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 Willow Bend (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 Willow Bend. 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 Willow Bend ...
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.
Another variation: Willowbend.
- A typical abbreviation for Willow Bend: Willow Bnd.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Willow Bend. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Willow Bend.
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.
Willow Bend is located in Coffee 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 Coffee County: Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Geneva & Pike.
Below are the counties that are near Willow Bend. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Willow Bend:
- Coffee County (The home county of Willow Bend)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Enterprise
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- New Brockton
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Clintonville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Clintonville is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clintonville
- Battens Crossroads
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Battens Crossroads is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Battens Crossroads
- Central City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Central City is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central City
- Goodman
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Goodman is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodman
- Mixson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Mixson is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mixson
- Elba
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Java
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Java is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Java
- Alberton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Alberton is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberton
- Frisco
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Frisco is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frisco
- Curtis
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Curtis is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis
- Danleys Crossroads
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Danleys Crossroads is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danleys Crossroads
- Barbour County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Elamville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Elamville is located in Barbour County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elamville
- Clio
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Covington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- County Line
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- County Line is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for County Line
- Beulah
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Beulah is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beulah
- Opp
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Opp is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Opp
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,313 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Opp <1>
- Onycha
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Onycha is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Onycha
- Population from the 2020 Census: 180 people
- Babbie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Babbie is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Babbie
- Population from the 2020 Census: 599 people
- Horn Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Horn Hill is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horn Hill
- Population from the 2020 Census: 227 people
- Rose Hill
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Rose Hill is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
- Antioch
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Antioch is located in Covington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Antioch
- Crenshaw County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Bullock
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Bullock is located in Crenshaw County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullock
- Peacock ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Peacock is located in Crenshaw County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peacock
- Brantley
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Glenwood
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dale County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Holiday Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Holiday Village is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Village
- Level Plains
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Level Plains is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Level Plains
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,952 people
- Daleville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Fort Rucker
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Clayhatchee
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Clayhatchee is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayhatchee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 580 people
- Ozark
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Newton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Newton is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,451 people
- Ewell
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Ewell is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ewell
- Pinckard
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Ariton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Ariton is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ariton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 736 people
- Mabson
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Mabson is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mabson
- Midland City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Arguta
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Arguta is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arguta
- Geneva County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Chancellor
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Chancellor is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chancellor
- Scranton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Scranton is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scranton
- Coffee Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Coffee Springs is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coffee Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Bellwood
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Bellwood is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bellwood
- Costilla ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Costilla is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costilla
- Dundee
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Dundee is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dundee
- Samson
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Hartford
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Eunola ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Eunola is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eunola
- Geneva
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Slocomb
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Black
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Black is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black
- Population from the 2020 Census: 203 people
- Malvern
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Houston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Parker Village
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Parker Village is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parker Village
- Taylor
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Taylor is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,440 people
- Tidwell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Tidwell is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tidwell
- Merritts Crossroads
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Merritts Crossroads is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merritts Crossroads
- Dothan
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Rehobeth
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Rehobeth is located in Houston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rehobeth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,699 people
- Parish
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Pike County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Tarentum
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Tarentum is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tarentum
- Tennille
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Tennille is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tennille
- Centre Ridge ‑ Historic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Centre Ridge is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centre Ridge
- Henderson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Henderson is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henderson
- Brundidge
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Mossy Grove Village
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Mossy Grove Village is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mossy Grove Village
- Pronto
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Pronto is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pronto
- Goshen
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Holmes County (FL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Esto
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Esto is located in Holmes County (FL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Esto
- Population from the 2020 Census: 358 people
- Noma
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Izagora
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Izagora is located in Holmes County (FL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Izagora
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Willow Bend, see our County-by-County Page for Willow Bend.
Cemeteries Near Willow Bend ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willow Bend.
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 Willow Bend - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willow Bend covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Enterprise City Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Calvary Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Salem Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Ridge Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Morning Star Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Keyton Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Mt. Zion Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- New Brockton City Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Bethany Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- New Home Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Union Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Continue List (299 more) ...
- Mt. Liberty Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Liberty Cemetery
- The Mt. Liberty Cemetery has also been known as:
- First Baptist Church Cemetery
- Wesley Chapel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.<2>
While we didn't find Willow Bend in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Willow Bend.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Willow Bend, with the one closest to Willow Bend listed first.
- Enterprise
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Clintonville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Clintonville is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clintonville
- Level Plains
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Level Plains is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Level Plains
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,952 people
- Tabernacle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Tabernacle is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tabernacle
- Damascus
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Damascus is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Damascus
- Daleville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Coffee Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Coffee Springs is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coffee Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 220 people
- Clayhatchee
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Clayhatchee is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clayhatchee
- Population from the 2020 Census: 580 people
- Elba
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Edwardsville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Edwardsville is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsville
- High Bluff
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- High Bluff is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Bluff
- Alberton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Alberton is located in Coffee County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alberton
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Ozark
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Highfalls
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Highfalls is located in Geneva County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highfalls
- Newton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Newton is located in Dale County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,451 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Willow Bend. See our List of 1890's Communities around Willow Bend.
Newspapers Published in Willow Bend ...
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 48 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willow Bend.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willow Bend, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Willow Bend.
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 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 Willow Bend:
- Websites specific to Alabama
- Pages specific to Coffee County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Barbour County
- Covington County
- Crenshaw County
- Dale County
- Geneva County
- Houston County
- Pike County
- Holmes 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> | 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 Willow Bend, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Willow Bend) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |