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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 Natural Bridge (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 Natural Bridge. 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 Natural Bridge ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Natural Bridge: Natural Brg. (or less commonly used: Natural Brdg. or Natural Brdge.)

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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Natural Bridge is located in Winston 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 Winston County: Cullman, Franklin, Lawrence, Marion & Walker.

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

  • Winston County     (The home county of Natural Bridge)
  • Cullman County
  • Fayette County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natural Bridge, with the one closest to Natural Bridge listed first.
    • Bazemore
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Glen Allen
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Gu - Win
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
    • Bluff
      (25 miles [40.2 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
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Alta
      (29 miles [46.7 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.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
      • Alta is located in Fayette County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Alta
      • From Natural Bridge to Alta
    • Bankston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Berry
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Rossland City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • 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
    • Old Town
      (30 miles [48.3 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
  • Franklin County
  • Lamar County
    • Beaverton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • 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 <2>
  • Lawrence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natural Bridge, with the one closest to Natural Bridge listed first.
    • Camp Spring ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Camp Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Spring
      • Camp Spring is located in Lawrence County
    • Mount Hope
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Hope have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hope
      • Mount Hope is located in Lawrence County
    • Wren
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wren have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wren
      • Wren is located in Lawrence County
    • Muck City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Muck City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muck City
      • Muck City is located in Lawrence County
  • Marion County
  • Walker County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Natural Bridge, with the one closest to Natural Bridge listed first.
    • Nauvoo
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Slicklizzard
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Eldridge
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Kansas
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Carbon Hill
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Prospect
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • 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.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect
      • Prospect is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Prospect
      • From Natural Bridge to Prospect
    • Saragossa
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Edgil
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • 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.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgil
      • Edgil is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Edgil
      • From Natural Bridge to Edgil
    • Townley
      (20 miles [32.2 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
    • Camak Mills ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Camak Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camak Mills
      • Camak Mills is located in Walker County
    • Gamble
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • 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.<1>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gamble
      • Gamble is located in Walker County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Gamble
      • From Natural Bridge to Gamble
    • South Lowell
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Natural Bridge ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Natural Bridge.

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

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

  • West Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Concord Baptist Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Concord Baptist Church Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Concord Baptist Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Unknown Soldiers Grave
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Unknown Soldiers Grave
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Unknown Soldiers Grave have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Old Concord Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Old Concord Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Old Concord Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mt. Vernon MB Church Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Vernon MB Church Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Vernon MB Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Dodd Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Dodd Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Dodd Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Polly Dodd Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Polly Dodd Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Polly Dodd Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • O'Mary Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the O'Mary Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the O'Mary Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Tittle Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Tittle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Tittle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Poole Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Poole Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Poole Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Cagle Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Cagle Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Cagle Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ryefield Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ryefield Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ryefield Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (686 more) ...
    • Sardis #1 Baptist Church Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Sardis #1 Baptist Church Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Sardis #1 Baptist Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Lovett - West Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Lovett - West Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Lovett - West Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Christ Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Christ Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Christ 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, Natural Bridge had a post office and no railroad service. In 2020, Natural Bridge had a population of 35 people.

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

  • Lynn
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Delmar
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Thornhill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Gold Mine
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • 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
  • Ashbank
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • 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
  • Nauvoo
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Haleyville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Eldridge
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Double Springs
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
  • Texas
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • 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
  • Goddard
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goddard have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goddard
    • Goddard is located in Marion County
  • Kansas
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Natural Bridge ...

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 70 newspapers that have been published in the area around Natural Bridge.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Natural Bridge, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Natural Bridge.

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 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 Natural Bridge:

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

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>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 Natural Bridge, 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 from Point A (ie- Natural Bridge) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Natural Bridge. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.0934, Longitude: -87.6005    









 

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In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025