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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 Comer (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 Comer. 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 hospitals 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.

Comer is located in Madison 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 Madison County: Banks, Clarke, Elbert, Franklin, Hart, Jackson & Oglethorpe.

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

  • Madison County     (The home county of Comer)
  • Banks County
  • Barrow County
  • Clarke County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Winterville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Lexington Heights
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Lexington Heights is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lexington Heights
      • Estimated population in 2019: 228 people
    • Cedar Shoals Estates
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Cedar Shoals Estates is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Shoals Estates
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 74 people
    • Athens
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Chamberlin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Chamberlin is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamberlin
      • Estimated population in 2019: 30,307 people
    • Riverside
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Riverside is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
      • Estimated population in 2016: 35 people
    • Jefferson Valley
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Jefferson Valley is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson Valley
      • Estimated population in 2019: 939 people
    • Pine Lake
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Pine Lake is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Lake
      • Estimated population in 2019: 754 people
    • Cleveland Station
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Cleveland Station is located in Clarke County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland Station
      • Estimated population in 2019: 4,165 people
  • Elbert County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Bowman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Harper
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Dewy Rose
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Goss
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Elberton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
    • Silk Mills
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Silk Mills is located in Elbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silk Mills
      • Estimated population in 2019: 277 people
    • Centerville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Harmony
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Bowman Ferry
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Bowman Ferry is located in Elbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowman Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2019: 808 people
    • Edinburg ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Edinburg is located in Elbert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edinburg
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,396 people
  • Franklin County
  • Greene County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Scull Shoals ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • Woodville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Woodville is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 397 people
    • Durham Town
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Durham Town is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham Town
    • Daniel Springs
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Daniel Springs is located in Greene County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daniel Springs
      • Estimated population in 2019: 594 people
    • Jacksonville
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Hart County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Bowersville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Flat Shoals
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
    • Hartwell
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Maretts
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Dooleys Ferry
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Dooleys Ferry is located in Hart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dooleys Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2019: 136 people
    • Cooleys Ferry
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Cooleys Ferry is located in Hart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooleys Ferry
      • Estimated population in 2019: 529 people
    • Reed Creek
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Reed Creek is located in Hart County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reed Creek
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Nicholson
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Commerce
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Attica
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Talasee ‑ Historic
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Talasee is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Talasee
      • Estimated population in 2019: 848 people
    • Arcade
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Arcade is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arcade
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,040 people
    • Jefferson
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
    • Dry Pond
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Dry Pond is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dry Pond
      • Estimated population in 2019: 15,881 people
  • Oconee County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Spartan Lane
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Spartan Lane is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spartan Lane
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,230 people
    • Overlook Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Overlook Village is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Overlook Village
    • Watkinsville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Marshall Estates
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Marshall Estates is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshall Estates
      • Estimated population in 2019: 1,227 people
    • Bishop
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Cumberland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Cumberland is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland
      • Estimated population in 2019: 6,547 people
    • Bogart
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Osceola Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Osceola Village is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osceola Village
    • Eastville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Farmington
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • High Shoals
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • North High Shoals
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • North High Shoals is located in Oconee County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North High Shoals
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 736 people
  • Oglethorpe County
  • Stephens County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Martin
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Avalon
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Avalon is located in Stephens County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avalon
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 226 people
  • Taliaferro County
    • Carters Grove
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Carters Grove is located in Taliaferro County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carters Grove
      • Estimated population in 2019: 21,760 people
  • Wilkes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Comer, with the one closest to Comer listed first.
    • Centerville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Rayle
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
    • New Town
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • New Town is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Town
    • Tignall
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Tyrone
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Abbeville County (SC)
  • Anderson County (SC)

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

Cemeteries Near Comer ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Comer.

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

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

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

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Comer had railroad service and no post office. In 2020, Comer had a population of 1,302 people.

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

  • Paoli
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Paoli is located in Madison County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paoli
  • Carlton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Danielsville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Point Peter
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Point Peter is located in Oglethorpe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Point Peter
  • Nickville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Nickville is located in Elbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nickville
  • Sandy Cross
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Sandy Cross is located in Oglethorpe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Cross
  • Dowdy ‑ Historic
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Dowdy is located in Madison County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dowdy
  • Oglesby
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Oglesby is located in Elbert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oglesby
  • Dunlap
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Dunlap is located in Oglethorpe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlap
  • Madison Springs
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Madison Springs is located in Madison County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison Springs
    • Estimated population in 2019: 4,210 people
    • Former name for Madison Springs:
    • Alexanderville
  • Winterville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Bowman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...

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

Newspapers Published in Comer ...

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 80 newspapers that have been published in the area around Comer.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Comer, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Comer.

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 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 Comer:

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 Comer, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Comer) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.