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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 Five Forks (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 Five Forks. 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 Five Forks ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Five Forks: Five Frks.

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

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 southeast 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 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.

Five Forks is located in Thomas 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 Thomas County: Jefferson (FL), Leon (FL), Brooks, Colquitt, Grady & Mitchell.

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

  • Thomas County     (The home county of Five Forks)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Boston
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Pavo
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Newark
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Newark is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newark
      • Estimated population in 2019: 783 people
    • Fredonia
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Fredonia is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredonia
    • Coolidge
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Thomasville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Dewey City
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Dewey City is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewey City
    • Ochlocknee
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Hansell
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Hansell is located in Thomas County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hansell
      • Estimated population in 2019: 6,534 people
    • Meigs
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Brooks County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Barwick
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Dixie
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Tallokas ‑ Historic
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Tallokas is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tallokas
      • Estimated population in 2019: 171 people
    • Fodie
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Fodie is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fodie
      • Estimated population in 2019: 5,037 people
    • Quitman
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Morven
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
    • Barney
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Empress
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Empress is located in Brooks County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empress
    • McIntyre Spring ‑ Historic
      (30 miles [48.3 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 Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Berlin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Moultrie
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Riverside
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Riverside is located in Colquitt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
    • Funston
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Ellenton
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Hartsfield
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Norman Park
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
    • Minnesota
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Minnesota is located in Colquitt County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minnesota
  • Cook County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Cecil
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Adel
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Sparks
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Grady County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Woodland
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Woodland is located in Grady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland
      • Estimated population in 2019: 353 people
    • Midway
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Midway is located in Grady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Spence
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Spence is located in Grady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spence
    • Cairo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Good Hope ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Good Hope is located in Grady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Hope
      • Estimated population in 2019: 300 people
    • Reno
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Reno is located in Grady County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reno
      • Estimated population in 2019: 285 people
  • Lowndes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Shiloh
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Shiloh is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh
    • Hahira
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Barko Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Barko Village is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barko Village
    • Mineola
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Mineola is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineola
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 150 people
    • Remerton
      (29 miles [46.7 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
    • Valdosta
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Mitchell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Cotton
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Pelham
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Sale City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Pebble City
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Pebble City is located in Mitchell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pebble City
  • Jefferson County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Monticello
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
    • Aucilla
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Aucilla is located in Jefferson County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aucilla
    • Lloyd
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Leon County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Miccosukee
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Iamonia
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Iamonia is located in Leon County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iamonia
  • Madison County (FL)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Five Forks, with the one closest to Five Forks listed first.
    • Hamburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Hamburg is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamburg
    • Greenville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Cherry Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cherry Lake is located in Madison County (FL)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Lake

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

Cemeteries Near Five Forks ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Five Forks.

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 Five Forks - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • Williams Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Richland Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
  • Williams Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Pleasant Grove Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Summerhill Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Mt. Calvary Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
  • Barwick City Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Rosewood Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosewood Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the Rosewood Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located outside and to the northeast of Barwick.
    • The Rosewood Cemetery has also been known as:
    • Barwick Baptist Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2208234 <2>
  • Martin Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Aucilla Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Ozell Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (271 more) ...
    • Shady Grove Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • McDonald Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Salem Cemetery
      (4 miles [6.4 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.<3>

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

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

  • Patten
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Patten is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patten
  • Boston
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Dixie
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Thomasville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
  • Chastain
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Chastain is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chastain
  • Aucilla ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Aucilla is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aucilla
  • Quitman
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
  • Metcalf
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Metcalf is located in Thomas County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Metcalf
  • Berlin
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Ochlocknee
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Morven
    (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
  • Moultrie
    (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...
    • Meigs
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Ousley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Ousley is located in Lowndes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ousley
    • Monticello
      (23 miles [37 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 Five Forks. See our List of 1890's Communities around Five Forks.

Newspapers Published in Five Forks ...

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 44 newspapers that have been published in the area around Five Forks.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Five Forks, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Five Forks.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 Five Forks:

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 Five Forks, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Five Forks) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.