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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 Urban (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 Urban. 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 hospitals and doctors 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.

Urban is located in Skagit 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 Skagit County: Chelan, Island, Okanogan, San Juan, Snohomish & Whatcom.

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

  • Skagit County     (The home county of Urban)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Urban, with the one closest to Urban listed first.
    • Indian Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Village
      • Indian Village is located in Skagit County
    • Anacortes
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Alexander Beach
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alexander Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alexander Beach
      • Alexander Beach is located in Skagit County
    • Edison
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edison have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edison
      • Edison is located in Skagit County
    • Similk Beach
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Similk Beach
      • Similk Beach is located in Skagit County
    • Bay View
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bay View have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
      • Bay View is located in Skagit County
    • Bow
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Snee Oosh
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Snee Oosh have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snee Oosh
      • Snee Oosh is located in Skagit County
    • Alger
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alger have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alger
      • Alger is located in Skagit County
    • Swinomish Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swinomish Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swinomish Village
      • Swinomish Village is located in Skagit County
    • La Conner
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Shelter Bay
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelter Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelter Bay
      • Shelter Bay is located in Skagit County
    • Burlington
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Island County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Urban, with the one closest to Urban listed first.
    • Oak Harbor
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • San de Fuca
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San de Fuca
      • San de Fuca is located in Island County
    • Coupeville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Juniper Beach
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juniper Beach
      • Juniper Beach is located in Island County
  • San Juan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Urban, with the one closest to Urban listed first.
    • Olga
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Decatur Island
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Eastsound
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Lopez
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez
      • Lopez is located in San Juan County
    • Orcas
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Lopez Island
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez Island
      • Lopez Island is located in San Juan County
    • Shaw Island
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaw Island
      • Shaw Island is located in San Juan County
    • Deer Harbor
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
    • Friday Harbor
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Waldron
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldron
      • Waldron is located in San Juan County
    • Argyle
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argyle
      • Argyle is located in San Juan County
    • False Bay
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Roche Harbor
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
  • Snohomish County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Urban, with the one closest to Urban listed first.
    • Utsalady
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Utsalady
      • Utsalady is located in Snohomish County
    • Lake Ketchum
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Ketchum have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Ketchum
      • Lake Ketchum is located in Snohomish County
    • North Stanwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Stanwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Stanwood
      • North Stanwood is located in Snohomish County
    • Stanwood
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Whatcom County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Urban, with the one closest to Urban listed first.
    • Lummi Island
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Chuckanut Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chuckanut Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chuckanut Village
      • Chuckanut Village is located in Whatcom County
    • Lummi
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lummi
      • Lummi is located in Whatcom County
    • Bellingham
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Geneva
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Geneva have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
      • Geneva is located in Whatcom County
    • Ferndale
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Sudden Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sudden Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sudden Valley
      • Sudden Valley is located in Whatcom County
    • Kickerville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kickerville
      • Kickerville is located in Whatcom County
    • Birch Bay
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Custer
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Wickersham
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wickersham have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wickersham
      • Wickersham is located in Whatcom County
    • Acme
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Clipper
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clipper
      • Clipper is located in Whatcom County

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

Newspapers Published in Urban ...

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 123 newspapers that have been published in the area around Urban.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Urban, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Urban.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Urban:

Cemeteries Near Urban ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Urban.

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

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

  • Eden Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Eden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Eden Cemetery
  • Olga - Doe Bay Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Grandview Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grandview Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grandview Cemetery
  • Lummi Cemetery
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lummi Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lummi Cemetery
  • Fern Hill Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fern Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fern Hill Cemetery
  • Woodlawn Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Woodlawn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Woodlawn Cemetery
  • Bay View Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bay View Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bay View Cemetery
  • Lopez Union Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Bow Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Bow Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Bow Cemetery
  • Bayview Cemetery
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • 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>
  • Sunnyland Memorial Park
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sunnyland Memorial Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sunnyland Memorial Park
  • Greenacres Memorial Park
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (35 more) ...
    • Woodlawn Cemetery
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • 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>
    • Pleasant Ridge Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant Ridge Cemetery
    • Green Hills Memorial Cemetery
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)

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>

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

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

  • Doe Bay
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Doe Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doe Bay
    • Doe Bay is located in San Juan County
  • Guemes
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Guemes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guemes
    • Guemes is located in Skagit County
  • Beach
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach
    • Beach is located in Whatcom County
  • Olga
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Anacortes
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Decatur Island
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Chuckanut
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chuckanut have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chuckanut
    • Chuckanut is located in Whatcom County
  • Fairhaven
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fairhaven have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhaven
    • Fairhaven is located in Whatcom County
  • Samish
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Samish have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samish
    • Samish is located in Skagit County
  • Eastsound
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Orcas
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Lopez Island
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lopez Island
    • Lopez Island is located in San Juan County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Marietta
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marietta have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marietta
      • Marietta is located in Whatcom County
    • Lummi
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lummi
      • Lummi is located in Whatcom County
    • Gibraltar
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gibraltar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibraltar
      • Gibraltar is located in Skagit County

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

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

The official website for Skagit County: www.skagitcounty.net/

The official website for State of Washington: https://access.wa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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- Urban) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Urban. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 48.6192, Longitude: -122.6949    
<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 Urban, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024