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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 Birmingham (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 Birmingham. 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.

Birmingham is primarily located in Jefferson County and is the County Seat. A portion of Birmingham extends into Shelby 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 Jefferson County: Bibb, Blount, Saint Clair, Shelby, Tuscaloosa & Walker.

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

  • Jefferson County     (The home county of Birmingham)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Avondale
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Avondale is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale
    • East Birmingham
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Vulcan City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Vulcan City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vulcan City
    • Hooper City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Hooper City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooper City
    • English Village
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • English Village is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Village
    • Bartonville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Mountain Brook Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Pratt City
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Pratt City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt City
    • Gate City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Gate City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gate City
    • Marks Village
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Marks Village is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marks Village
    • Homewood
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Mason City
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Mason City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason City
  • Bibb County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Green Pond
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Eddings
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Eddings is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eddings
    • Blocton Junction
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Cane Creek ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Cane Creek is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cane Creek
    • Woodstock
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • North Bibb
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • North Bibb is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bibb
  • Blount County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Dale ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Dale is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
    • Warrior
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • County Line
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Red Hill
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Red Hill is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
    • Selfville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Selfville is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selfville
    • Compton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Dallas
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Dallas is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
    • Remlap
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Reid's
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Hayden
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Smoke Rise
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Smoke Rise is located in Blount County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smoke Rise
    • Adville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
  • Cullman County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Arkadelphia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Baltimore ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Baltimore is located in Cullman County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baltimore
    • Black Bottom
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Colony
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • The Colony
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • The Colony is located in Cullman County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Colony
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 291 people
  • Saint Clair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Woodland Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Woodland Village is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
    • Acmar
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Moody
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Parsons
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Brompton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Argo
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Argo is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,278 people
    • Margaret
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Turnbough Town
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Turnbough Town is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnbough Town
    • Cook's Springs
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Cook's Springs is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook's Springs
    • Vincent
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Vincent is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vincent
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,223 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vincent <1>
    • Odenville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Springville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Inverness
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Inverness is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inverness
    • Lake Purdy
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Lake Purdy is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Purdy
    • Bridgeton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Bridgeton is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeton
    • Meadowbrook
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Meadowbrook is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
    • Indian Springs Village
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Indian Springs Village is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs Village
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,628 people
    • Shoal Creek
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Dunavant
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Dunnavant
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Pelham
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Tacoa
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Tacoa is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacoa
    • Falliston
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Falliston is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falliston
    • Chelsea
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Talladega County
  • Tuscaloosa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birmingham, with the one closest to Birmingham listed first.
    • Tannehill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Tannehill is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tannehill
    • Lake View
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Bull City
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Bull City is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull City
    • Abernant
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Walker County

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

Cemeteries Near Birmingham ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Birmingham.

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

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

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

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.<3>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Birmingham had a population of 26,178 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Birmingham had a population of 206,950 people.

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

  • Avondale
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Avondale is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale
  • North Birmingham
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • North Birmingham is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Birmingham
  • East Birmingham
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Vanderbilt
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Vanderbilt is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vanderbilt
  • Lewisburg
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Lewisburg is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisburg
  • Woodlawn
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Woodlawn is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn
  • Bartonville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Thomas
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Thomas is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
  • Spaulding
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Spaulding is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spaulding
  • Gate City
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Gate City is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gate City
  • Ensley
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Powderly
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Powderly is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powderly
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Ishkooda
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Ishkooda is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ishkooda
    • Ruffner
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Ruffner is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruffner
    • East Lake
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • East Lake is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Lake

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Birmingham ...

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 203 newspapers that have been published in the area around Birmingham.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Birmingham. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Birmingham and those printed in the larger area surrounding Birmingham.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 5 miles [8 km]<4> of Birmingham.

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 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 Birmingham:

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