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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 Laurel (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 Laurel. 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.

Laurel is located in Whatcom 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 Whatcom County: Okanogan, San Juan & Skagit.

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

  • Whatcom County     (The home county of Laurel)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Ferndale
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Lynden
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Bellingham
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Lummi
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lummi
      • Lummi is located in Whatcom County
    • Everson
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Custer
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Geneva
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Geneva have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
      • Geneva is located in Whatcom County
    • Nooksack
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nooksack have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nooksack
      • Nooksack is located in Whatcom County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,659 people
    • Kickerville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kickerville
      • Kickerville is located in Whatcom County
    • Chuckanut Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chuckanut Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chuckanut Village
      • Chuckanut Village is located in Whatcom County
    • Clearbrook
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearbrook
      • Clearbrook is located in Whatcom County
    • Sudden Valley
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sudden Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sudden Valley
      • Sudden Valley is located in Whatcom County
  • San Juan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Eastsound
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Olga
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Waldron
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldron
      • Waldron is located in San Juan County
    • Deer Harbor
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Orcas
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Decatur Island
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Shaw Island
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaw Island
      • Shaw Island is located in San Juan County
    • Lopez
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez
      • Lopez is located in San Juan County
    • Lopez Island
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez Island
      • Lopez Island is located in San Juan County
  • Skagit County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Laurel, with the one closest to Laurel listed first.
    • Alger
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alger have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alger
      • Alger is located in Skagit County
    • Urban
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Urban
      • Urban is located in Skagit County
    • Bow
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Edison
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edison have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edison
      • Edison is located in Skagit County
    • Indian Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
      • Indian Village is located in Skagit County
    • Anacortes
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Bay View
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bay View have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
      • Bay View is located in Skagit County
    • Sedro - Woolley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Alexander Beach
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alexander Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Beach
      • Alexander Beach is located in Skagit County
    • Burlington
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Similk Beach
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Similk Beach
      • Similk Beach is located in Skagit County
    • Clear Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Lake
      • Clear Lake is located in Skagit County

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

Newspapers Published in Laurel ...

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 94 newspapers that have been published in the area around Laurel.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Laurel, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Laurel.

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 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 Laurel:

Cemeteries Near Laurel ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Laurel.

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

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

  • Greenacres Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Woodlawn Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the east of Ferndale.
    • The Woodlawn Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Paradise Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodlawn Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #77126 <4>
  • Greenwood Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenwood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenwood Cemetery
  • Lynden Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Monumenta Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Sunnyland Memorial Park
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunnyland Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunnyland Memorial Park
  • Enterprise Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Enterprise Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Enterprise Cemetery
  • Lummi Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lummi Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lummi Cemetery
  • Bayview Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Bayview Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Bellingham.
    • The Bayview Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bay View Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bayview Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76707 <4>
  • Berthusen Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Berthusen Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Berthusen Memorial Park
  • Indian Joe Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Indian Joe Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Indian Joe Cemetery
  • Nooksack Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Nooksack Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Nooksack Cemetery
  • Continue List   (46 more) ...
    • Haynie Cemetery
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Haynie Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Haynie Cemetery
    • Hillsdale Cemetery
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Van Zandt Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Van Zandt Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Van Zandt Cemetery

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 in 1895, Laurel had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Brennan
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brennan have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brennan
    • Brennan is located in Whatcom County
  • Van Wyck
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Van Wyck have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Wyck
    • Van Wyck is located in Whatcom County
  • Wahl
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wahl have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wahl
    • Wahl is located in Whatcom County
  • Lummi
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lummi
    • Lummi is located in Whatcom County
  • Marietta
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marietta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marietta
    • Marietta is located in Whatcom County
  • Bellingham
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Silver Beach
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Beach
    • Silver Beach is located in Whatcom County
  • Goshen
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goshen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
    • Goshen is located in Whatcom County
  • Lynden
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Delta
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delta have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delta
    • Delta is located in Whatcom County
  • Geneva
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Geneva have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
    • Geneva is located in Whatcom County
  • Everson
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Custer
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Mountain View
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain View have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View
      • Mountain View is located in Whatcom County
    • Fairhaven
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairhaven have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhaven
      • Fairhaven is located in Whatcom County

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

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

The official website for Whatcom County: www.co.whatcom.wa.us/

The official website for State of Washington: https://access.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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Laurel) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Laurel. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 48.8551, Longitude: -122.4899       In this case, the coordinates for Laurel have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Laurel, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024