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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 Coal Valley (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 Coal Valley. 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 Coal Valley ...

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 Coal Valley: Coal Vly. (or less commonly used: Coal Vally. or Coal Vlly.)

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors 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.

Coal Valley is located in Walker County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Walker County: Blount, Cullman, Fayette, Jefferson, Marion, Tuscaloosa & Winston.

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

  • Walker County     (The home county of Coal Valley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • Oakman
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Corona
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Patton Junction ‑ Historic
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Patton
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Townley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Townley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townley
      • Townley is located in Walker County
    • Parrish
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • America
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Saragossa
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Saragossa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saragossa
      • Saragossa is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Saragossa
      • From Coal Valley to Saragossa
    • Gamble
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gamble. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gamble
      • Gamble is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Gamble
      • From Coal Valley to Gamble
    • Jasper
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Edgil
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Edgil. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgil
      • Edgil is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Edgil
      • From Coal Valley to Edgil
    • Goodsprings
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goodsprings have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodsprings
      • Goodsprings is located in Walker County
  • Blount County
    • Red Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Red Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
      • Red Hill is located in Blount County
  • Cullman County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • Ardell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Arkadelphia
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • Alta
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
      • Alta is located in Fayette County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Alta
      • From Coal Valley to Alta
    • Berry
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Bankston
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Bazemore
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Rossland City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rossland City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossland City
      • Rossland City is located in Fayette County
    • Glen Allen
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Fayette
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Old Town
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Town have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
      • Old Town is located in Fayette County
    • Kirkland
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Bluff
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
      • Bluff is located in Fayette County
    • Gu - Win
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Belk
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Belk have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belk
      • Belk is located in Fayette County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
  • Jefferson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • West Jefferson
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Jefferson have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Jefferson
      • West Jefferson is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 415 people
    • Media
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Black Creek
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Short Creek
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Toadvine
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Robbins Crossroads
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Oak Grove
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oak Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
      • Oak Grove is located in Jefferson County
    • Sayre
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sayre have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sayre
      • Sayre is located in Jefferson County
    • Ezra
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ezra have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ezra
      • Ezra is located in Jefferson County
    • Alden
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alden have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alden
      • Alden is located in Jefferson County
    • Graysville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Graysville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysville
      • Graysville is located in Jefferson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,066 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Graysville <1>
    • Rock Creek
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
      • Rock Creek is located in Jefferson County
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • Rock City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock City
      • Rock City is located in Marion County
    • Winfield
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Brilliant
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brilliant have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brilliant
      • Brilliant is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 862 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brilliant <1>
  • Tuscaloosa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Coal Valley, with the one closest to Coal Valley listed first.
    • New Lexington
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Bull City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bull City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull City
      • Bull City is located in Tuscaloosa County
    • Samantha
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Kellerman
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Kellerman. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerman
      • Kellerman is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Kellerman
      • From Coal Valley to Kellerman
  • Winston County

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

Cemeteries Near Coal Valley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coal Valley.

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 Coal Valley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

  • Davis Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Davis Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Davis Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Patton Hill Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Patton Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Patton Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Key Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Key Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Key Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Swindle Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Swindle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Swindle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Infant Hill Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Infant Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Infant Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Day Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Day Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Day Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Oakman Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Oakman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Oakman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the New Hope Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the New Hope Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Morris Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Morris Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Morris Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Lawson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lawson Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lawson Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Palmers Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Palmers Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Palmers Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fike & Inman Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fike & Inman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fike & Inman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (522 more) ...
    • Providence Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Providence Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Providence Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Tubbs Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tubbs Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tubbs Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Pleasant Grove Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pleasant Grove Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pleasant Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.

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 in 1895, Coal Valley had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Corona
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Patton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Townley
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Townley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townley
    • Townley is located in Walker County
  • Parrish
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Alta
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Alta. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
    • Alta is located in Fayette County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Alta
    • From Coal Valley to Alta
  • Jasper
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Gamble
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Gamble. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gamble
    • Gamble is located in Walker County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Gamble
    • From Coal Valley to Gamble
  • Saragossa
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Saragossa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saragossa
    • Saragossa is located in Walker County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Saragossa
    • From Coal Valley to Saragossa
  • Berry
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Edgil
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Edgil. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgil
    • Edgil is located in Walker County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Edgil
    • From Coal Valley to Edgil
  • Carbon Hill
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Cordova
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Kansas
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Prospect
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Prospect. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect
      • Prospect is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Prospect
      • From Coal Valley to Prospect
    • Wiley
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wiley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wiley
      • Wiley is located in Tuscaloosa County

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

Newspapers Published in Coal Valley ...

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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coal Valley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coal Valley, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coal Valley.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Coal Valley:

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

The official website for Walker County: www.walkercounty.com/

The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/

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>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>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.
<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 Coal Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Coal Valley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Coal Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.7412, Longitude: -87.4167       In this case, the coordinates for Coal Valley have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 12 Jul 2025