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 Forestdale (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 Forestdale. 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 doctors 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.
Forestdale is located in Jefferson 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 Jefferson County: Bibb, Blount, Saint Clair, Shelby, Tuscaloosa & Walker.
Below are the counties that are near Forestdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Forestdale:
- Jefferson County (The home county of Forestdale)
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Westwood
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Westwood is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
- Sandusky
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Sandusky is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandusky
- New Town
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- New Town is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
- Scarlet Town
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Scarlet Town is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scarlet Town
- Pratt Mines ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Pratt Mines is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt Mines
- Pratt City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Pratt City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt City
- Docena
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Docena is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Docena
- Hooper City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Hooper City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooper City
- Daisey City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Daisey City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daisey City
- McDonald Chapel
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- McDonald Chapel is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald Chapel
- Minor
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Minor is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minor
- Brookside
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Brookside is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,323 people
- Adamsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Bibb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Green Pond
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Blocton Junction
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Blocton Junction is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blocton Junction
- Blocton Junction has also been known as:
- Blockton Junc
- Woodstock
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- North Bibb
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- North Bibb is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bibb
- Cane Creek ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Cane Creek is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cane Creek
- Eddings
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Eddings is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eddings
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Dale ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Dale is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
- Warrior
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Red Hill
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Red Hill is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
- County Line
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- County Line is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for County Line
- Population from the 2020 Census: 241 people
- Reid's
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Reid's is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reid's
- Smoke Rise
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Smoke Rise is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smoke Rise
- Compton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Compton is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Compton
- Selfville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Selfville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Selfville
- Hayden
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Dallas
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Dallas is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
- Remlap
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Blount Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Blount Springs is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blount Springs
- Adville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Adville is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adville
- Cullman County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Arkadelphia
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Arkadelphia is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arkadelphia
- Baltimore ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Baltimore is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baltimore
- Colony
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Colony is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
- Estimated population in 2015: 273 people
- The Colony
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- The Colony is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Colony
- Population from the 2020 Census: 291 people
- Black Bottom
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Black Bottom is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Bottom
- Damascus
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Damascus is located in Cullman County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Damascus
- Bremen
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Woodland Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Woodland Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
- Acmar
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Acmar is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acmar
- Argo
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Argo is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,278 people
- Moody
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Moody is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moody
- Population from the 2020 Census: 13,292 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Moody <1>
- Parsons
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Parsons is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parsons
- Brompton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Brompton is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brompton
- Margaret
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Turnbough Town
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Turnbough Town is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnbough Town
- Cook's Springs
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Cook's Springs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook's Springs
- Springville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Branchville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Branchville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchville
- Odenville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Vincent
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Inverness
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Inverness is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inverness
- Lake Purdy
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Lake Purdy is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Purdy
- Bridgeton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Bridgeton is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeton
- Indian Springs Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Indian Springs Village is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,628 people
- Meadowbrook
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Meadowbrook is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
- Tacoa
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Tacoa is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacoa
- Shoal Creek
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Shoal Creek is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoal Creek
- Falliston
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Falliston is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falliston
- Helena
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Pelham
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Dunavant
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Dunavant is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunavant
- Dunnavant
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Dunnavant is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunnavant
- Bamford
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Bamford is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bamford
- Tuscaloosa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Bull City
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Bull City is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull City
- Tannehill
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Tannehill is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tannehill
- Lake View
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Lake View is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,732 people
- Abernant
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Abernant is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abernant
- Kellerman
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Kellerman is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerman
- Walker County
- The following are listed by their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Quinton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Twilley Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Twilley Town is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twilley Town
- Wyatt
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Wyatt is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyatt
- Yerkwood
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Yerkwood is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yerkwood
- Burnwell
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Burnwell is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnwell
- Oakahalla
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Oakahalla is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakahalla
- Reeds Ferry
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Reeds Ferry is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry
- Dora
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sumiton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Sumiton is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumiton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,330 people
- Former names for Sumiton:
- Commercial
- Democrat
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sumiton <1>
- Red Star
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Red Star is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Star
- Creel
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Creel is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creel
- Empire
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Empire is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
- Barney
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Barney is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barney
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Forestdale, see our County-by-County Page for Forestdale.
Cemeteries Near Forestdale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Forestdale.
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 Forestdale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Forestdale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Fraternal Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Roberts Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Crumley Chapel Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- George Washington Memorial Gardens
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Bivens Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Hodges Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Crestview Memorial Gardens
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Adams - Heaton Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Midway Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Village Falls Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Lakeview Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- St. Michaels Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Continue List (326 more) ...
- Knesses Israel Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Enon Ridge Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Glasgow Hill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
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 Forestdale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Forestdale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Forestdale, with the one closest to Forestdale listed first.
- Sandusky
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Sandusky is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandusky
- Pratt Mines ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Pratt Mines is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt Mines
- Coalburg
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Coalburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalburg
- Former name for Coalburg:
- Coalburgh
- Thomas
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Thomas is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
- Brookside
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Brookside is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookside
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,323 people
- Wylam
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Wylam is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wylam
- Ensley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Ensley is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ensley
- North Birmingham
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- North Birmingham is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Birmingham
- Adamsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cardiff
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Cardiff is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cardiff
- Population from the 2020 Census: 55 people
- Lewisburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Lewisburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisburg
- Blossburg
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Blossburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blossburg
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Birmingham
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- East Birmingham
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- East Birmingham is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Birmingham
- Vanderbilt
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Vanderbilt is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vanderbilt
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Forestdale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Forestdale.
Newspapers Published in Forestdale ...
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 191 newspapers that have been published in the area around Forestdale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Forestdale, there are papers which were published within 7 miles [11.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Forestdale.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we like to 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 Forestdale:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Jefferson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bibb County
- Blount County
- Cullman County
- Saint Clair County
- Shelby County
- Tuscaloosa County
- Walker 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 Forestdale, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Forestdale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |