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 Whitson (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 Whitson. 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 northeast 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 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.
Whitson is located in Tuscaloosa 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 Tuscaloosa County: Bibb, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Jefferson & Pickens.
Below are the counties that are near Whitson. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Whitson:
- Tuscaloosa County (The home county of Whitson)
- The following are listed by their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Bull City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Bull City is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull City
- New Lexington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- New Lexington is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lexington
- Samantha
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Samantha is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samantha
- Kellerman
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Kellerman is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellerman
- Lake Front Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Front Village is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Front Village
- Wood Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Wood Village is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wood Village
- Abernant
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Abernant is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abernant
- Brookwood
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Holt
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Holt is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holt
- Peterson
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Peterson is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peterson
- Alberta City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Alberta City is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberta City
- Lake View
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Lake View is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake View
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,732 people
- Bibb County
- The following are listed by their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Green Pond
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Blocton Junction
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Blocton Junction is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blocton Junction
- Blocton Junction has also been known as:
- Blockton Junc
- North Bibb
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- North Bibb is located in Bibb County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Bibb
- Woodstock
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Fayette County
- The following are listed by their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Alta
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Alta is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
- Berry
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bankston
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bankston is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bankston
- Rossland City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Rossland City is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossland City
- Fayette
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Old Town
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Old Town is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
- Bazemore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bazemore is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bazemore
- Ashcraft Corner
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Ashcraft Corner is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashcraft Corner
- Glen Allen
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Glen Allen is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Allen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 480 people
- Belk
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Belk is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belk
- Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Toadvine
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Toadvine is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toadvine
- Black Creek
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Black Creek is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
- Oak Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Oak Grove is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Short Creek
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Short Creek is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Creek
- Ezra
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ezra is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ezra
- Rock Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Rock Creek is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
- West Jefferson
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- West Jefferson is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Jefferson
- Population from the 2020 Census: 415 people
- Media
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Media is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Media
- Sylvan Springs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Concord
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Concord is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Adger
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- North Johns
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- North Johns is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Johns
- Population from the 2020 Census: 143 people
- Pickens County
- Lubbub
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Lubbub is located in Pickens County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lubbub
- Walker County
- The following are listed by their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Patton Junction ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Patton Junction is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patton Junction
- Patton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Patton is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patton
- Corona
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Corona is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corona
- Oakman
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Oakman is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakman
- Population from the 2020 Census: 713 people
- Former names for Oakman:
- Day's Gap
- Marietta
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakman <1>
- Coal Valley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Coal Valley is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Valley
- Goodsprings
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Goodsprings is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodsprings
- Parrish
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Parrish is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
- Population from the 2020 Census: 929 people
- America
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- America is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for America
- Barney
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Barney is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barney
- Reeds Ferry
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Reeds Ferry is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reeds Ferry
- Cordova
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Dovertown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Dovertown is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dovertown
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Whitson, see our County-by-County Page for Whitson.
Cemeteries Near Whitson ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Whitson.
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 Whitson - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Whitson covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Whitson Place Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Rock Springs Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Lower Sulpher Springs Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
- Fairview Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Flatwoods Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatwoods Cemetery
- The Flatwoods Cemetery has also been known as:
- Flatwoods Baptist Church Cemetery
- Flatwoods Community Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #22809 <2>
- Wiley Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Goodwater Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Flatwoods Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Gilchrist Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Liberty Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Earnest Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Sandtown Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (474 more) ...
- Spencer Hill Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Woods Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Union Grove Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
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 Whitson in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Whitson.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Whitson, with the one closest to Whitson listed first.
- Wiley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Wiley is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wiley
- Patton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Patton is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patton
- Corona
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Corona is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corona
- Alta
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Alta is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alta
- Coal Valley
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Coal Valley is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Valley
- Berry
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Parrish
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Parrish is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
- Population from the 2020 Census: 929 people
- New Lexington
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- New Lexington is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Lexington
- Samantha
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Samantha is located in Tuscaloosa County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samantha
- Toadvine
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Toadvine is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toadvine
- Bankston
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Bankston is located in Fayette County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bankston
- Ezra
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ezra is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ezra
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Short Creek
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Short Creek is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Creek
- Cordova
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Townley
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Townley is located in Walker County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Townley
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Whitson. See our List of 1890's Communities around Whitson.
Newspapers Published in Whitson ...
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 26 newspapers that have been published in the area around Whitson.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Whitson, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Whitson.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These 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 Whitson:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Tuscaloosa County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bibb County
- Fayette County
- Jefferson County
- Pickens County
- Walker 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 Whitson, 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- Whitson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |