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 Fort Rains (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 Fort Rains. 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 Fort Rains ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Fort Rains: Ft. Rains
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and 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.
Fort Rains is located in Skamania County.
To see how the shape of Washington's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Skamania County: Hood River (OR), Multnomah (OR), Clark, Cowlitz, Klickitat, Lewis & Yakima.
Below are the counties that are near Fort Rains. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Fort Rains:
- Skamania County (The home county of Fort Rains)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Moffetts Hot Springs
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Moffetts Hot Springs is located in Skamania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffetts Hot Springs
- North Bonneville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Stevenson
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Skamania
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Skamania is located in Skamania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skamania
- Carson
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Stabler
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Stabler is located in Skamania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stabler
- Cruzatt
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Cruzatt is located in Skamania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cruzatt
- Hood
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Hood is located in Skamania County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hood
- Underwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Clark County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Sunnyside
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Sunnyside is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnyside
- Washougal
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Camas
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Fern Prairie
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Fern Prairie is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fern Prairie
- Venersborg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Venersborg is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Venersborg
- Yacolt
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Mill Plain
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Mill Plain is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Plain
- Proebstel
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Proebstel is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proebstel
- Cascade Park East
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Fisher
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Fisher is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher
- Hockinson
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hockinson is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hockinson
- Chelatchie
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Chelatchie is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelatchie
- Orchards
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Klickitat County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- White Salmon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Bingen
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- B Z Corner
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- B Z Corner is located in Klickitat County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for B Z Corner
- Husum
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Lyle
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Trout Lake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Clackamas County (OR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Brightwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Aims
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Aims is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aims
- Mount Hood Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Mount Hood Village is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hood Village
- Marmot
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Welches
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Zigzag
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Rhododendron
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Sandy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sandy is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy
- Population from the 2020 Census: 11,566 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sandy <1>
- Government Camp
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Boring
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dover
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dover is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover
- George
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- George is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for George
- Damascus
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Hood River County (OR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Cascade Locks
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Odell
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Mount Hood
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Hood is located in Hood River County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hood
- Parkdale
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Hood River
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Lenz
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Lenz is located in Hood River County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lenz
- Lenz has also been known as:
- Sherman Spur
- Pine Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Pine Grove is located in Hood River County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Grove
- Multnomah County (OR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Bonneville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bonneville is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonneville
- Warrendale
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Warrendale is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrendale
- Dodson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Dodson is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodson
- Bridal Veil
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Latourell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Latourell is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latourell
- Former names for Latourell:
- Latourell Falls
- Rooster Rock
- Corbett
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Troutdale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Powell Valley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Powell Valley is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powell Valley
- Wood Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Fairview
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Gresham
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Gresham is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gresham
- Population from the 2020 Census: 110,031 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gresham <1>
- Rockwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Rockwood is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwood
- Hazelwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Hazelwood is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
- Wasco County (OR)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Mosier
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Ortley ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Ortley is located in Wasco County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ortley
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Fort Rains, see our County-by-County Page for Fort Rains.
Cemeteries Near Fort Rains ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fort Rains.
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 Fort Rains - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Fort Rains covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Cascade Locks Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Freddie Masterson Grave
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Iman Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- McQuinn Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Stevenson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stevenson Cemetery
- The Stevenson Cemetery has also been known as:
- Odd Fellows Cemetery
- Belle Center Cemetery
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Frankton Cemetery
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankton Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Frankton Cemetery is located outside and to the west of Hood River (OR).
- The Frankton Cemetery has also been known as:
- Backus Cemetery
- Irving Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2276895 <2>
- Upper Valley Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Hood Community Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Mountain View Memorial Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- St. Mary's Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Pounder Cemetery
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (45 more) ...
- Shelley Family Cemetery
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Idlewilde Cemetery
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- St. Mark the Evangelist Church Columbarium
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
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.<3>
While we didn't find Fort Rains in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Fort Rains.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Fort Rains, with the one closest to Fort Rains listed first.
- Bonneville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bonneville is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonneville
- Dodson
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Dodson is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodson
- Oneonta
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Oneonta is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oneonta
- Multnomah Falls
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Multnomah Falls is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Multnomah Falls
- Bridal Veil
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Latourell
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Latourell is located in Multnomah County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Latourell
- Former names for Latourell:
- Latourell Falls
- Rooster Rock
- Mount Pleasant
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Aims
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Aims is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aims
- Marmot
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Salmon
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Salmon is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salmon
- Washougal
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- White Salmon
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Cherryville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cherryville is located in Clackamas County (OR)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherryville
- Fern Prairie
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Fern Prairie is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fern Prairie
- Troutdale
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Fort Rains. See our List of 1890's Communities around Fort Rains.
Newspapers Published in Fort Rains ...
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 35 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fort Rains.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fort Rains, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fort Rains.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Fort Rains:
- Websites specific to Washington
- Pages specific to Skamania County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clark County
- Klickitat County
- Clackamas County
- Hood River County
- Multnomah County
- Wasco County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Washington
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 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. |
| <3> | 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 Fort Rains, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Fort Rains) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |