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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

So far, we found very little information about Pratt Mines. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>

We've added Pratt Mines to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Pratt Mines, please Contact Us.

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 Pratt Mines (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 Pratt Mines. 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 hospitals 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.

Although our information shows that the community of Pratt Mines is historic, it would have been located within present day Jefferson 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 Jefferson County: Bibb, Blount, Saint Clair, Shelby, Tuscaloosa & Walker.

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

  • Jefferson County     (The home county of Pratt Mines)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Sandusky
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Pratt City
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Pratt City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pratt City
    • Ensley
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Forestdale
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Forestdale is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forestdale
    • Docena
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Docena is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Docena
    • McDonald Chapel
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • McDonald Chapel is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDonald Chapel
    • Wylam
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Minor
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Minor is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minor
    • Hooper City
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Hooper City is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooper City
    • Westwood
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Fairfield
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • West End
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Edgewater
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Edgewater is located in Jefferson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater
  • Bibb County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Green Pond
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Blocton Junction
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Woodstock
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • North Bibb
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • North Bibb is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bibb
    • Cane Creek ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Cane Creek is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cane Creek
    • Eddings
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Eddings is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eddings
    • Belle Ellen
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
    • Nash Town ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Nash Town is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nash Town
    • Seymour
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Seymour is located in Bibb County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seymour
  • Blount County
  • Cullman County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Arkadelphia
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • Baltimore ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Baltimore is located in Cullman County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baltimore
    • Colony
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Black Bottom
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • The Colony
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • The Colony is located in Cullman County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Colony
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 291 people
    • Damascus
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
  • Saint Clair County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Woodland Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
      • Woodland Village is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
    • Acmar
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Moody
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Parsons
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Brompton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Argo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Argo is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argo
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,278 people
    • Margaret
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Turnbough Town
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Turnbough Town is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnbough Town
    • Cook's Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
      • Cook's Springs is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook's Springs
    • Vincent
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Vincent is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vincent
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,223 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vincent <2>
    • Springville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Branchville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Branchville is located in Saint Clair County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchville
    • Odenville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Shelby County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Inverness
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Inverness is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inverness
    • Bridgeton
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Bridgeton is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridgeton
    • Indian Springs Village
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Indian Springs Village is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs Village
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,628 people
    • Lake Purdy
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Lake Purdy is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Purdy
    • Meadowbrook
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Meadowbrook is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
    • Tacoa
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Tacoa is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacoa
    • Falliston
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Falliston is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falliston
    • Helena
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Pelham
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Shoal Creek
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Bamford
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Bamford is located in Shelby County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bamford
    • Alabaster
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Chelsea
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Tuscaloosa County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Pratt Mines, with the one closest to Pratt Mines listed first.
    • Tannehill
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Tannehill is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tannehill
    • Lake View
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake View is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,732 people
    • Bull City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Bull City is located in Tuscaloosa County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull City
    • Abernant
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Kellerman
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Walker County

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

Cemeteries Near Pratt Mines ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Pratt Mines.

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 Pratt Mines - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Pratt Mines covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

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

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.

Pratt Mines itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a population of 1,946 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Sandusky
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Ensley
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Wylam
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Thomas
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Thomas is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
  • Powderly
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Powderly is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powderly
  • North Birmingham
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • North Birmingham is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Birmingham
  • Coalburg
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Coalburg is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coalburg
    • Former name for Coalburg:
    • Coalburgh
  • Duncan
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Duncan is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duncan
  • Ishkooda
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Ishkooda is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ishkooda
  • Spaulding
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Spaulding is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spaulding
  • Birmingham
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Lewisburg
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Lewisburg is located in Jefferson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisburg
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Pratt Mines ...

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 190 newspapers that have been published in the area around Pratt Mines.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Pratt Mines. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Pratt Mines and those printed in the larger area surrounding Pratt Mines.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 6 miles [9.7 km]<4> of Pratt Mines.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Pratt Mines:

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Pratt Mines, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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 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>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Pratt Mines) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.