umatilla <1>

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

Newspapers Published in Chaffee ...

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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around Chaffee.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Chaffee, there are papers which were published within 28 miles [45.1 km]<6>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Chaffee.

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 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 Chaffee:

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

The official website for Benton County: www.co.benton.wa.us/

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>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.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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 Chaffee, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Chaffee) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Chaffee. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.2601, Longitude: -119.6067       In this case, the coordinates for Chaffee have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025