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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 Fruitdale (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 Fruitdale. 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 southwest 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 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 west 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.

Fruitdale is located in Washington 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 Washington County: Baldwin, Choctaw, Clarke, Mobile, Greene (MS) & Wayne (MS).

Below are the counties that are near Fruitdale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Fruitdale:

  • Washington County     (The home county of Fruitdale)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fruitdale, with the one closest to Fruitdale listed first.
    • Escatawpa
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Escatawpa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Escatawpa
      • Escatawpa is located in Washington County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Escatawpa
      • From Fruitdale to Escatawpa
    • Yellow Pine
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Vinegar Bend
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Tibbie
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Deer Park
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Chatom
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Seaboard
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Seaboard. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seaboard
      • Seaboard is located in Washington County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Seaboard
      • From Fruitdale to Seaboard
    • Copeland
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Copeland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
      • Copeland is located in Washington County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Copeland
      • From Fruitdale to Copeland
    • Barlow
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barlow have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barlow
      • Barlow is located in Washington County
    • Hobson
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Sims Chapel
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Hawthorn
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Hawthorn. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawthorn
      • Hawthorn is located in Washington County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Hawthorn
      • From Fruitdale to Hawthorn
  • Choctaw County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fruitdale, with the one closest to Fruitdale listed first.
    • Aquilla
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aquilla have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aquilla
      • Aquilla is located in Choctaw County
    • Cullomburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Silas
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Silas. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silas
      • Silas is located in Choctaw County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 418 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silas <2>
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Silas
      • From Fruitdale to Silas
    • Bladon Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Bolinger
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bolinger have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolinger
      • Bolinger is located in Choctaw County
    • Isney
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Isney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isney
      • Isney is located in Choctaw County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Isney
      • From Fruitdale to Isney
  • Clarke County
  • Mobile County
  • George County (MS)
    • Bexley
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bexley. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bexley
      • Bexley is located in George County (MS)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Bexley
      • From Fruitdale to Bexley
  • Greene County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fruitdale, with the one closest to Fruitdale listed first.
    • State Line
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for State Line. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
      • State Line is located in Greene County (MS)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 545 people
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to State Line
      • From Fruitdale to State Line
    • Clark
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Leakesville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leakesville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leakesville
      • Leakesville is located in Greene County (MS)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 868 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Leakesville <2>
    • Carson City
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carson City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carson City
      • Carson City is located in Greene County (MS)
    • Brown Town
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
    • Avera
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Avera. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avera
      • Avera is located in Greene County (MS)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Avera
      • From Fruitdale to Avera
    • McLain
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for McLain have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McLain
      • McLain is located in Greene County (MS)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 430 people
  • Wayne County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Fruitdale, with the one closest to Fruitdale listed first.
    • Robinsons Junction
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Clara
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Waynesboro
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Waynesboro have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynesboro
      • Waynesboro is located in Wayne County (MS)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,866 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Waynesboro <2>
    • Mulberry
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mulberry. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry
      • Mulberry is located in Wayne County (MS)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mulberry
      • From Fruitdale to Mulberry

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

Cemeteries Near Fruitdale ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fruitdale.

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

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

  • Fruitdale Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Fruitdale Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Fruitdale Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • South Oak Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the South Oak Grove Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the South Oak Grove Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Macedonia Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Macedonia Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Macedonia Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Escatawpa Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Escatawpa Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Escatawpa Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Yellowpine Community Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Four Points Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Four Points Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Four Points Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gilley Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Gilley Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Gilley Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Williams Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Williams Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Williams Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Union Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Union Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Union Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Grimes Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Grimes Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Grimes Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Epworth Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Epworth Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Epworth Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Johnson Creek Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Johnson Creek Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Johnson Creek Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (241 more) ...
    • Griffin Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Griffin Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Griffin Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Odom Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Odom Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Odom Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • State Line Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the State Line Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the State Line 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.<5>

While we didn't find Fruitdale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Fruitdale.

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

  • Escatawpa
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Escatawpa. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Escatawpa
    • Escatawpa is located in Washington County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Escatawpa
    • From Fruitdale to Escatawpa
  • Yellow Pine
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Vinegar Bend
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
  • State Line
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for State Line. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for State Line
    • State Line is located in Greene County (MS)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 545 people
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to State Line
    • From Fruitdale to State Line
  • Adamsville ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Adamsville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adamsville
    • Adamsville is located in Greene County (MS)
  • Deer Park
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Kittrell
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kittrell have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kittrell
    • Kittrell is located in Greene County (MS)
  • Leakesville
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Leakesville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leakesville
    • Leakesville is located in Greene County (MS)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 868 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Leakesville <2>
  • Sims Chapel
    (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Citronelle
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Avera
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Avera. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avera
    • Avera is located in Greene County (MS)
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Avera
    • From Fruitdale to Avera
  • Millry
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Millry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millry
    • Millry is located in Washington County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 487 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Millry <2>
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Healing Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Winchester
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winchester have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winchester
      • Winchester is located in Wayne County (MS)
    • Denham
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Denham have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denham
      • Denham is located in Wayne County (MS)

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Fruitdale ...

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 10 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fruitdale.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Fruitdale. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Fruitdale and those printed in the larger area surrounding Fruitdale.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<6> of Fruitdale.

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 Fruitdale:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Fruitdale. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Washington County: www.washingtoncountyalgov.com

The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>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.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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>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.
<5>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 Fruitdale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<6>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- Fruitdale) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Fruitdale. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.3428, Longitude: -88.4080    









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025