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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 Birds (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 Birds. 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 southeast 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 south.

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 south 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.

Birds is located in Effingham 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 Effingham County: Bryan, Bulloch, Chatham, Screven, Hampton (SC) & Jasper (SC).

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

  • Effingham County     (The home county of Birds)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Rincon
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Rincon is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rincon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,655 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rincon <1>
    • Springfield
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Haddonville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Haddonville is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haddonville
      • Estimated population in 2019: 965 people
    • Exley
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Exley is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exley
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 2,894 people
    • Guyton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
      • Guyton is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guyton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,371 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Guyton <1>
    • Clyo
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Marlow
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Marlow is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlow
    • Two Sisters Ferry
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
      • Two Sisters Ferry is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Two Sisters Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2019: 3,063 people
    • Eden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Egypt
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Egypt is located in Effingham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egypt
    • Meldrim
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Bryan County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Ellabell
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Pembroke
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Richmond Hill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
  • Bulloch County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Hubert
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Hubert is located in Bulloch County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubert
    • Stilson
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Stilson is located in Bulloch County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stilson
    • Leefield
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Leefield is located in Bulloch County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leefield
    • Brooklet
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Statesborough
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
      • Statesborough is located in Bulloch County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Statesborough
      • Estimated population in 2019: 32,954 people
    • Olde Towne
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Olde Towne is located in Bulloch County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olde Towne
  • Chatham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Port Wentworth
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Port Wentworth Junction
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Port Wentworth Junction is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Port Wentworth Junction
      • Estimated population in 2019: 9,641 people
    • Bloomingdale
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Pooler
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Chatham City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Chatham City is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatham City
    • Garden City
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Rossignol Hill
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Rossignol Hill is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossignol Hill
      • Estimated population in 2019: 4,009 people
    • Sharon Park
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Sharon Park is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharon Park
      • Estimated population in 2019: 126 people
    • Alabama Junction
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Alabama Junction is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alabama Junction
    • Woodville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Woodville is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
      • Estimated population in 2019: 382 people
    • Carver Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Carver Village is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carver Village
    • Florida Junction
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Florida Junction is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florida Junction
    • Robert M Hitch Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
  • Screven County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Oliver
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Newington
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Captolo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Captolo is located in Screven County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Captolo
    • Cameron
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Cameron is located in Screven County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Estimated population in 2019: 5,012 people
  • Beaufort County (SC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Hardeeville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Okatie
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
    • Pritchardville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Pritchardville is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pritchardville
    • Bluffton
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Bluffton is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluffton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 28,230 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bluffton <1>
    • Laurel Bay
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Laurel Bay is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Bay
    • Daufuskie Island
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Shell Point
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Shell Point is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Point
    • Harbour Town
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Harbour Town is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harbour Town
    • Point Comfort
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Point Comfort is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Comfort
    • Battery Marina Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Battery Marina Village is located in Beaufort County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Battery Marina Village
    • Hilton Head Island
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
    • Seabrook
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Hampton County (SC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Garnett
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Furman
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Furman is located in Hampton County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 218 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Furman <1>
    • Scotia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Scotia is located in Hampton County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 198 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Scotia <1>
    • Estill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Estill is located in Hampton County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estill
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,845 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Estill <1>
    • Barkerville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Barkerville is located in Hampton County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barkerville
      • Barkerville has also been known as:
      • Haywardville
  • Jasper County (SC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Birds, with the one closest to Birds listed first.
    • Tillman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Pineland
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Ridgeland
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Birds ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Birds.

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 Birds - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Rahn Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Rincon Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Gnann Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Old Ebenezer Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Stillwell Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Green Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Jones Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Kieffer Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Willowpeg Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Union Spring Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Porter Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Humberts Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Continue List   (188 more) ...
    • Winkler Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Strobhar Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Cedar Grove 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.<4>

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

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

  • Stillwell
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Stillwell is located in Effingham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stillwell
  • Rincon
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Rincon is located in Effingham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rincon
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,655 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rincon <1>
  • Springfield
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Guyton
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Guyton is located in Effingham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Guyton
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,371 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Guyton <1>
  • Marlow
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Marlow is located in Effingham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marlow
  • Clyo
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Hardeeville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Meinhard
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Meinhard is located in Chatham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meinhard
  • Monteith
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
    • Monteith is located in Chatham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monteith
  • Tillman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Tusculum
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Tusculum is located in Effingham County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tusculum
  • Ivanhoe
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Ivanhoe is located in Bulloch County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivanhoe
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Eden
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Meldrim
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Bloomingdale
      (15 miles [24.1 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 Birds. See our List of 1890's Communities around Birds.

Newspapers Published in Birds ...

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 178 newspapers that have been published in the area around Birds.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Birds, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Birds.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start with 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 Birds:

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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Birds) 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 Birds, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.