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 Colvin (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 Colvin. 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 hospitals 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.
Colvin is located in 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 Etowah County: Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, DeKalb, Marshall & Saint Clair.
Below are the counties that are near Colvin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Colvin:
- Etowah County (The home county of Colvin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Cobb City
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Cobb City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb City
- Glencoe
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Burns Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Burns Park is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns Park
- Hokes Bluff
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Pilgrims Rest
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Pilgrims Rest is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrims Rest
- East Gadsden
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Gadsden is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gadsden
- Brannon Springs ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Brannon Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brannon Springs
- Markton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Markton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markton
- Rainbow City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Edwardsville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Edwardsville is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsville
- Gadsden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Banner
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Banner is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Straight Mountain
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Straight Mountain is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straight Mountain
- Appalachian
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Appalachian is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appalachian
- Bird ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Bird is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bird
- Taits Gap
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Taits Gap is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taits Gap
- Highland Lake
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Highland Lake is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 410 people
- Hoods Crossroads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Hoods Crossroads is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoods Crossroads
- Wynnville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Wynnville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wynnville
- Highmound
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Highmound is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highmound
- Snead
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Douthrittville ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Douthrittville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douthrittville
- Oak Level
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Oak Level is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Mack ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mack is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Colvins Gap
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Colvins Gap is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvins Gap
- Hebron ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Hebron is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Wellington
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Wellington is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellington
- Southside
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Adelia ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Adelia is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
- Angel
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Angel is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angel
- Grayton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Grayton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayton
- Cochran Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Cochran Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cochran Springs
- Chigger Ridge ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Chigger Ridge is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chigger Ridge
- Cherokee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Ball Flat
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ball Flat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ball Flat
- Ricks ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ricks is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ricks
- Leesburg
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Turkey Town ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Turkey Town is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkey Town
- Spring Garden
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Spring Garden is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Centre
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Coloma ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Coloma is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
- Anderson
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Moshat
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Moshat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moshat
- Exie
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Exie is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exie
- Sand Rock
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Sand Rock is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sand Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 674 people
- Tucker Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Tucker Crossroads is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tucker Crossroads
- Cleburne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Grantley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Grantley is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grantley
- Borden Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Borden Springs is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden Springs
- Oak Level
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Oak Level is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Palestine
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Palestine is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Heflin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Edwardsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Edwardsville is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 201 people
- Abel
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Abel is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abel
- Fruithurst
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Fruithurst is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruithurst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Marcus ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Marcus is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Rodentown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Rodentown is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodentown
- Mount Zion ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Zion is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Collinsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cotnam
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cotnam is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotnam
- Crossville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rains ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rains is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
- Dawson
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Dawson is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
- Mount Vernon
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Mount Vernon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Clyde ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Clyde is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
- Geraldine
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Rogers
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Rogers is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Boaz
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Bartlett ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Bartlett is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartlett
- Reedbrake ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Reedbrake is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedbrake
- Albertville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Douglas
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Douglas is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douglas
- Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
- Horton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Horton is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horton
- Hustleville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hustleville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hustleville
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Steele
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Ragland
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Ashville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Whitney Junction
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Whitney Junction is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney Junction
- Coal City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Coal City is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Riverside
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Wattsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Wattsville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Seddon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Seddon is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seddon
- Avondale Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Avondale Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale Village
- Saint Clair Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Saint Clair Springs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Clair Springs
- Talladega County
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Coldwater
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Coldwater is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
- Silver Run
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Silver Run is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Run
- Grant Town
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Grant Town is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Town
- Lincoln
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Kentuck
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Kentuck is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
- Munford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Colony
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Colony is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
- McElderry
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- McElderry is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McElderry
- Windsong Island
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Windsong Island is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Island
- Polk County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Esom Hill
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Etna
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Etna is located in Polk County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
- Estimated population in 2019: 902 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Colvin, see our County-by-County Page for Colvin.
Cemeteries Near Colvin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Colvin.
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 Colvin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Colvin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Pine Grove Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Mountain View Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View Cemetery
- The Mountain View Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mountain View Baptist Church Cemetery
- Trinity Christian Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2172971 <2>
- Reid Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Crystal Springs Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Hebron Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Seven Springs Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Landers Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Crestwood Memorial Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Lincoln Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Pilgrims Rest Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Tillison Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (343 more) ...
- Ohatchee #2 Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Youngs Chapel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- New Bethel Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
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>
While we didn't find Colvin in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Colvin.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Colvin, with the one closest to Colvin listed first.
- Laney
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Laney is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laney
- Duke
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Duke is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duke
- Mack ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mack is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Peek's Hill ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Peek's Hill is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peek's Hill
- Hebron ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Hebron is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Colvins Gap
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Colvins Gap is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvins Gap
- Hokes Bluff
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Markton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Markton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markton
- Sulphur Springs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Sulphur Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
- East Gadsden
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- East Gadsden is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gadsden
- Adelia ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Adelia is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
- Reaves
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Reaves is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reaves
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Grayton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Grayton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayton
- Gadsden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Ottery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ottery is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ottery
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Colvin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Colvin.
Newspapers Published in Colvin ...
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 44 newspapers that have been published in the area around Colvin.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Colvin, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Colvin.
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 either 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 Colvin:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Etowah County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Calhoun County
- Cherokee County
- Cleburne County
- DeKalb County
- Marshall County
- Saint Clair County
- Talladega County
- Polk 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> | 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 Colvin, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Colvin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |