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 Paran (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 Paran. 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 southeast 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 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 east 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.
Paran is located in Randolph 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 Randolph County: Chambers, Clay, Cleburne, Tallapoosa, Carroll (GA), Heard (GA) & Troup (GA).
Below are the counties that are near Paran. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Paran:
- Randolph County (The home county of Paran)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Rock Mills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rock Mills is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Mills
- High Shoals
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- High Shoals is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Shoals
- Roanoke
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- West
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- West is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West
- Corbin
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Corbin is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corbin
- Sewell
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Sewell is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sewell
- Peavy
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Peavy is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peavy
- Woodland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Wedowee
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Forester Chapel
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Forester Chapel is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forester Chapel
- Graham
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Graham is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graham
- Cambridge
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cambridge is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge
- Chambers County
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- McCosh Mill ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- McCosh Mill is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCosh Mill
- Standing Rock
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Standing Rock is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Standing Rock
- Evansville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Evansville is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansville
- Doublehead
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Doublehead is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doublehead
- Stroud
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Stroud is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stroud
- Clackville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Clackville is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clackville
- Five Points
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Five Points is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
- Population from the 2020 Census: 137 people
- Fredonia
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Fredonia is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
- Red Level
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Red Level is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Level
- Milltown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Milltown is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milltown
- Abanda
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Abanda is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abanda
- Chapel Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Chapel Hill is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Cragford
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Motley
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Motley is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Motley
- Barfield
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Barfield is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barfield
- Mellow Valley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Mellow Valley is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mellow Valley
- Delta
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lineville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Cleburne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Ranburne
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Hightower
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Hightower is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hightower
- Micaville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Micaville is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Micaville
- Hopewell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Hopewell is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Tallapoosa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Truett
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Truett is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truett
- Frog Eye
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Frog Eye is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Eye
- Daviston
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Emuckfaw
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Emuckfaw is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emuckfaw
- Dudleyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Dudleyville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudleyville
- Matilda
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Matilda is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matilda
- Carroll County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Roopville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Tyus
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Tyus is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tyus
- Estimated population in 2019: 3,525 people
- Bowers Ferry
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bowers Ferry is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowers Ferry
- Estimated population in 2019: 485 people
- Lowell
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Lowell is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowell
- Bowdon
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Jonesville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Jonesville is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jonesville
- Fairlawn Estates
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Fairlawn Estates is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairlawn Estates
- Estimated population in 2019: 736 people
- Carrollton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Whitesburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Zion
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Jake
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Jake is located in Carroll County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jake
- Estimated population in 2019: 146 people
- Coweta County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Grantville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Smokey Acres
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Smokey Acres is located in Coweta County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smokey Acres
- Estimated population in 2019: 56,666 people
- Sargent
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Moreland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Smith City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Smith City is located in Coweta County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith City
- Newnan
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- East Newnan
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- East Newnan is located in Coweta County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Newnan
- Bexton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Bexton is located in Coweta County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bexton
- Harris County (GA)
- Pine Lake
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Lake is located in Harris County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lake
- Heard County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- O'Neals Crossroad
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- O'Neals Crossroad is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for O'Neals Crossroad
- Glenn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Houston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Houston is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Population from the 2010 Census: 110 people
- Frolona
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Frolona is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frolona
- Riverside
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Riverside is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
- Franklin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Yates Crossroads
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Yates Crossroads is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yates Crossroads
- Estimated population in 2019: 360 people
- Ephesus
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Ephesus is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ephesus
- Population from the 2020 Census: 459 people
- Roosterville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Roosterville is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roosterville
- Centralhatchee
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Centralhatchee is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centralhatchee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 377 people
- Corinth
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Corinth is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Meriwether County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Lone Oak
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Lone Oak is located in Meriwether County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lone Oak
- Population from the 2020 Census: 89 people
- Luthersville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Troup County (GA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Evansville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Evansville is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansville
- Graysons Landing
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Graysons Landing is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graysons Landing
- Estimated population in 2019: 4,452 people
- Abbottsford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Abbottsford is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbottsford
- Vernon ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Vernon is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vernon
- Sunny Point
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Sunny Point is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunny Point
- Population from the 2010 Census: 1,303 people
- West Lake Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- West Lake Village is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Lake Village
- Sassafrass Hills
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sassafrass Hills is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sassafrass Hills
- Estimated population in 2019: 255 people
- Brays Lakeview
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Brays Lakeview is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brays Lakeview
- Rockwell Estates
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rockwell Estates is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwell Estates
- Asta Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Asta Village is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asta Village
- LaGrange
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hogansville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Paran, see our County-by-County Page for Paran.
Cemeteries Near Paran ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Paran.
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 Paran - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Paran covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Pittman Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Allen Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Bethel Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Wehadkee Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lewis Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Brown Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cooper Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- State Line Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Union Grove Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Prospect Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Springfield Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Randolph Memory Gardens
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (503 more) ...
- Adamson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 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 Paran in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Paran.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Paran, with the one closest to Paran listed first.
- Wehadkee
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Wehadkee is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wehadkee
- Rock Mills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Rock Mills is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Mills
- Glenn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Texas
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Texas is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Texas
- High Shoals
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- High Shoals is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Shoals
- Viola
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Viola is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viola
- Roanoke
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Houston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Houston is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Population from the 2010 Census: 110 people
- Omaha
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Omaha is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omaha
- Potash
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Potash is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potash
- Frolona
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Frolona is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frolona
- Evansville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Evansville is located in Troup County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evansville
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Waldrep
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Waldrep is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldrep
- Owensbyville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Owensbyville is located in Heard County (GA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owensbyville
- Doublehead
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Doublehead is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doublehead
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Paran. See our List of 1890's Communities around Paran.
Newspapers Published in Paran ...
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 20 newspapers that have been published in the area around Paran.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Paran, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Paran.
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 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 Paran:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Randolph County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Chambers County
- Clay County
- Cleburne County
- Tallapoosa County
- Carroll County
- Coweta County
- Harris County
- Heard County
- Meriwether County
- Troup 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 Paran, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Paran) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |