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 Pleasant Valley (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 Pleasant Valley. 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 Pleasant Valley ...
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 Pleasant Valley: Pleasant Vly. (or less commonly used: Pleasant Vally. or Pleasant Vlly.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Pleasant Valley. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Pleasant Valley.
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.
Pleasant Valley is located in Saint Clair 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 Saint Clair County: Blount, Calhoun, Etowah, Jefferson, Shelby & Talladega.
Below are the counties that are near Pleasant Valley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Pleasant Valley:
- Saint Clair County (The home county of Pleasant Valley)
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Avondale Village
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Avondale Village is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avondale Village
- Riverside
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Seddon
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Seddon is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seddon
- Pell City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Coal City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Coal City is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Glen City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Glen City is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen City
- Wattsville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Wattsville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Cropwell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Easonville ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Easonville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easonville
- Fountainrun ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Fountainrun is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountainrun
- Cook's Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Cook's Springs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook's Springs
- Odenville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Branchville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Branchville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchville
- Blount County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Straight Mountain
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Straight Mountain is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straight Mountain
- Appalachian
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Appalachian is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Appalachian
- Highland Lake
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Highland Lake is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Lake
- Population from the 2020 Census: 410 people
- Dale ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Dale is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
- Remlap
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Allgood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Allgood is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allgood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 638 people
- Compton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Compton is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Compton
- Taits Gap
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Taits Gap is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taits Gap
- Oneonta
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hoods Crossroads
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Hoods Crossroads is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoods Crossroads
- Dallas
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dallas is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dallas
- Deavers
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Deavers is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deavers
- Little Warrior
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Little Warrior is located in Blount County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Warrior
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Bruner ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Bruner is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruner
- Blue Eye ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Blue Eye is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Eye
- Eastaboga
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Boozer ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Boozer is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boozer
- Macon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Macon is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macon
- Cane Creek ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cane Creek is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cane Creek
- Bynum
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Bynum is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bynum
- Bynum has also been known as:
- Bynum's
- Ohatchee
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Beasley ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Beasley is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beasley
- Morrisville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Morrisville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrisville
- Bera ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Bera is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bera
- Eulaton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Eulaton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eulaton
- Chigger Ridge ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Chigger Ridge is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chigger Ridge
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Chambers Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Chambers Springs is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chambers Springs
- Erin
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Erin is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erin
- Elder
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Elder is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elder
- Etowah County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Brannon Springs ‑ Historic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Brannon Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brannon Springs
- Markton
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Markton is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Markton
- Clear Springs ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Clear Springs is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Springs
- Pilgrims Rest
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Pilgrims Rest is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrims Rest
- Gallant
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Gallant is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallant
- Nix ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Nix is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nix
- Rainbow City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Altoona
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Attalla
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Cobb City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cobb City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb City
- Ivalee
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ivalee is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivalee
- Glencoe
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Alabama City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Alabama City is located in Etowah County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama City
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Leeds
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Breakstone Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Breakstone Village is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breakstone Village
- East Trussville ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- East Trussville is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Trussville
- Roper
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Roper is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roper
- Ayres
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Ayres is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ayres
- Cedar Grove ‑ Historic
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Cedar Grove is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Scott City
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Scott City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scott City
- Cahaba Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Cahaba Village is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cahaba Village
- Lola City
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Lola City is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lola City
- Trussville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Clay
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- McCombs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- McCombs is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCombs
- Alton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Calcis
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Calcis is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calcis
- Dunnavant
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dunnavant is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunnavant
- Sterrett
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Vandiver
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dunavant
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Dunavant is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunavant
- Harpersville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Westover
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Westover is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westover
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,769 people
- Shoal Creek
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Shoal Creek is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoal Creek
- Bridgeton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Bridgeton is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeton
- Lake Purdy
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Purdy is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Purdy
- Chelsea
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Inverness
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Inverness is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inverness
- Meadowbrook
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Meadowbrook is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
- Talladega County
- The following are listed by their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Colony
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Colony is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colony
- Lincoln
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Windsong Island
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Windsong Island is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Island
- Logan Martin Dam
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Logan Martin Dam is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logan Martin Dam
- East Bend
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- East Bend is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Bend
- Talladega
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Nottingham ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Nottingham is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nottingham
- Former name for Nottingham:
- Jones Camp Ground
- Grant Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Grant Town is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant Town
- Munford
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Alpine
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- McElderry
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- McElderry is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McElderry
- Coldwater
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Coldwater is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coldwater
- Waldo
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Waldo is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Pleasant Valley, see our County-by-County Page for Pleasant Valley.
Cemeteries Near Pleasant Valley ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pleasant Valley.
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 Pleasant Valley - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pleasant Valley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Oak Ridge Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Seddon Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- St. Clair Memorial Gardens
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Boykin Truitt Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Broken Arrow Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Valley Hill Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Hill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Valley Hill Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 2 miles [3.2 km]<2> to the south of Pell City.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #26861 <3>
- Harkeys Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Robert Chapel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Garden of Memories Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Roberts Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- McCellan Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (293 more) ...
- Bowman Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Coosa Valley Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Walkers Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
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>
While we didn't find Pleasant Valley in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Pleasant Valley.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Pleasant Valley, with the one closest to Pleasant Valley listed first.
- Pell City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Seddon
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Seddon is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seddon
- Riverside
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Eden
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Eden is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
- Coal City
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Coal City is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal City
- Cropwell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Easonville ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Easonville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easonville
- Stemley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Stemley is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stemley
- Eureka
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Eureka is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
- Lincoln
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Cook's Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Cook's Springs is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook's Springs
- Refuge
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Refuge is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Refuge
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Wolf Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Wolf Creek is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Creek
- Fairview
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Fairview is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Odenville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Pleasant Valley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Pleasant Valley.
Newspapers Published in Pleasant Valley ...
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 15 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pleasant Valley.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Pleasant Valley, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Pleasant Valley.
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 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 Pleasant Valley:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Saint Clair County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Blount County
- Calhoun County
- Clay County
- Etowah County
- Jefferson County
- Shelby County
- Talladega 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Pleasant Valley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Pleasant Valley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |