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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 Saint Helens (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 Saint Helens. 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 Saint Helens ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Saint Helens: St. Helens

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.

Saint Helens is located in Cowlitz 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 Cowlitz County: Columbia (OR), Clark, Lewis, Skamania & Wahkiakum.

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

  • Cowlitz County     (The home county of Saint Helens)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint Helens, with the one closest to Saint Helens listed first.
    • Toutle
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Silver Lake
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Castle Rock
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Olequa
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Olequa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olequa
      • Olequa is located in Cowlitz County
    • Ostrander
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ostrander
      • Ostrander is located in Cowlitz County
    • Cougar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Kelso
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelso
      • Kelso is located in Cowlitz County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 12,438 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kelso <1>
    • Rose Valley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Valley
      • Rose Valley is located in Cowlitz County
    • Longview Heights
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longview Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longview Heights
      • Longview Heights is located in Cowlitz County
    • Carrolls
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Longview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Ryderwood
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ryderwood
      • Ryderwood is located in Cowlitz County
  • Clark County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint Helens, with the one closest to Saint Helens listed first.
    • Etna
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Etna. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
      • Etna is located in Clark County
    • Amboy
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Chelatchie
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelatchie
      • Chelatchie is located in Clark County
  • Lewis County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint Helens, with the one closest to Saint Helens listed first.
    • Wilson
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
      • Wilson is located in Lewis County
    • Ajlune
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Ajlune. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ajlune
      • Ajlune is located in Lewis County
    • Silver Creek
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Mossyrock
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Salkum
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Lacamas
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacamas
      • Lacamas is located in Lewis County
    • Ethel
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Toledo
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Cinebar
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Morton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Onalaska
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Saint Urban
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Urban
      • Saint Urban is located in Lewis County
  • Columbia County (OR)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Saint Helens, with the one closest to Saint Helens listed first.
    • Prescott
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • 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 Columbia County (OR)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 63 people
    • Rainier
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rainier have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rainier
      • Rainier is located in Columbia County (OR)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,021 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rainier <1>
    • Beaver Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Springs
      • Beaver Springs is located in Columbia County (OR)
    • Goble
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goble
      • Goble is located in Columbia County (OR)
    • Reuben
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reuben
      • Reuben is located in Columbia County (OR)
    • Mayger
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayger
      • Mayger is located in Columbia County (OR)

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

Cemeteries Near Saint Helens ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Saint Helens.

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

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

  • Silver Lake Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Silver Lake Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Silver Lake Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<4> to the east of Toutle.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #77049 <5>
  • Tower Twp. Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tower Twp. Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Tower Twp. Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Tower Twp. Cemetery is located 8 miles [12.9 km]<4> to the southwest of Castle Rock.
    • The Tower Twp. Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Tower Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2277304 <5>
  • Klickitat Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Klickitat Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Klickitat Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lone Hill Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lone Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lone Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Rosin Cemetery
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Rosin Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Rosin Cemetery is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<4> to the southwest of Castle Rock.
    • The Rosin Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Rosin Cemetery
    • Tower Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #77025 <5>
  • IOOF Cemetery
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the IOOF Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the IOOF Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<4> to the west of Castle Rock.
    • The IOOF Cemetery has also been known as:
    • IOOF Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76862 <5>
  • Smith - Tucker Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Smith - Tucker Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Smith - Tucker Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Smith - Tucker Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<4> to the south of Pleasant Hill.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2350342 <5>
  • Shoestring Cemetery
    (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shoestring Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shoestring Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Whittle & Hubbard Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Whittle & Hubbard Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Whittle & Hubbard Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the west of Castle Rock.
    • The Whittle & Hubbard Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Hubbard Cemetery
    • Meadowview Cemetery
    • Whittle and Hubbard Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #77115 <5>
  • Stockport Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Stockport Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Stockport Cemetery is located outside and to the south of Pleasant Hill.
    • The Stockport Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Pleasant Hill Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #545650 <5>
  • Alpha Cemetery
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Alpha Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Alpha Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jackson Cemetery
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Jackson Cemetery
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Jackson Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Jackson Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<4> to the east of Castle Rock.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76873 <5>
  • Continue List   (29 more) ...
    • Cowlitz View Memorial Gardens
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cowlitz View Memorial Gardens
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Cowlitz View Memorial Gardens is a very large cemetery that is located in Kelso.
      • The Cowlitz View Memorial Gardens has also been known as:
      • IOOF Cemetery
      • IOOF Cemetery
      • Kelso IOOF Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #281134 <5>
    • Green Hills Memorial Gardens
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Catlin Cemetery
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)

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.<6>

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

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

  • Wilson
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
    • Wilson is located in Lewis County
  • Sightly
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sightly have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sightly
    • Sightly is located in Cowlitz County
  • Toutle
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Silver Lake
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Silver Creek
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Swofford
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swofford have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swofford
    • Swofford is located in Lewis County
  • Salkum
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Mossyrock
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Harmony
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harmony have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
    • Harmony is located in Lewis County
  • Ethel
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Cowlitz
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cowlitz have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowlitz
    • Cowlitz is located in Lewis County
  • Toledo
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Cinebar
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Bremer
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bremer have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bremer
      • Bremer is located in Lewis County
    • Castle Rock
      (18 miles [29 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 Saint Helens. See our List of 1890's Communities around Saint Helens.

Newspapers Published in Saint Helens ...

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 55 newspapers that have been published in the area around Saint Helens.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Saint Helens, there are papers which were published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Saint Helens.

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 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 Saint Helens:

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

The official website for Cowlitz County: www.co.cowlitz.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>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.
<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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Saint Helens) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Saint Helens. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.3443, Longitude: -122.5287       In this case, the coordinates for Saint Helens have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<6>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 Saint Helens, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 29 Apr 2025