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 Arona (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 Arona. 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 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.
Arona is located in DeKalb County.
To see how the shape of Alabama's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of DeKalb County: Cherokee, Etowah, Jackson, Marshall, Chattooga (GA), Dade (GA) & Walker (GA).
Below are the counties that are near Arona. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Arona:
- DeKalb County (The home county of Arona)
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Mount Zion ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Mount Zion is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Rains ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Rains is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
- Rodentown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Rodentown is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodentown
- Marcus ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Marcus is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Crossville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Cotnam
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Cotnam is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotnam
- Rogers
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Rogers is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
- Whiton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Whiton is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiton
- Dawson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Dawson is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
- Geraldine
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Collinsville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Chigger Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Chigger Hill is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chigger Hill
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Highmound
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Highmound is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highmound
- McLarty
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- McLarty is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLarty
- Snead
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fowler ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Fowler is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler
- Wynnville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Wynnville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wynnville
- Bright Star
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Bright Star is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright Star
- Clarence
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Clarence is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarence
- Susan Moore
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Susan Moore is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Susan Moore
- Population from the 2020 Census: 797 people
- Craig
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Craig is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Craig
- Bird ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Bird is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bird
- Fridays Crossing
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Fridays Crossing is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fridays Crossing
- Brooksville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Brooksville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooksville
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Southside
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Oak Level
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Oak Level is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Douthrittville ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Douthrittville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douthrittville
- Colvins Gap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Colvins Gap is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvins Gap
- Cochran Springs
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Cochran Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochran Springs
- Hebron ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Hebron is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Adelia ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Adelia is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
- Mack ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mack is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Collins ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Collins is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
- Grayton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Grayton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayton
- Wellington
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Wellington is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellington
- Angel
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Angel is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angel
- Cherokee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Sand Rock
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Sand Rock is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sand Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 674 people
- Leesburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Anderson
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Centre
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Turkey Town ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Turkey Town is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkey Town
- Ball Flat
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ball Flat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ball Flat
- Ricks ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ricks is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ricks
- Cedar Bluff
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Moshat
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Moshat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moshat
- Taft
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Taft is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taft
- Blanche
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Blanche is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blanche
- Coloma ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Coloma is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
- Cullman County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Joppa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Baileyton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Holly Pond
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Etowah County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Sardis City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Sardis City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardis City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,776 people
- Whitesboro
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Whitesboro is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesboro
- Carlisle
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Carlisle is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlisle
- Haworth ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Haworth is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haworth
- Yancy
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Yancy is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yancy
- Mountainboro
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mountainboro is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountainboro
- Duck Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Duck Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Springs
- Keener
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Keener is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keener
- Greer ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Greer is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greer
- Crudup
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Crudup is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crudup
- Aurora
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Aurora is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aurora
- Reece City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Reece City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reece City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 624 people
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Langston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Rock City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Rock City is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
- Dodsonville ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Dodsonville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodsonville
- Section
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Aspel
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Aspel is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspel
- Dry Cove ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Dry Cove is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Cove
- Dutton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Dutton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dutton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 307 people
- Ferncliff ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Ferncliff is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferncliff
- Woodville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Scottsboro
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Madison County
- New Hope
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Boaz
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Albertville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hustleville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hustleville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hustleville
- Minorville ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Minorville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
- Whitesville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Whitesville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Peters ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Peters is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peters
- Bartlett ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bartlett is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartlett
- Rabbit Town
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Rabbit Town is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rabbit Town
- Gregory
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Gregory is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gregory
- Horton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Horton is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horton
- Rayburn
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Rayburn is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rayburn
- Reedbrake ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Reedbrake is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedbrake
- Morgan County
- Hulaco
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Hulaco is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hulaco
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Steele
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Whitney Junction
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Whitney Junction is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney Junction
- Ashville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Arona, see our County-by-County Page for Arona.
Cemeteries Near Arona ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Arona.
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 Arona - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Arona covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Corinth Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Freedom Baptist Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Baptist Church Cemetery
- The Freedom Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Corinth Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
- Blessing Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Union First Congregational Methodist (FCM) Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union First Congregational Methodist (FCM) Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Union First Congregational Methodist (FCM) Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the northeast of Boaz.
- The Union First Congregational Methodist (FCM) Cemetery has also been known as:
- Union Cemetery
- Union Church Cemetery
- Union First Methodist Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #26801 <3>
- Bethsaida Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethsaida Baptist Church Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Bethsaida Baptist Church Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located less than 2 miles<2> to the east of Boaz.
- The Bethsaida Baptist Church Cemetery has also been known as:
- Bethsaida Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #21588 <3>
- Sardis Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Whitesboro Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Forester Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Marvin Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Upton Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Clark Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Lipscomb Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Continue List (435 more) ...
- Belchers Chapel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- New Macedonia Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Myrtletree Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
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 Arona in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Arona.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Arona, with the one closest to Arona listed first.
- Mount Zion ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Mount Zion is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Pulltight
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Pulltight is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pulltight
- Rains ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Rains is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
- Fenton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Fenton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fenton
- Rodentown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Rodentown is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodentown
- Marshall
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Marshall is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshall
- Boaz
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Marcus ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Marcus is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- McVille
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- McVille is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
- Mountainboro
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Mountainboro is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountainboro
- Haworth ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Haworth is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haworth
- Yancy
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Yancy is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yancy
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Crossville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Red Apple ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Red Apple is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Apple
- Duck Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Duck Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Springs
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Arona. See our List of 1890's Communities around Arona.
Newspapers Published in Arona ...
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 45 newspapers that have been published in the area around Arona.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Arona, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Arona.
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 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 Arona:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to DeKalb County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Calhoun County
- Cherokee County
- Cullman County
- Etowah County
- Jackson County
- Madison County
- Marshall County
- Morgan County
- Saint Clair County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Alabama
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> | 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- Arona) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Arona, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |