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 Rays Crossroads (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 Rays Crossroads. 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 Rays Crossroads ...
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 occur.
- A typical abbreviation for Rays Crossroads: Rays Xrds.
- While the name of this community is Rays Crossroads, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Rays Crossroads may originally have been Ray's Crossroads.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Rays Crossroads might be written as Ray Crossroads.
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 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.
Rays Crossroads is located in Clay 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 Clay County: Cleburne, Coosa, Randolph, Talladega & Tallapoosa.
Below are the counties that are near Rays Crossroads. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rays Crossroads:
- Clay County (The home county of Rays Crossroads)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Harkins Crossroads
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Harkins Crossroads is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harkins Crossroads
- Ashland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ashland is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,872 people
- Millerville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Millerville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerville
- Erin
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Erin is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erin
- Chambers Springs
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Chambers Springs is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chambers Springs
- Lineville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Mellow Valley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mellow Valley is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mellow Valley
- Cragford
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Barfield
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Barfield is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barfield
- Elder
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Elder is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elder
- Haynes Crossroad
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Haynes Crossroad is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes Crossroad
- Motley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Motley is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Motley
- Delta
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Calhoun County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Friendship
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Friendship is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Chinnabee ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Chinnabee is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chinnabee
- Bynum
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Bynum is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bynum
- Bynum has also been known as:
- Bynum's
- Eastaboga
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Hobson City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Hobson City is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hobson City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 749 people
- Oxford
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Cobb Town
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Cobb Town is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb Town
- De Armanville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- De Armanville is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Armanville
- Eulaton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Eulaton is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eulaton
- Oxanna
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Oxanna is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oxanna
- Anniston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Blue Eye ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Blue Eye is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Eye
- Blue Mountain
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Blue Mountain is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Mountain
- Chambers County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Abanda
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Abanda is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abanda
- Red Level
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Red Level is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Level
- Milltown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Milltown is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milltown
- Clackville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Clackville is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clackville
- Penton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Penton is located in Chambers County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penton
- Cleburne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Abel
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Abel is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abel
- Hollis Crossroads
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hollis Crossroads is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollis Crossroads
- Micaville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Micaville is located in Cleburne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Micaville
- Coosa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Goodwater
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Olive
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Olive is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Kellyton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Kellyton is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellyton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 208 people
- Stewartville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Stewartville is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stewartville
- Ray
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Ray is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ray
- Fishpond
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Fishpond is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishpond
- Hissop
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Hissop is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hissop
- Weogufka
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Weogufka is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weogufka
- Cottage Grove
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Cottage Grove is located in Coosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Grove
- Randolph County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Ofelia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Ofelia is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ofelia
- Christiana
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Christiana is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christiana
- Almond
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Almond is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Almond
- Malone Ferry
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Malone Ferry is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malone Ferry
- Wadley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Forester Chapel
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Forester Chapel is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forester Chapel
- Milner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Milner is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milner
- Wedowee
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Rockdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Rockdale is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale
- Cambridge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Cambridge is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambridge
- Peavy
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Peavy is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peavy
- Morrison Crossroad
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Morrison Crossroad is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrison Crossroad
- Corbin
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Corbin is located in Randolph County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corbin
- Saint Clair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Cropwell
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Easonville ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Easonville is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Easonville
- Fountainrun ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Fountainrun is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountainrun
- Riverside
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Seddon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Seddon is located in Saint Clair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seddon
- Talladega County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Chandler Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chandler Springs is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chandler Springs
- Ironaton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Ironaton is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironaton
- Waldo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Waldo is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
- Abihka ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Abihka is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abihka
- Rendalia
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Rendalia is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rendalia
- McElderry
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- McElderry is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McElderry
- Talladega
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Sycamore
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Sycamore is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore
- Oldfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Oldfield is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oldfield
- Winterboro
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Winterboro is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winterboro
- Kentuck
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Kentuck is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentuck
- Munford
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Alpine
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Tallapoosa County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Hackneyville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Hackneyville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackneyville
- Goldville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Goldville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54 people
- Cowpens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Cowpens is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowpens
- Emuckfaw
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Emuckfaw is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emuckfaw
- New Site
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- New Site is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Site
- Population from the 2020 Census: 755 people
- Daviston
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Truett
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Truett is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truett
- Alexander City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Frog Eye
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Frog Eye is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Eye
- Matilda
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Matilda is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Matilda
- Jacksons' Gap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Alkehatchee ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Alkehatchee is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alkehatchee
- Dudleyville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Dudleyville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudleyville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rays Crossroads, see our County-by-County Page for Rays Crossroads.
Cemeteries Near Rays Crossroads ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rays Crossroads.
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 Rays Crossroads - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rays Crossroads covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Liberty Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Old Liberty Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Liberty Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Old Field Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Old Noles Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Bethel Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Big Springs Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Poe Bridge Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Wilsons Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Antioch Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (322 more) ...
- Millerville Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Springhill Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Ashland City Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
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 Rays Crossroads in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Rays Crossroads.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rays Crossroads, with the one closest to Rays Crossroads listed first.
- Ashland
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Ashland is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,872 people
- Millerville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Millerville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millerville
- Bluff Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bluff Springs is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Springs
- Gibsonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Gibsonville is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibsonville
- Chandler Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chandler Springs is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chandler Springs
- Hatchet Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Hatchet Creek is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatchet Creek
- Mellow Valley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Mellow Valley is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mellow Valley
- Lineville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Smelley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Smelley is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smelley
- Ironaton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Ironaton is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironaton
- Waldo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Waldo is located in Talladega County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waldo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 272 people
- Hackneyville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Hackneyville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackneyville
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Goldville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Goldville is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goldville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54 people
- Goodwater
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Cowpens
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Cowpens is located in Tallapoosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cowpens
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rays Crossroads. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rays Crossroads.
Newspapers Published in Rays Crossroads ...
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 30 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rays Crossroads.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rays Crossroads, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rays Crossroads.
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 Rays Crossroads:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Clay County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Calhoun County
- Chambers County
- Cleburne County
- Coosa County
- Randolph County
- Saint Clair County
- Talladega County
- Tallapoosa County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Alabama
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Rays Crossroads, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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- Rays Crossroads) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |