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 Dry Forks (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 Dry Forks. 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 Dry Forks ...
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 occur.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Dry Forks: Dry Frks.
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 doctors and hospitals 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.
Dry Forks is located in Wilcox 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 Wilcox County: Butler, Clarke, Dallas, Lowndes, Marengo & Monroe.
Below are the counties that are near Dry Forks. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Dry Forks:
- Wilcox County (The home county of Dry Forks)
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Nellie
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- Asahel
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Asahel is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asahel
- Coy
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Coy is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coy
- Rockwest
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Rockwest is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwest
- Camden
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Yellow Bluff
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Yellow Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Bluff
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Estelle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Estelle is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Lower Peach Tree
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Lower Peach Tree is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Peach Tree
- Boykin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Boykin is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boykin
- Kimbrough
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Kimbrough is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimbrough
- Pine Hill
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Pine Hill is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 834 people
- Millers Ferry
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Millers Ferry is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millers Ferry
- Anne Manie
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Anne Manie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anne Manie
- Butler County
- Forest Home
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Clarke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Nettleboro
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Nettleboro is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleboro
- Atkeison
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Atkeison is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atkeison
- Thomasville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Dickinson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dickinson is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickinson
- Fulton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Fulton is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fulton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 242 people
- Whatley
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Whatley is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whatley
- Grove Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Glover
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Glover is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glover
- Suggsville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Suggsville is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suggsville
- Conecuh County
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Ramah
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Ramah is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramah
- Commerce
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Commerce is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
- Mixonville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Mixonville is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mixonville
- Bermuda
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Bermuda is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bermuda
- Dallas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Crumptonia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Crumptonia is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumptonia
- Carlowville
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Carlowville is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlowville
- Richmond
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Richmond is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
- Minter
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Minter is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minter
- Central Mills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Central Mills is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Mills
- Safford
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Orrville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Belknap
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Belknap is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belknap
- Kings
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Kings is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings
- Marengo County
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Vineland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Vineland is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
- Flatwood
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Flatwood is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatwood
- Ellison ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Ellison is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellison
- Magnolia
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Magnolia is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Dixon's Mills
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dixon's Mills is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon's Mills
- Consul
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Consul is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Consul
- Thomaston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Thomaston is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomaston
- Population from the 2020 Census: 383 people
- Moss ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Moss is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Hybart
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Hybart is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hybart
- Vredenburgh
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Vredenburgh is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vredenburgh
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- Buena Vista
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Franklin
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Franklin is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Natchez
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Beatrice
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Pineville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Pineville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineville
- Scratch Ankle
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Scratch Ankle is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scratch Ankle
- Tunnel Springs
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Tunnel Springs is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel Springs
- Former name for Tunnel Springs:
- Kempsville
- Finchburg ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Finchburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchburg
- Peterman
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Peterman is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterman
- Pine Orchard
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Orchard is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Orchard
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Dry Forks, see our County-by-County Page for Dry Forks.
Cemeteries Near Dry Forks ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Dry Forks.
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 Dry Forks - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Dry Forks covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- McPherson Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Reaves Chapel Memorial Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Capell Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- McCarty Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Dees Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Magnolia Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Tait Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Burford Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Tait Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Cook Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Pine Flat Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Continue List (256 more) ...
- Gravel Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Wheeler Quarter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- New Providence Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
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 Dry Forks in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Dry Forks.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Dry Forks, with the one closest to Dry Forks listed first.
- Nellie
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- Coy
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Coy is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coy
- Tinela
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Tinela is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tinela
- Rockwest
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Rockwest is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwest
- Fatama
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Fatama is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fatama
- Camden
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Yellow Bluff
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Yellow Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Bluff
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Buena Vista
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Chestnut
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Chestnut is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut
- Lower Peach Tree
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Lower Peach Tree is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Peach Tree
- Culpeper
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Culpeper is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Culpeper
- River Ridge ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- River Ridge is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Ridge
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Natchez
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Rosebud
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Rosebud is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosebud
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Dry Forks. See our List of 1890's Communities around Dry Forks.
Newspapers Published in Dry Forks ...
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 25 newspapers that have been published in the area around Dry Forks.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Dry Forks, there are papers which were published within 22 miles [35.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Dry Forks.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Dry Forks:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Wilcox County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Butler County
- Clarke County
- Conecuh County
- Dallas County
- Marengo County
- Monroe 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 Dry Forks, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Dry Forks) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |