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 Watsonville (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 Watsonville. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Watsonville is located in Wilcox 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 Wilcox County: Butler, Clarke, Dallas, Lowndes, Marengo & Monroe.
Below are the counties that are near Watsonville. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Watsonville:
- Wilcox County (The home county of Watsonville)
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Caledonia
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Caledonia is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
- McWilliams
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- McWilliams is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McWilliams
- Oak Hill
(5 miles [8 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
- Schuster
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Schuster is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schuster
- Estelle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Estelle is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estelle
- Pine Apple
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Pine Apple is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Apple
- Population from the 2020 Census: 129 people
- Camden
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Awin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Awin is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Awin
- Ackerville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Ackerville is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ackerville
- McBrydes
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- McBrydes is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McBrydes
- Nellie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- Snow Hill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Snow Hill is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Snow Hill
- Butler County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Forest Home
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Shacklesville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Shacklesville is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shacklesville
- Starlington
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Starlington is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Starlington
- Bolling
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Bolling is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bolling
- Chapman
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Chapman is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
- Garland
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Garland is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garland
- Georgiana
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Clarke County
- Nettleboro
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Nettleboro is located in Clarke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nettleboro
- Conecuh County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Mixonville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mixonville is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mixonville
- Ramah
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Ramah is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramah
- Commerce
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Commerce is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
- Bermuda
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Bermuda is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bermuda
- Owassa
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Owassa is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owassa
- Belleville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Belleville is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleville
- Wilcox
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Wilcox is located in Conecuh County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilcox
- Dallas County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Carlowville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Carlowville is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlowville
- Minter
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Minter is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minter
- Richmond
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Richmond is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond
- Belknap
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Belknap is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belknap
- Crumptonia
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Crumptonia is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crumptonia
- Kings
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Kings is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings
- Pleasant Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Orrville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Sardis
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Old Town
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Old Town is located in Dallas County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
- Lowndes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Bragg's
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bragg's is located in Lowndes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bragg's
- Collirene
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Collirene is located in Lowndes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collirene
- Marengo County
- Flatwood
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Flatwood is located in Marengo County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatwood
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Buena Vista
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Pineville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Pineville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineville
- Beatrice
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Vredenburgh
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Vredenburgh is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vredenburgh
- Population from the 2020 Census: 284 people
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Natchez
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Hybart
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Hybart is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hybart
- Pine Orchard
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Pine Orchard is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Orchard
- Tunnel Springs
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Tunnel Springs is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnel Springs
- Former name for Tunnel Springs:
- Kempsville
- Franklin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Franklin is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Peterman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Peterman is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterman
- Burnt Corn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Burnt Corn is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Corn
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Watsonville, see our County-by-County Page for Watsonville.
Cemeteries Near Watsonville ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Watsonville.
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 Watsonville - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Watsonville covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- McWilliams Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pineview Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- St. Matthews Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Pineview Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Turkestan Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Grimes Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Gravel Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Mt. Carmel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Buena Vista Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- McCaskill Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Apple Grove Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Basidonia Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (243 more) ...
- Pineville Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Pineville Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Older Hill Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 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.<3>
While we didn't find Watsonville in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Watsonville.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Watsonville, with the one closest to Watsonville listed first.
- Caledonia
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Caledonia is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caledonia
- Fatama
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Fatama is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fatama
- Chestnut
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Chestnut is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut
- Rosebud
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Rosebud is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosebud
- Turkestan ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Turkestan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkestan
- Buena Vista
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Buena Vista is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Pineville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Pineville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pineville
- Allenton
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Allenton is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenton
- Turnbull
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Turnbull is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnbull
- Riley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Riley is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riley
- Pine Apple
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Pine Apple is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Apple
- Population from the 2020 Census: 129 people
- Lovan ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lovan is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovan
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Natchez
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Natchez is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Natchez
- Camden
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Awin
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Awin is located in Wilcox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Awin
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Watsonville. See our List of 1890's Communities around Watsonville.
Newspapers Published in Watsonville ...
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 25 newspapers that have been published in the area around Watsonville.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Watsonville, there are papers which were published within 25 miles [40.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Watsonville.
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 helpful 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 Watsonville:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Wilcox County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Butler County
- Clarke County
- Conecuh County
- Dallas County
- Lowndes County
- Marengo County
- Monroe 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> | 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. |
| <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 Watsonville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Watsonville) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |