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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 Emerson (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 Emerson. 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 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.

Emerson is located in Brooks 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 Brooks County: Jefferson (FL), Madison (FL), Colquitt, Cook, Lowndes & Thomas.

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

  • Brooks County     (The home county of Emerson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Dixie
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Quitman
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Fodie
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Fodie is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fodie
      • Estimated population in 2019: 5,037 people
    • Empress
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Empress is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empress
    • Barwick
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Morven
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Tallokas ‑ Historic
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Tallokas is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallokas
      • Estimated population in 2019: 171 people
    • Barney
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • McIntyre Spring ‑ Historic
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • McIntyre Spring is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McIntyre Spring
      • Estimated population in 2019: 605 people
  • Colquitt County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Berlin
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Ellenton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Moultrie
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
    • Riverside
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Riverside is located in Colquitt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
  • Cook County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Cecil
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
    • Adel
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Sparks
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Lowndes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Shiloh
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Shiloh is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
    • Clyattville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
    • Remerton
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
      • Remerton is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Remerton
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,061 people
    • Barko Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Barko Village is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barko Village
    • Mineola
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Mineola is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineola
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 150 people
    • Valdosta
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
    • Hahira
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Dasher
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Dasher is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dasher
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,025 people
    • Franklinville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Franklinville is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklinville
      • Estimated population in 2019: 971 people
    • Lake Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Melrose
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Melrose is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
  • Thomas County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Boston
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Pavo
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Newark
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Newark is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
      • Estimated population in 2019: 783 people
    • Fredonia
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Fredonia is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
    • Coolidge
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Thomasville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
    • Dewey City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Dewey City is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewey City
    • Ochlocknee
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Jefferson County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Aucilla
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
      • Aucilla is located in Jefferson County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aucilla
    • Monticello
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Lamont
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Lloyd
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Leon County (FL)
  • Madison County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Hamburg
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Hamburg is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
    • Cherry Lake
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
      • Cherry Lake is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Lake
    • Pinetta
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Greenville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
    • Leland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Leland is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leland
    • Madison
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Madison is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,789 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Madison <1>

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

Cemeteries Near Emerson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Emerson.

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

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

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

  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem Cemetery
    • The Bethlehem Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bethlehem Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery
  • Dixie Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Dixie Baptist Church Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Groover Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groover Cemetery
    • The Groover Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Groover / Ramsey Cemetery
  • West End Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Robinson Family Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Beasley Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Emanuel AME Church Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Oak Hill Cemetery (East)
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Oak Hill Cemetery (West)
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • North End Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Hunter Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter Cemetery
    • The Hunter Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Bethany Cemetery
  • Continue List   (245 more) ...
    • Hamm City Church Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Ramsey Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • AME Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)

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

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

  • Dixie
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Quitman
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Boston
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
  • Ousley
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Ousley is located in Lowndes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ousley
  • Aucilla ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Aucilla is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aucilla
  • Nankin
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Nankin is located in Brooks County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nankin
  • Morven
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Patten
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Patten is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patten
  • Hamburg
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Hamburg is located in Madison County (FL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
  • Cherry Lake
    (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Cherry Lake is located in Madison County (FL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Lake
  • Clyattville
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
  • Mineola
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Mineola is located in Lowndes County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineola
    • Population from the 2010 Census: 150 people
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Berlin
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Metcalf
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Metcalf is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Metcalf
    • Monticello
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in Emerson ...

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 54 newspapers that have been published in the area around Emerson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Emerson, there are papers which were published within 24 miles [38.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Emerson.

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 Emerson:

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 Emerson, 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Emerson) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.