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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 Dayton (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 Dayton. 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.

Dayton is located in Columbia County and is the County Seat.

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 Columbia County: Umatilla (OR), Wallowa (OR), Franklin, Garfield, Walla Walla & Whitman.

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

  • Columbia County     (The home county of Dayton)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dayton, with the one closest to Dayton listed first.
    • Huntsville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Menoken
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Relief
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Relief. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Relief
      • Relief is located in Columbia County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Relief
      • From Dayton to Relief
    • Delaney
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Delaney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delaney
      • Delaney is located in Columbia County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Delaney
      • From Dayton to Delaney
    • Starbuck
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Grange City ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grange City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grange City
      • Grange City is located in Columbia County
  • Garfield County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dayton, with the one closest to Dayton listed first.
    • Pomeroy
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Peola
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Pataha
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Gould City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gould City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gould City
      • Gould City is located in Garfield County
  • Walla Walla County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Dayton, with the one closest to Dayton listed first.
    • Coppei
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coppei. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coppei
      • Coppei is located in Walla Walla County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Coppei
      • From Dayton to Coppei
    • Waitsburg
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Dixie
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Prescott
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prescott have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prescott
      • Prescott is located in Walla Walla County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 310 people
    • Kibler
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Tompkins
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Clyde
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Paddock
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Walla Walla
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • College Place
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Garrett
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garrett have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrett
      • Garrett is located in Walla Walla County
    • Rulo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rulo. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rulo
      • Rulo is located in Walla Walla County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rulo
      • From Dayton to Rulo
    • Magallon
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Magallon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magallon
      • Magallon is located in Walla Walla County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Magallon
      • From Dayton to Magallon

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

Cemeteries Near Dayton ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dayton.

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

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

  • Pioneer Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pioneer Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pioneer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Bundy Hollow Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bundy Hollow Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bundy Hollow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • 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.
  • Pioneer Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pioneer Memorial Park
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pioneer Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Covello Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Covello Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Covello Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Turner Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Turner Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Turner Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Owsley Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Owsley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Owsley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ivy Cemetery
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ivy Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ivy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Holy Rosary Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Holy Rosary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Holy Rosary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pomeroy City Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Pataha Flat Cemetery
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pataha Flat Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pataha Flat Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Bones Cemetery
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Bones Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Bones Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (8 more) ...

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Dayton had a population of 1,880 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Dayton had a population of 2,477 people.

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

  • Huntsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Alto
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alto have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto
    • Alto is located in Columbia County
  • Covello
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Covello have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covello
    • Covello is located in Columbia County
  • Menoken
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Waitsburg
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Coppei
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Coppei. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coppei
    • Coppei is located in Walla Walla County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Coppei
    • From Dayton to Coppei
  • Relief
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Relief. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Relief
    • Relief is located in Columbia County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Relief
    • From Dayton to Relief
  • Marengo
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marengo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marengo
    • Marengo is located in Columbia County
  • Delaney
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Delaney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delaney
    • Delaney is located in Columbia County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Delaney
    • From Dayton to Delaney
  • Dixie
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Starbuck
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Gilliam
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gilliam have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gilliam
    • Gilliam is located in Walla Walla County
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Zumwalt
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Zumwalt have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zumwalt
      • Zumwalt is located in Garfield County
    • Chard
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chard
      • Chard is located in Garfield County
    • Prescott
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prescott have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prescott
      • Prescott is located in Walla Walla County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 310 people

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Dayton ...

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 87 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dayton.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Dayton. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Dayton and those printed in the larger area surrounding Dayton.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<6> of Dayton.

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 Dayton:

The official website for Dayton: www.daytonwa.com/

The official website for Columbia County: www.columbiaco.com/

The official website for State of Washington: https://wa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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 Dayton, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Dayton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Dayton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.3210, Longitude: -117.9777    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025