RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Alabama >> Colbert County >> Underwood Heights >> Genealogy HelperIndex...

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 Underwood Heights (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 Underwood Heights. 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 Underwood Heights ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Underwood Heights: Underwood Hts. (in Canada, 'Hgts.' is the more common abbreviation.)

You might be interested in other communities that are also named Underwood Heights. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Underwood Heights.

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 and hospitals 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.

Underwood Heights is located in Colbert 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 Colbert County: Franklin, Lauderdale, Lawrence & Tishomingo (MS).

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

  • Colbert County     (The home county of Underwood Heights)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • White House Springs
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • White House Springs is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White House Springs
    • Littleville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Littleville is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 992 people
    • Spring Valley
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Spring Valley is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
    • Tuscumbia
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Red Rock
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Red Rock is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Rock
    • Furnace Hill ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Furnace Hill is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furnace Hill
    • Sheffield
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Gatesville ‑ Historic
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Gatesville is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatesville
    • Muscle Shoals
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Campbell Settlement ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
      • Campbell Settlement is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell Settlement
    • South Florence
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • South Florence is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Florence
    • Denton ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Denton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denton
  • Franklin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Russellville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Rockwood
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
      • Rockwood is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockwood
    • Belgreen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Belgreen is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgreen
    • Slickrock Ford ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Slickrock Ford is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slickrock Ford
    • Churntown
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Churntown is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Churntown
    • Spruce Pine
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
      • Spruce Pine is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spruce Pine
    • Phil Campbell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Burntout
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Burntout is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burntout
      • Burntout has also been known as:
      • Burn Out
      • Burnout
      • Burnt Out
    • Pleasant Site
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Pleasant Site is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Site
    • Hodges
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
    • Vina
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Vina is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vina
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 358 people
    • Red Bay
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Lauderdale County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Canaan ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
      • Canaan is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Canaan
    • Cypress Creek
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Cypress Creek is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress Creek
    • Florence
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Green Tree ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Green Tree is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Tree
    • McGee Town
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • McGee Town is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGee Town
    • Bainbridge ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Bainbridge is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainbridge
    • Mars Hill
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Mars Hill is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mars Hill
    • Jacksonburg
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Jacksonburg is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jacksonburg
    • Saint Florian
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Saint Florian is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Florian
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
    • Bailey Springs
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Bailey Springs is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey Springs
    • Killen
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Beach Grove ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Beach Grove is located in Lauderdale County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beach Grove
  • Lawrence County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Mehama ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Mehama is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mehama
    • Avoca ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Avoca is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
    • Edmond
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Edmond is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmond
    • Concord
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
      • Concord is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
    • Mount Hope
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Hope is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hope
    • Hatton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Hatton is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hatton
    • Town Creek
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Camp Spring ‑ Historic
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Camp Spring is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Spring
    • Red Bank
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Red Bank is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Bank
    • Wheeler Dam Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Wheeler Dam Village is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler Dam Village
    • Courtland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Muck City
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Muck City is located in Lawrence County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Muck City
  • Marion County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Bear Creek
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Hackleburg
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Hackleburg is located in Marion County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackleburg
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,249 people
  • Winston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Pebble
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Pebble is located in Winston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pebble
    • Prebble ‑ Historic
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Prebble is located in Winston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prebble
    • Littleville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Littleville is located in Winston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleville
    • Haleyville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Boar Tush
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
      • Boar Tush is located in Winston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boar Tush
      • Boar Tush has also been known as:
      • Boar Tusk
      • Boartush
      • Boartusk
  • Tishomingo County (MS)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Underwood Heights, with the one closest to Underwood Heights listed first.
    • Oldham
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Oldham is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oldham
    • Golden
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Golden is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 189 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Golden <1>
    • Belmont
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Belmont is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belmont
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,977 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Belmont <1>
    • Dennis
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Dennis is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennis
    • Tishomingo
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Iuka
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Iuka is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iuka
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,928 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Iuka <1>
    • Midway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Midway is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Paden
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Paden is located in Tishomingo County (MS)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paden
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 112 people
  • Lawrence County (TN)
    • Iron City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Iron City is located in Lawrence County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron City
  • Wayne County (TN)
    • Cypress Inn
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Cypress Inn is located in Wayne County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress Inn

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

Cemeteries Near Underwood Heights ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Underwood Heights.

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 Underwood Heights - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Underwood Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Mitchell Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Henson Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Gadd Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • County Farm Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Huff Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Richardson Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Holland Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Tharp Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Isbell Chapel Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Henson Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Byrd Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (656 more) ...
    • New Bethel Memorial Cemetery
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Antioch Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Antioch Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<2> to the northwest of Russellville.
    • Community Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 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.<4>

While we didn't find Underwood Heights in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Underwood Heights.

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

  • Littleville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Littleville is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Littleville
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 992 people
  • Frankfort
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Frankfort is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort
  • Hunter ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Hunter is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter
  • Spring Valley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Spring Valley is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Valley
  • Tuscumbia
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Russellville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
  • Sheffield
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Rock Creek
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • Rock Creek is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
  • Mountain Mills ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Mountain Mills is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Mills
  • Isbell
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Isbell is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isbell
  • Waco
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Waco is located in Franklin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waco
  • South Florence
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • South Florence is located in Colbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Florence
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Barton
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Barton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barton
    • Denton ‑ Historic
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Denton is located in Colbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Denton
    • Belgreen
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Belgreen is located in Franklin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgreen

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

Newspapers Published in Underwood Heights ...

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 40 newspapers that have been published in the area around Underwood Heights.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Underwood Heights, there are papers which were published within 15 miles [24.1 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Underwood Heights.

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 Underwood Heights:

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 '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- Underwood Heights) 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 Underwood Heights, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.