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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 Boaz (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 Boaz. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals 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.

Boaz is primarily located in Marshall County. A portion of Boaz extends into Etowah 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 Marshall County: Blount, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Jackson, Madison & Morgan.

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

  • Marshall County     (The home county of Boaz)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Albertville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Whitesville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Bartlett ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Bartlett is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartlett
    • Hustleville
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Minorville ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Minorville is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
    • Rabbit Town
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Rabbit Town is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rabbit Town
    • Horton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Douglas
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Douglas is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douglas
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
    • Reedbrake ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Reedbrake is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedbrake
    • Gregory
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Peters ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Peters is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peters
    • Hyatt
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Blount County
  • Calhoun County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Southside
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
    • Oak Level
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Douthrittville ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Douthrittville is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douthrittville
    • Cochran Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Colvins Gap
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Hebron ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Mack ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Mack is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
    • Grayton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Ohatchee
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Adelia ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Adelia is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
    • Collins ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Collins is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collins
    • Wellington
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Wellington is located in Calhoun County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellington
  • Cherokee County
  • Cullman County
  • DeKalb County
  • Etowah County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Sardis City
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Sardis City is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardis City
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,776 people
    • Greer ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Greer is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greer
    • Mountainboro
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Mountainboro is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountainboro
    • Carlisle
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Whitesboro
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Aurora
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Haworth ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Haworth is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haworth
    • Egypt
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Duck Springs
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Benson ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Benson is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benson
    • Howelton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Crudup
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Langston
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Rock City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Rock City is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
    • Dodsonville ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Dodsonville is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodsonville
    • Section
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Aspel
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Dry Cove ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Dry Cove is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Cove
    • Ferncliff ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Ferncliff is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferncliff
    • Woodville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Madison County
  • Morgan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Hulaco
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Hulaco is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hulaco
    • Ryan Crossroads
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Apple Grove
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Briscoe
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Morgan City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Morgan City is located in Morgan County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan City
  • Saint Clair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz listed first.
    • Steele
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Steele is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steele
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,093 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Steele <1>
    • Whitney Junction
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Ashville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)

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

Cemeteries Near Boaz ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Boaz.

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

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Boaz, with the one closest to Boaz 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Boaz had a population of 18 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Boaz had a population of 9,706 people.

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

  • Marshall
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Marshall is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshall
  • Red Apple ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Red Apple is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Apple
  • Fenton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Fenton is located in Etowah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fenton
  • Mount Zion ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Mountainboro
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Mountainboro is located in Etowah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountainboro
  • Pulltight
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Pulltight is located in Etowah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pulltight
  • Rains ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Rains is located in DeKalb County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
  • McVille
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • McVille is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McVille
  • Albertville
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Aurora
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Bartlett ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Bartlett is located in Marshall County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartlett
  • Alice
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Alice is located in Etowah County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alice
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Haworth ‑ Historic
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Haworth is located in Etowah County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haworth
    • Minorville ‑ Historic
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Minorville is located in Marshall County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minorville
    • Rodentown
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Boaz ...

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 39 newspapers that have been published in the area around Boaz.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Boaz. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Boaz and those printed in the larger area surrounding Boaz.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<3> of Boaz.

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 Boaz:

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 '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- Boaz) 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 Boaz, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.