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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 Tacoma (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 Tacoma. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Tacoma is located in Pierce 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 Pierce County: King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Lewis, Mason, Thurston & Yakima.

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

  • Pierce County     (The home county of Tacoma)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tacoma, with the one closest to Tacoma listed first.
    • Fife
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fife
      • Fife is located in Pierce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,458 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fife <1>
    • Gardenville ‑ Historic
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardenville
      • Gardenville is located in Pierce County
    • Northeast Tacoma
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northeast Tacoma
      • Northeast Tacoma is located in Pierce County
    • Fircrest
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Dash Point
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dash Point
      • Dash Point is located in Pierce County
    • Ruston
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ruston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruston
      • Ruston is located in Pierce County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 848 people
    • Waller
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waller have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waller
      • Waller is located in Pierce County
    • Midland
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midland
      • Midland is located in Pierce County
    • University Place
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Edgewood
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Firwood ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Firwood. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Firwood
      • Firwood is located in Pierce County
    • Lakewood
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • King County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tacoma, with the one closest to Tacoma listed first.
    • Milton
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Buenna
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buenna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buenna
      • Buenna is located in King County
    • Tahlequah
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tahlequah
      • Tahlequah is located in King County
    • Federal Way
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Algona
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Pacific
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Redondo
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redondo
      • Redondo is located in King County
    • Magnolia Beach
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Beach
      • Magnolia Beach is located in King County
    • Star Lake
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star Lake
      • Star Lake is located in King County
    • Woodmont Beach
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woodmont Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodmont Beach
      • Woodmont Beach is located in King County
    • Auburn
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Zenith
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zenith
      • Zenith is located in King County
  • Kitsap County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tacoma, with the one closest to Tacoma listed first.
    • Olalla
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Burley
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Southworth
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southworth
      • Southworth is located in Kitsap County
    • Bethel
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • South Colby
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Colby
      • South Colby is located in Kitsap County
    • Colby
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colby
      • Colby is located in Kitsap County
    • Colchester
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colchester
      • Colchester is located in Kitsap County
    • South Park Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • East Port Orchard
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Port Orchard
      • East Port Orchard is located in Kitsap County
    • Parkwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkwood
      • Parkwood is located in Kitsap County
    • Manchester
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Port Orchard
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Mason County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tacoma, with the one closest to Tacoma listed first.
    • Grapeview
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Allyn
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Belfair
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Bayshore
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayshore
      • Bayshore is located in Mason County
    • Tahuya
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
  • Thurston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Tacoma, with the one closest to Tacoma listed first.
    • Puget
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Puget
      • Puget is located in Thurston County
    • Nisqually Indian Community
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nisqually Indian Community. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nisqually Indian Community
      • Nisqually Indian Community is located in Thurston County
    • North Yelm
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Yelm have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Yelm
      • North Yelm is located in Thurston County
    • Tanglewilde
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanglewilde
      • Tanglewilde is located in Thurston County
    • Yelm
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yelm
      • Yelm is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 9,591 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Yelm <1>
    • Lacey
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacey
      • Lacey is located in Thurston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 54,178 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lacey <1>
    • Kellys Korner
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellys Korner
      • Kellys Korner is located in Thurston County
    • Olympia
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • East Olympia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Rainier
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Tumwater
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Tacoma ...

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 185 newspapers that have been published in the area around Tacoma.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Tacoma. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Tacoma and those printed in the larger area surrounding Tacoma.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4> of Tacoma.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Tacoma:

Cemeteries Near Tacoma ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Tacoma.

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

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

  • Puyallup Tribal Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • The Puyallup Tribal Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Cushman Cemetery
    • Indian Mission Cemetery
    • Puyallup Indian Cemetery
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Puyallup Tribal Cemetery
  • Tacoma Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Oakwood Hill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Pauper Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Gethsemane Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gethsemane Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gethsemane Cemetery
  • Old Pioneer Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Calvary Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Mountain View Memorial Park
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Georges Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Georges Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Georges Cemetery
  • New Tacoma Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Byrd Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Byrd Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Byrd Cemetery is located less than 2 miles<4> to the southeast of Lakewood.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Byrd Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #1984799 <5>
  • Home of Peace Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (96 more) ...
    • Firwood Indian Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Ft. Steilacoom Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for the Ft. Steilacoom Cemetery. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Ft. Steilacoom Cemetery is located in Lakewood.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ft. Steilacoom Cemetery
    • Western State Hospital Memorial Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Tacoma had a population of 36,006 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Tacoma had a population of 219,945 people.

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

  • Excelsior
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Excelsior have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Excelsior
    • Excelsior is located in Pierce County
  • Fern Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fern Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fern Hill
    • Fern Hill is located in Pierce County
  • Midland
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Midland have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midland
    • Midland is located in Pierce County
  • Parkland
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Buenna
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buenna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buenna
    • Buenna is located in King County
  • Wollochet
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wollochet have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wollochet
    • Wollochet is located in Pierce County
  • Lakeview
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview
    • Lakeview is located in Pierce County
  • Lake City
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake City
    • Lake City is located in Pierce County
  • Puyallup
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Meeker
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meeker have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meeker
    • Meeker is located in Pierce County
  • Gig Harbor
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Fox Island
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Steilacoom
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Sumner
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Maury
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maury have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maury
      • Maury is located in King County

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

The official website for Tacoma: www.cityoftacoma.org/

The official website for Pierce County: www.co.pierce.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>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.
<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 drawn from Point A (ie- Tacoma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Tacoma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.2534, Longitude: -122.4386    
<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 Tacoma, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024