Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
So far, we found very little information about River Ridge. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added River Ridge to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with River Ridge, 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 River Ridge (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 River Ridge. 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 River Ridge ...
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 River Ridge: River Rdg. (or less commonly used: River Rdge. or River Ridg.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named River Ridge. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for River Ridge.
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 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 River Ridge is historic, it would have been located within present day Monroe 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 Monroe County: Baldwin, Butler, Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia & Wilcox.
Below are the counties that are near River Ridge. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to River Ridge:
- Monroe County (The home county of River Ridge)
- The following are listed by their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Natchez
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Franklin
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Franklin is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Beatrice
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Tunnel Springs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Tunnel Springs is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel Springs
- Former name for Tunnel Springs:
- Kempsville
- Vredenburgh
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Vredenburgh is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vredenburgh
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- Pineville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Pineville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineville
- Hybart
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Hybart is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hybart
- Scratch Ankle
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Scratch Ankle is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scratch Ankle
- Peterman
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Peterman is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterman
- Pine Orchard
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pine Orchard is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Orchard
- Finchburg ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Finchburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchburg
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Starlington
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Starlington is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starlington
- Forest Home
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Shacklesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Shacklesville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shacklesville
- Garland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Garland is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garland
- Clarke County
- The following are listed by their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Nettleboro
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Nettleboro is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleboro
- Dickinson
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Dickinson is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickinson
- Suggsville
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Suggsville is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suggsville
- Whatley
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Whatley is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whatley
- Fulton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Fulton is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fulton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 242 people
- Barlow Bend
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Barlow Bend is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barlow Bend
- Grove Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Atkeison
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Atkeison is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Atkeison
- Thomasville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Gainestown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gainestown is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gainestown
- Walker Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Conecuh County
- The following are listed by their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Ramah
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Ramah is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramah
- Bermuda
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Bermuda is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bermuda
- Commerce
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Commerce is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
- Mixonville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mixonville is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mixonville
- Repton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Belleville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Belleville is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleville
- Lenox
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Owassa
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Owassa is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owassa
- Range
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Range is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Range
- Evergreen
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Wilcox
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wilcox is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilcox
- Sparta ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Sparta is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparta
- Sparta has also been known as:
- Old Sparta
- Dallas County
- Carlowville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Carlowville is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlowville
- Marengo County
- Vineland
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Vineland is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
- Wilcox County
- The following are listed by their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Asahel
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Asahel is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asahel
- Nellie
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- McWilliams
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- McWilliams is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McWilliams
- Coy
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Coy is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coy
- Lower Peach Tree
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Lower Peach Tree is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Peach Tree
- Caledonia
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Caledonia is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
- Schuster
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Schuster is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schuster
- Camden
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Estelle
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Estelle is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Oak Hill
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Oak Hill is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23 people
- Yellow Bluff
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Yellow Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Bluff
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Rockwest
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Rockwest is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwest
- Pine Apple
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Pine Apple is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Apple
- Population from the 2020 Census: 129 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to River Ridge, see our County-by-County Page for River Ridge.
Cemeteries Near River Ridge ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of River Ridge.
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 River Ridge - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for River Ridge covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- New Liberty Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Shiloh Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Red Hills Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Davidson Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Old Scotland Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- New Hope Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- York Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- St. Peter Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Springhill First Baptist Church Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Basidonia Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Bryant - Deer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Amity Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (228 more) ...
- Philadelphia Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Buena Vista Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Apple Grove Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
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.
River Ridge itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a population of 61 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from River Ridge, with the one closest to River Ridge listed first.
- Natchez
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Buena Vista
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Axle
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Axle is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Axle
- Pineville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Pineville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineville
- Chestnut
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Chestnut is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut
- Tinela
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Tinela is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tinela
- Turnbull
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Turnbull is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnbull
- Turkestan ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Turkestan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkestan
- Riley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Riley is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riley
- Finchburg ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Finchburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchburg
- Monroeville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Nellie
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- Fatama
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Fatama is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fatama
- Burnt Corn
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Burnt Corn is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Corn
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around River Ridge. See our List of 1890's Communities around River Ridge.
Newspapers Published in River Ridge ...
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 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around River Ridge.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of River Ridge, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for River Ridge.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 River Ridge:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Monroe County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Butler County
- Clarke County
- Conecuh County
- Dallas County
- Marengo County
- Wilcox County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Alabama
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 River Ridge, 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- River Ridge) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <4> | 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. |