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 Rockaway Beach (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 Rockaway Beach. 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 Rockaway Beach ...
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.
Although we can't give a definitive list, hopefully the following will give you a feel for the variations that might occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Rockaway Beach: Rockaway Bch.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Rockaway Beach. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Rockaway Beach.
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 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.
Rockaway Beach is located in Island 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 Island County: Jefferson, Kitsap, San Juan, Skagit & Snohomish.
Below are the counties that are near Rockaway Beach. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rockaway Beach:
- Island County (The home county of Rockaway Beach)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Camano
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Juniper Beach
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Juniper Beach is located in Island County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juniper Beach
- Coupeville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Greenbank
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Oak Harbor
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Camp Diana
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Camp Diana is located in Island County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Diana
- San de Fuca
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- San de Fuca is located in Island County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San de Fuca
- Langley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Freeland
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bay View
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Bay View is located in Island County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
- Clinton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Clallam County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Port Williams
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Port Williams is located in Clallam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Williams
- Blyn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Blyn is located in Clallam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blyn
- Bell Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Bell Hill is located in Clallam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bell Hill
- Sequim
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Old Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Old Town is located in Clallam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
- River Road
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- River Road is located in Clallam County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Road
- Carlsborg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Port Townsend
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Marrowstone
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Nordland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Irondale ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Irondale is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irondale
- Port Hadlock
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Port Hadlock - Irondale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Adelma Beach
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Adelma Beach is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelma Beach
- Chimacum
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Port Ludlow
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Gardiner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Beaver Valley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Beaver Valley is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Valley
- Leland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Leland is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leland
- Quilcene
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- King County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Northwest Snohomish
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Northwest Snohomish is located in King County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northwest Snohomish
- Silver Firs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Silver Firs is located in King County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Firs
- Kitsap County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Hansville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Port Gamble
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lofall
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lofall is located in Kitsap County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lofall
- Kingston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- San Juan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Decatur Island
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Lopez Island
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lopez Island is located in San Juan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez Island
- Lopez
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lopez is located in San Juan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez
- Argyle
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Argyle is located in San Juan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argyle
- Skagit County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Fish Town
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Fish Town is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fish Town
- Shelter Bay
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Shelter Bay is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelter Bay
- Conway
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- La Conner
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Swinomish Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Swinomish Village is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swinomish Village
- Skagit City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Skagit City is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skagit City
- Snee Oosh
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Snee Oosh is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snee Oosh
- Lake McMurray
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lake McMurray is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake McMurray
- Similk Beach
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Similk Beach is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Similk Beach
- Mount Vernon
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Montborne
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Montborne is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montborne
- Alexander Beach
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Alexander Beach is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Beach
- Bay View
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Bay View is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
- Snohomish County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Utsalady
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Utsalady is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Utsalady
- Stanwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Warm Beach
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Warm Beach is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warm Beach
- Florence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Florence is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- North Stanwood
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- North Stanwood is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stanwood
- McKees Beach
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- McKees Beach is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKees Beach
- Lake Ketchum
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Lake Ketchum is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ketchum
- Lake Goodwin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Lake Goodwin is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Goodwin
- Spee-Bi-Dah
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Spee-Bi-Dah is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spee-Bi-Dah
- Weallup Lake
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Weallup Lake is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weallup Lake
- Silvana
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Cathan
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cathan is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cathan
- John Sam Lake
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- John Sam Lake is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for John Sam Lake
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rockaway Beach, see our County-by-County Page for Rockaway Beach.
Cemeteries Near Rockaway Beach ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rockaway Beach.
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 Rockaway Beach - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rockaway Beach covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Camano Lutheran Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Camano Island Pioneer Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Sunnyside Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Maple Leaf Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Our Saviours Lutheran Church Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Scandinavian Cemetery
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scandinavian Cemetery
- The Scandinavian Cemetery has also been known as:
- Old Milltown Cemetery
- Old Milltown Lutheran Cemetery
- Scandinavian Lutheran Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2168007 <2>
- Sound View Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant View Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Skagit City Cemetery
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Laurel Grove Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Pleasant Ridge Cemetery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Mission Beach Cemetery
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (31 more) ...
- Fern Hill Cemetery
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Marysville Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Arlington Municipal Cemetery
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington Municipal Cemetery
- The Arlington Municipal Cemetery has also been known as:
- Arlington Cemetery
- Harwood 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.<3>
While we didn't find Rockaway Beach in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rockaway Beach.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rockaway Beach, with the one closest to Rockaway Beach listed first.
- Coupeville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Stanwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Oak Harbor
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- San de Fuca
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- San de Fuca is located in Island County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San de Fuca
- Florence
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Florence is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
- Port Townsend
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Langley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Norman
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Norman is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norman
- Silvana
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- La Conner
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Skagit City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Skagit City is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skagit City
- Irondale ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Irondale is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Irondale
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Tulalip
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Tulalip is located in Snohomish County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulalip
- McMurray
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- McMurray is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McMurray
- Gibraltar
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Gibraltar is located in Skagit County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibraltar
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rockaway Beach. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rockaway Beach.
Newspapers Published in Rockaway Beach ...
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 Rockaway Beach.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rockaway Beach, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rockaway Beach.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Rockaway Beach:
- Websites specific to Washington
- Pages specific to Island County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clallam County
- Jefferson County
- King County
- Kitsap County
- San Juan County
- Skagit County
- Snohomish 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 Rockaway Beach, 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' (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- Rockaway Beach) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |