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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 Eldridge (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 Eldridge. 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 Eldridge ...

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.

Eldridge was originally named Camp Springs

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.

A Few Details for Eldridge ...

While it's still very early in our research, we found that:

  • It was incorporated in 1970.

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.

Eldridge 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 Eldridge. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Eldridge:

  • Walker County     (The home county of Eldridge)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Eldridge, with the one closest to Eldridge listed first.
    • Kansas
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Carbon Hill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Nauvoo
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Slicklizzard
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Prospect
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Prospect
    • Saragossa
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Saragossa
    • Townley
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • 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
    • Edgil
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Edgil
    • Gamble
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Gamble
    • Coal Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Corona
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Patton Junction ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Cullman County
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Eldridge, with the one closest to Eldridge listed first.
    • Bazemore
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Glen Allen
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Gu - Win
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Bankston
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Bluff
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • 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
    • Kirkland
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Alta
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • 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 Eldridge to Alta
    • Berry
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Rossland City
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • 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
    • Fayette
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Old Town
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
      • 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
    • Belk
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • 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
  • Franklin County
  • Lamar County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Eldridge, with the one closest to Eldridge listed first.
    • Beaverton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beaverton have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaverton
      • Beaverton is located in Lamar County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 184 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Beaverton <1>
    • Sulligent
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sulligent have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulligent
      • Sulligent is located in Lamar County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,834 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sulligent <1>
    • Vernon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vernon have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
      • Vernon is located in Lamar County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,843 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vernon <1>
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Eldridge, with the one closest to Eldridge listed first.
    • Rock City
      (6 miles [9.7 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
    • Brilliant
      (10 miles [16.1 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>
    • Winfield
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Twin
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Yampertown
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Thornhill
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Thornhill. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornhill
      • Thornhill is located in Marion County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Thornhill
      • From Eldridge to Thornhill
    • Guin
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Stinson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Stinson. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinson
      • Stinson is located in Marion County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Stinson
      • From Eldridge to Stinson
    • Pikeville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Pikeville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pikeville
      • Pikeville is located in Marion County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Pikeville
      • From Eldridge to Pikeville
    • Bear Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Hamilton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hackleburg
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Tuscaloosa County
    • New Lexington
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
  • Winston County

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

Cemeteries Near Eldridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Eldridge.

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

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

  • Dozier Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dozier Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dozier Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tucker Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tucker Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tucker Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Colburn Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Colburn Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Colburn Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Brown Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Brown Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Brown Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Shiloh Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Shiloh Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Shiloh Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dutton Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dutton Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dutton Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Sleepy Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sleepy Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sleepy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Coalbed Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coalbed Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coalbed Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tidwell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tidwell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tidwell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Harris Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Harris Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Harris Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Walden Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Walden Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Walden Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Spring Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Spring Hill Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Spring Hill Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (658 more) ...
    • Beasley Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Beasley Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Beasley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Piney Grove Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Piney Grove Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Piney Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Box Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Box Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Box 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, Eldridge had a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Eldridge had a population of 122 people.

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

  • Texas
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Texas have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Texas
    • Texas is located in Marion County
  • Kansas
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Carbon Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Glen Allen
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Nauvoo
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Prospect
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • 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 Eldridge to Prospect
  • Ashbank
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ashbank have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashbank
    • Ashbank is located in Winston County
  • Lynn
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Gold Mine
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gold Mine have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Mine
    • Gold Mine is located in Marion County
  • Natural Bridge
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Winfield
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Townley
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • 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
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Saragossa
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Saragossa
    • Wayside
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wayside have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayside
      • Wayside is located in Fayette County
    • Edgil
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • 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 Eldridge to Edgil

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

Newspapers Published in Eldridge ...

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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Eldridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Eldridge, there are papers which were published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Eldridge.

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 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 Eldridge:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Eldridge. 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 Eldridge, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>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 drawn from Point A (ie- Eldridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Eldridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.9228, Longitude: -87.6192    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025