RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Florida >> Washington County >> Crystal Lake >> Genealogy HelperIndex...










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Florida

The Commemorative Quarter for Florida





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 Crystal Lake (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 Crystal Lake. 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 Crystal Lake ...

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 Crystal Lake: Crystal Lk.

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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Crystal Lake is located in Washington County.

To see how the shape of Florida's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Washington County: Bay, Holmes, Jackson & Walton.

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

  • Washington County     (The home county of Crystal Lake)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Ebro
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ebro
      • Ebro is located in Washington County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 285 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ebro <1>
    • Vernon
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Millers Ferry
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millers Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millers Ferry
      • Millers Ferry is located in Washington County
    • Wausau
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Brock Crossroad
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brock Crossroad
      • Brock Crossroad is located in Washington County
    • Five Points
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
      • Five Points is located in Washington County
    • Coosada Old Town ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coosada Old Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coosada Old Town
      • Coosada Old Town is located in Washington County
    • Caryville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Chipley
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
  • Bay County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Vicksburg ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vicksburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vicksburg
      • Vicksburg is located in Bay County
      • Former name for Vicksburg:
      • Vickerburg
    • Southport
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Lynn Haven
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Youngstown
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Fountain
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Cedar Grove
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
      • Cedar Grove is located in Bay County
    • Hiland Park
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hiland Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hiland Park
      • Hiland Park is located in Bay County
    • Pretty Bayou
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pretty Bayou have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pretty Bayou
      • Pretty Bayou is located in Bay County
    • Magnolia Beach
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Beach
      • Magnolia Beach is located in Bay County
    • Panama City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Upper Grand Lagoon
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Upper Grand Lagoon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Grand Lagoon
      • Upper Grand Lagoon is located in Bay County
    • Laguna Beach
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Panama City Beach
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Clarksville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Kinard
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Holmes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Bonifay
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Ponce de Leon
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Westville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Alford
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Steele City
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Steele City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steele City
      • Steele City is located in Jackson County
    • Cottondale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Walton County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Crystal Lake, with the one closest to Crystal Lake listed first.
    • Knox Hill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox Hill
      • Knox Hill is located in Walton County
    • Alys Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Inlet Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Rosemary Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Point Washington
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Freeport
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
    • Seagrove Beach
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Argyle
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Grayton Beach
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Seaside
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)

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

Newspapers Published in Crystal Lake ...

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 19 newspapers that have been published in the area around Crystal Lake.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Crystal Lake, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Crystal Lake.

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 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 Crystal Lake:

Cemeteries Near Crystal Lake ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Crystal Lake.

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

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

  • Sand Hill Community Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Greenhead Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Greenhead Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Greenhead Cemetery
  • Deadening Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Deadening Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Deadening Cemetery
  • Tiller Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tiller Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tiller Cemetery
  • Gainer Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gainer Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gainer Cemetery
  • Porter Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Porter Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Porter Cemetery
  • Potter Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Potter Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Potter Cemetery
  • Ebro Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ebro Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ebro Cemetery
  • Weeks Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Weeks Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Weeks Cemetery
  • Barfield Cemetery
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Barfield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Barfield Cemetery
  • White Oak Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the White Oak Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the White Oak Cemetery
  • Wood Cemetery
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wood Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wood Cemetery
  • Continue List   (53 more) ...
    • Lay Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lay Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lay Cemetery
    • Wilcox Cemetery
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Wilcox Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Wilcox Cemetery
    • Lynn Haven Cemetery
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lynn Haven Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lynn Haven 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.<5>

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

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

  • Millers Ferry
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millers Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millers Ferry
    • Millers Ferry is located in Washington County
  • Redbay
    (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Redbay have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redbay
    • Redbay is located in Walton County
  • Knox Hill
    (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knox Hill
    • Knox Hill is located in Walton County
  • Caryville
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Bonifay
    (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
  • Westville
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Chipley
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
  • Ponce de Leon
    (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
  • Eucheeanna
    (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eucheeanna have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eucheeanna
    • Eucheeanna is located in Walton County
  • Freeport
    (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
  • Argyle
    (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Cerrogordo
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cerrogordo have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cerrogordo
    • Cerrogordo is located in Holmes County

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

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

The official website for Washington County: www.washingtonfl.com/

The official website for State of Florida: www.myflorida.com/

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>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- Crystal Lake) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Crystal Lake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.4441, Longitude: -85.6885       In this case, the coordinates for Crystal Lake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Crystal Lake, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

Copyright 2024
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024