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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 Balls Ferry (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 Balls Ferry. 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 Balls Ferry ...

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.

While the name of this community is Balls Ferry, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Balls Ferry may originally have been Ball's Ferry.

Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Balls Ferry might be written as Ball Ferry.

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

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 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.

Balls Ferry is located in Washington County.

To see how the shape of Georgia's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Washington County: Baldwin, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, Johnson, Warren & Wilkinson.

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

  • Washington County     (The home county of Balls Ferry)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Gardner
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Gardner is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gardner
      • Estimated population in 2019: 201 people
    • Oconee
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Harrison
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Tennille
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Deepstep
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Goat Town
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Goat Town is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goat Town
    • Sandersville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Riddleville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Riddleville is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riddleville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
    • Warthen
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Davisboro
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
  • Baldwin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Oconee Old Town ‑ Historic
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Oconee Old Town is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oconee Old Town
    • The Colony
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • The Colony is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Colony
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,834 people
    • Mount Pleasant
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
    • Coopers
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Coopers is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coopers
    • Black Spring
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Black Spring is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Spring
    • Hardwick
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Milledgeville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Brown's Crossing
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Brown's Crossing is located in Baldwin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brown's Crossing
  • Bleckley County
    • Allentown
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Dodge County
    • Chester
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Hancock County
    • Zebulon
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Zebulon is located in Hancock County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zebulon
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,228 people
  • Jefferson County
    • Bartow
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
  • Johnson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Wrightsville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Kite
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Kite is located in Johnson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kite
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 226 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kite <2>
    • Adrian
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Jones County
    • Mountain Springs
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Mountain Springs is located in Jones County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Springs
  • Laurens County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Tuckers Crossroad
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Tuckers Crossroad is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tuckers Crossroad
    • Midway
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Midway is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
      • Estimated population in 2019: 2,061 people
    • Lovett
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Lovett is located in Laurens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovett
    • Dublin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • East Dublin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Dudley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Montrose
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Dexter
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Rentz
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Rockledge
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Cadwell
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Twiggs County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Danville
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jeffersonville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Marion
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Marion is located in Twiggs County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
  • Wilkinson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Balls Ferry, with the one closest to Balls Ferry listed first.
    • Beech Hill
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Beech Hill is located in Wilkinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Hill
    • Toomsboro
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Irwinton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • McIntyre
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Dedrich
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Dedrich is located in Wilkinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dedrich
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,146 people
    • Ivey
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Ivey is located in Wilkinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivey
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 899 people
    • Gordon
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Gordon is located in Wilkinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,819 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gordon <2>
    • Brooks
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Brooks is located in Wilkinson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooks

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

Cemeteries Near Balls Ferry ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Balls Ferry.

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 Balls Ferry - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Salem Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Red Field Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Bay Branch Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Bay Springs Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Carter Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Martin Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Post Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Moody Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Waters Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Woods Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Lords Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Continue List   (359 more) ...
    • Plummer Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Hightower Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Old Bethesda Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)

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 Balls Ferry in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Balls Ferry.

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

  • Oconee
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Beech Hill
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Beech Hill is located in Wilkinson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech Hill
  • Toomsboro
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
  • Hebron
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Hebron is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hebron
  • Irwinton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
  • Harrison
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
  • Tennille
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Lovett
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Lovett is located in Laurens County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovett
  • Spann
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Spann is located in Johnson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spann
  • Wrightsville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • McIntyre
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
  • Dublin
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Deepstep
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
    • Sandersville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Dudley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)

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

Newspapers Published in Balls Ferry ...

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 31 newspapers that have been published in the area around Balls Ferry.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Balls Ferry, there are papers which were published within 26 miles [41.8 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Balls Ferry.

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 Balls Ferry:

Footnotes ...

<1>It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties).
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Balls Ferry, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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- Balls Ferry) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.