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 Mount Polk (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 Mount Polk. 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 Mount Polk ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Mount Polk: Mt. Polk
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 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.
Mount Polk is located in Calhoun 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 Calhoun County: Cherokee, Cleburne, Etowah, Saint Clair & Talladega.
Below are the counties that are near Mount Polk. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Mount Polk:
- Calhoun County (The home county of Mount Polk)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Mack ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Mack is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Wellington
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Wellington is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellington
- Angel
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Angel is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Angel
- Hebron ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hebron is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Douthrittville ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Douthrittville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Douthrittville
- Adelia ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Adelia is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
- Colvins Gap
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Colvins Gap is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvins Gap
- Oak Level
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Oak Level is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Germania Springs ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Germania Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germania Springs
- Alexandria
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Blue Springs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Blue Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Springs
- Booker T City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Booker T City is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Booker T City
- Chigger Ridge ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Chigger Ridge is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chigger Ridge
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Appalachian
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Appalachian is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appalachian
- Straight Mountain
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Straight Mountain is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straight Mountain
- Cherokee County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Ball Flat
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ball Flat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ball Flat
- Ricks ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ricks is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ricks
- Spring Garden
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Spring Garden is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Coloma ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Coloma is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coloma
- Turkey Town ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Turkey Town is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkey Town
- Leesburg
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Centre
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Exie
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Exie is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exie
- Moshat
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Moshat is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moshat
- Anderson
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Rock Run
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Rock Run is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Run
- Tucker Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Tucker Crossroads is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tucker Crossroads
- Noah
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Noah is located in Cherokee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noah
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Elder
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Elder is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elder
- Haynes Crossroad
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Haynes Crossroad is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes Crossroad
- Cleburne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Grantley
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Grantley is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grantley
- Oak Level
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Oak Level is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Level
- Heflin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Borden Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Borden Springs is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borden Springs
- Abel
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Abel is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abel
- Edwardsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Edwardsville is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 201 people
- Palestine
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Palestine is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palestine
- Fruithurst
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Fruithurst is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruithurst
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- Hollis Crossroads
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Hollis Crossroads is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Crossroads
- Ai
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Ai is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ai
- Muscadine
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Muscadine is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muscadine
- DeKalb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Marcus ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Marcus is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus
- Rodentown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Rodentown is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodentown
- Mount Zion ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Zion is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Zion
- Collinsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Cotnam
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Cotnam is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotnam
- Crossville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Mount Vernon
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Mount Vernon is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
- Rains ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Rains is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rains
- Dawson
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Dawson is located in DeKalb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dawson
- Etowah County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Cobb City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cobb City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb City
- Glencoe
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hokes Bluff
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Burns Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Burns Park is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns Park
- Brannon Springs ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Brannon Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brannon Springs
- Markton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Markton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markton
- Pilgrims Rest
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Pilgrims Rest is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrims Rest
- Banner
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Banner is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Banner
- East Gadsden
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- East Gadsden is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Gadsden
- Rainbow City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Coato Bend ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Coato Bend is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coato Bend
- Edwardsville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Edwardsville is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsville
- Gadsden
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Marshall County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Boaz
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Whitesville is located in Marshall County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitesville
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Ragland
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Steele
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Ashville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Whitney Junction
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Whitney Junction is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitney Junction
- Coal City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Coal City is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Riverside
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Wattsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Wattsville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Seddon
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Seddon is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seddon
- Avondale Village
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Avondale Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale Village
- Pell City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Talladega County
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Coldwater
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Coldwater is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
- Silver Run
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Silver Run is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Run
- Grant Town
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Grant Town is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Town
- Kentuck
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Kentuck is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
- Munford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Lincoln
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- McElderry
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- McElderry is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McElderry
- Colony
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Colony is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
- Windsong Island
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Windsong Island is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Island
- Polk County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Esom Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Etna
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Etna is located in Polk County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etna
- Estimated population in 2019: 902 people
- Greenway ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Greenway is located in Polk County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenway
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Mount Polk, see our County-by-County Page for Mount Polk.
Cemeteries Near Mount Polk ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Mount Polk.
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 Mount Polk - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Mount Polk covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Seven Springs Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Crystal Springs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Moore Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hebron Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Tredagar - Boozer Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ohatchee #2 Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Landers Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain View Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View Cemetery
- The Mountain View Cemetery has also been known as:
- Mountain View Baptist Church Cemetery
- Trinity Christian Church Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2172971 <2>
- Munger Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Carpenter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Alexandria Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Continue List (323 more) ...
- Bethel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Hillcrest Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Greenlawn Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
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 Mount Polk in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Mount Polk.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Mount Polk, with the one closest to Mount Polk listed first.
- Mack ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Mack is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mack
- Sulphur Springs
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Sulphur Springs is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
- Duke
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Duke is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duke
- Laney
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Laney is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laney
- Hebron ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Hebron is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
- Peek's Hill ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Peek's Hill is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peek's Hill
- Adelia ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Adelia is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelia
- Colvins Gap
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Colvins Gap is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colvins Gap
- Alexandria
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Grayton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Grayton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayton
- Jacksonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Merrellton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Merrellton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrellton
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Reaves
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Reaves is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reaves
- Hokes Bluff
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Markton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Markton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markton
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Mount Polk. See our List of 1890's Communities around Mount Polk.
Newspapers Published in Mount Polk ...
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 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around Mount Polk.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Mount Polk, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Mount Polk.
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 Mount Polk:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Calhoun County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Cherokee County
- Clay County
- Cleburne County
- DeKalb County
- Etowah County
- Marshall County
- Saint Clair County
- Talladega County
- Polk 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 Mount Polk, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Mount Polk) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |