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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 Willows (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 Willows. 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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

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 south 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.

Willows is located in King 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 King County: Chelan, Kittitas, Pierce & Snohomish.

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

  • King County     (The home county of Willows)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Earlmont
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Earlmont is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earlmont
    • Kingsgate
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Kingsgate is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsgate
    • Redmond
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Kirkland
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Juanita
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Juanita is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juanita
    • Woodinville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Day City ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Day City is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Day City
    • Cottage Lake
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Cottage Lake is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Lake
    • Adelaide
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Adelaide is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelaide
    • Yarrow Point
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Bothell
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Clyde Hill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Clyde Hill is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde Hill
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,398 people
  • Island County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Clinton
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Bay View
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Bay View is located in Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay View
    • Langley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Freeland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Camp Diana
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Camp Diana is located in Island County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Diana
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Port Ludlow
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Beaver Valley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Beaver Valley is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Valley
  • Kitsap County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Manitou Beach
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Manitou Beach is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manitou Beach
    • Rolling Bay
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Rolling Bay is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rolling Bay
    • Yeomalt
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Yeomalt is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yeomalt
    • Bainbridge Island
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Bainbridge Island is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainbridge Island
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 25,358 people
      • Bainbridge Island has also been known as:
      • Winslow
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bainbridge Island <1>
    • Indianola
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Kingston
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Port Madison
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Port Madison is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Madison
    • Fort Ward
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Fort Ward is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Ward
    • Port Blakely ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Port Blakely is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Blakely
    • Suquamish
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
    • Manchester
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Southworth
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Southworth is located in Kitsap County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southworth
  • Pierce County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Dash Point
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Dash Point is located in Pierce County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dash Point
    • Northeast Tacoma
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Northeast Tacoma is located in Pierce County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northeast Tacoma
  • Snohomish County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Willows, with the one closest to Willows listed first.
    • Canyon Park
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Canyon Park is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canyon Park
    • Maltby
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Maltby is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maltby
    • Echo Lake
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Echo Lake is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Echo Lake
    • Brier
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Brier is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brier
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,955 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brier <1>
    • North Creek
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
      • North Creek is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Creek
    • Clearview
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Clearview is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearview
    • Mountlake Terrace
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Cathcart
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Cathcart is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cathcart
    • Martha Lake
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Martha Lake is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martha Lake
    • Alderwood Manor
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Alderwood Manor is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alderwood Manor
    • Esperance
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Esperance is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Esperance
    • Lynnwood
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)

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

Cemeteries Near Willows ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willows.

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 Willows - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willows covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Everest Memorial Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Kirkland Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Eastside Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Woodinville Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Calvary Catholic Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Sunset Hills Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Acacia Memorial Park
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acacia Memorial Park
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Acacia Memorial Park is a very large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<3> to the north of Lake City.
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76695 <2>
  • Gar Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Grand Army of the Republic Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Lake View Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Lake View Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located in Seattle.
    • The Lake View Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Masonic Cemetery
    • Seattle Masonic Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #76890 <2>
  • Abbey View Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
  • Evergreen - Washelli Memorial Park
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (62 more) ...
    • Floral Hills Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floral Hills Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Floral Hills Cemetery is a very large cemetery that is located outside and to the east of Lynnwood.
      • The Floral Hills Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Greenland Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #210822 <2>
    • Holyrood Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Machzikay Hadath Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Machzikay Hadath Cemetery
      • The Machzikay Hadath Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Seattle Sephardic Brotherhood 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.<4>

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

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

  • York
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • York is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for York
  • Kirkland
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Redmond
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • White
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • White is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White
  • Juanita
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Juanita is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Juanita
  • Houghton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Houghton is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houghton
  • Woodinville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Adelaide
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Adelaide is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelaide
  • Day City ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Day City is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Day City
  • Wayne
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Wayne is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne
  • Pontiac
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Pontiac is located in King County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pontiac
  • Bothell
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Grace
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
      • Grace is located in Snohomish County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grace
    • Inglewood
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Inglewood is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inglewood
    • Ravenna
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Ravenna is located in King County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravenna

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

Newspapers Published in Willows ...

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 52 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willows.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willows, there are papers which were published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Willows.

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 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 Willows:

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>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- Willows) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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 Willows, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.