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 Elon (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 Elon. 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.
Elon is located in Madison 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 Madison County: Jackson, Limestone, Marshall, Morgan, Franklin (TN) & Lincoln (TN).
Below are the counties that are near Elon. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Elon:
- Madison County (The home county of Elon)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- New Hope
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Owens' Cross Roads
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Whitesburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
- Berkley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Berkley is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkley
- Big Cove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Big Cove is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Cove
- English Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- English Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Village
- Gurley
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Chelsea
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chelsea is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chelsea
- Greenwycke Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Greenwycke Village is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwycke Village
- Slaughter Landing ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Slaughter Landing is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slaughter Landing
- Slaughter Landing has also been known as:
- Slaughter Ferry
- Brownsboro
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Huntsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lincoln
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lincoln is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Fowler ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Fowler is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler
- Summit
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Summit is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit
- McLarty
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- McLarty is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLarty
- Birdie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Birdie is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birdie
- Bright Star
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Bright Star is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright Star
- Brooksville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Brooksville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooksville
- Highmound
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Highmound is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highmound
- Craig
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Craig is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Craig
- Liberty
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Liberty is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Snead
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Colbert County
- Garner ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Garner is located in Colbert County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garner
- Cullman County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Joppa
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Baileyton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Fairview
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 463 people
- Holly Pond
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Simcoe
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Simcoe is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Simcoe
- Baileytown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Baileytown is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baileytown
- Berlin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Berlin is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berlin
- East Point
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- East Point is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Point
- South Vinemont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- South Vinemont is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Vinemont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 636 people
- Vinemont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Grove Oak
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Grove Oak is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Oak
- Rogers
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Rogers is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
- Whiton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Whiton is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiton
- Chigger Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Chigger Hill is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chigger Hill
- Hix ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Hix is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hix
- Gibson Crossroads
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Gibson Crossroads is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibson Crossroads
- Lakeview
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Lakeview is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview
- Population from the 2020 Census: 156 people
- Geraldine
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rains ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rains is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Paint Rock
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Paint Rock is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 196 people
- Woodville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Aspel
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Aspel is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aspel
- Lim Rock
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Lim Rock is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lim Rock
- Trenton
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Dodsonville ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Dodsonville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dodsonville
- Dry Cove ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Dry Cove is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Cove
- Pleasant Groves
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Groves is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Groves
- Population from the 2020 Census: 404 people
- Langston
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Hollytree
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hollytree is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollytree
- Larkinsville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Larkinsville is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larkinsville
- Princeton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Princeton is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princeton
- Beachboro ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Beachboro is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beachboro
- Limestone County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Swancott
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Swancott is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swancott
- Westlake
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Westlake is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westlake
- Capshaw
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Capshaw is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capshaw
- Belle Mina
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Belle Mina is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belle Mina
- Mooresville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Center Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Center Hill is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Hill
- Fairmount
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fairmount is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
- Harris Station
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Harris Station is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris Station
- Country Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Country Village is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Village
- Wooley Springs ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wooley Springs is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wooley Springs
- Orrville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Orrville is located in Limestone County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orrville
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Ferns Quarter ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Ferns Quarter is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ferns Quarter
- Union Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Fort Deposit ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Fort Deposit is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Deposit
- Friendship
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Friendship is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Grant
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Scant City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Scant City is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scant City
- Grassy
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Grassy is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grassy
- Ruth
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Ruth is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
- Columbus City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Columbus City is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Columbus City
- Pine Lake Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Pine Lake Village is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lake Village
- North ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- North is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North
- Warrenton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Warrenton is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warrenton
- Arab
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Morgan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Morgan City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Morgan City is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan City
- Lacey's Spring
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Briscoe
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Briscoe is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briscoe
- Apple Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Apple Grove is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Grove
- Valhermoso Springs
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Ryan Crossroads
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ryan Crossroads is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ryan Crossroads
- Florette
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Florette is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florette
- Winton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Winton is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winton
- Hulaco
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hulaco is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hulaco
- Bluff City ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Bluff City is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff City
- Somerville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Somerville is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somerville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 782 people
- Eva
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Priceville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Elon, see our County-by-County Page for Elon.
Cemeteries Near Elon ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elon.
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 Elon - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Elon covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- Bush Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Stewart Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Cedar Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Gibson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Cross Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Winton Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Buford Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Mayo Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Neal Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lee Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Smith Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Logan Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (839 more) ...
- Bloomfield Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Dunlap Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Beard Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
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 Elon in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Elon.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Elon, with the one closest to Elon listed first.
- New Hope
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Lowe ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lowe is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowe
- Owens' Cross Roads
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Whitesburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesburg
- Nebo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Nebo is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebo
- Berkley
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Berkley is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkley
- Briscoe
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Briscoe is located in Morgan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Briscoe
- Oleander
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Oleander is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oleander
- Union Grove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Cottonville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cottonville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonville
- Bucksnort
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Bucksnort is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucksnort
- Keel ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Keel is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keel
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Haden
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Haden is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haden
- Friendship
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Friendship is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Manchester
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Manchester is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manchester
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Elon. See our List of 1890's Communities around Elon.
Newspapers Published in Elon ...
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 8 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elon.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Elon, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Elon.
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 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 Elon:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Madison County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Colbert County
- Cullman County
- DeKalb County
- Jackson County
- Limestone County
- Marshall County
- Morgan 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 Elon, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Elon) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |