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 Crab Orchard (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 Crab Orchard. 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 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.
Crab Orchard is located in Williamson County.
To see how the shape of Illinois' counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Williamson County: Franklin, Jackson, Johnson, Pope, Saline & Union.
Below are the counties that are near Crab Orchard. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Crab Orchard:
- Williamson County (The home county of Crab Orchard)
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Pittsburg
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Corinth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Corinth is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Spillertown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Spillertown is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spillertown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 197 people
- Whiteash
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Whiteash is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteash
- Estimated population in 2014: 240 people
- Creal Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Marion
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Hartford
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Hartford is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
- Johnston City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Stiritz
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Stiritz is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stiritz
- Lake Crest
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Lake Crest is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Crest
- Energy
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Freeman Spur
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Freeman Spur is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman Spur
- Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
- Freeman Spur has also been known as:
- Freeman Spur village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Freeman Spur <1>
- Franklin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Fitt's Hill ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fitt's Hill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitt's Hill
- Deering City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Deering City is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deering City
- Thompsonville
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- West Frankfort
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- West Frankfort is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Frankfort
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,733 people
- Parrish
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Parrish is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parrish
- Hanaford
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Hanaford is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hanaford
- Population from the 2020 Census: 316 people
- Smothersville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Smothersville is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smothersville
- Cambon
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Cambon is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cambon
- Plumfield
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Plumfield is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumfield
- Orient
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Zeigler
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Akin
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Gallatin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Equality
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Elba
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Elba is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elba
- Lawler
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Lawler is located in Gallatin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawler
- Omaha
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Junction
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Ridgway
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Hamilton County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Walpole
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Walpole is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walpole
- Macedonia
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Broughton
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Flint
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Flint is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint
- Dale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Diamond City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Diamond City is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond City
- McLeansboro
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lovilla
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Lovilla is located in Hamilton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovilla
- Hardin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Karbers Ridge
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Shetlerville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Shetlerville is located in Hardin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shetlerville
- Jackson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Carbondale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- De Soto
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Makanda
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Elkville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hallidayboro
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Hallidayboro is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallidayboro
- Dowell
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Murphysboro
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Pomona
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Ina
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Ina is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ina
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,279 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ina <1>
- Fitzgerrell ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Fitzgerrell is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitzgerrell
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- New Burnside
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Egyptian Hills
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Egyptian Hills is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egyptian Hills
- Eagle Point Bay
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Eagle Point Bay is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Point Bay
- Deer Ridge
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Deer Ridge is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Ridge
- Ozark
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Reynoldsburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Reynoldsburg is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynoldsburg
- Goreville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Simpson
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Buncombe
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Vienna
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Wartrace
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Wartrace is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wartrace
- Grantsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Massac County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Big Bay
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Big Bay is located in Massac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Bay
- New Columbia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- New Columbia is located in Massac County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Columbia
- Perry County
- Du Quoin
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Du Quoin is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Du Quoin
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,591 people
- Pope County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- McCormick
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- McCormick is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCormick
- Eddyville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Oak
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Oak is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak
- Glendale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Glendale is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
- Hartsville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Hartsville is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsville
- Herod
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Lusk
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Lusk is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lusk
- Rock
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Rock is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock
- Dixon Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Dixon Springs is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon Springs
- Leisure City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Leisure City is located in Pope County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure City
- Golconda
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Saline County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Carrier Mills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Carrier Mills is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrier Mills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,527 people
- Former names for Carrier Mills:
- Carriers Mills
- Morrilsville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carrier Mills <1>
- Stonefort
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Ledford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Ledford is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledford
- Buena Vista
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Buena Vista is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buena Vista
- Liberty
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Liberty is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty
- Galatia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Harrisburg
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Gaskins City
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Gaskins City is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaskins City
- Mitchellsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Mitchellsville is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellsville
- Cornerville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Cornerville is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornerville
- Muddy
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
- Long Branch
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Long Branch is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Branch
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Lick Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lick Creek is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lick Creek
- Water Valley
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Water Valley is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Water Valley
- Mount Pleasant
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Cobden
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Anna
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Alto Pass
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Crab Orchard, see our County-by-County Page for Crab Orchard.
Cemeteries Near Crab Orchard ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Crab Orchard.
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 Crab Orchard - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Crab Orchard covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- Edwards Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Pleasant Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Pulley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Ferrell Baptist Church Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Worley Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Bethlehem Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Caplinger Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Old Krieger Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Moore Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Arnold Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Parks Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Tanner Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Continue List (548 more) ...
- Sanders Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- New Spring Grove Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Barter Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Crab Orchard had a population of 237 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Crab Orchard, with the one closest to Crab Orchard listed first.
- New Dennison
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- New Dennison is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Dennison
- Attila
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Attila is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Attila
- Corinth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Corinth is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Creal Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Marion
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Carrier Mills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Carrier Mills is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrier Mills
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,527 people
- Former names for Carrier Mills:
- Carriers Mills
- Morrilsville
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carrier Mills <1>
- Parker
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Parker is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parker
- New Burnside
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Fitt's Hill ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Fitt's Hill is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fitt's Hill
- Locust Grove ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Locust Grove is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Grove
- Bainbridge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Bainbridge is located in Williamson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainbridge
- Ledford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Ledford is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ledford
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Frankfort
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Frankfort is located in Franklin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frankfort
- Galatia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- West End
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- West End is located in Saline County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West End
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Crab Orchard. See our List of 1890's Communities around Crab Orchard.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Crab Orchard ...
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 63 newspapers that have been published in the area around Crab Orchard.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Crab Orchard. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Crab Orchard and those printed in the larger area surrounding Crab Orchard.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<4> of Crab Orchard.
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 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 Crab Orchard:
- Websites specific to Illinois
- Pages specific to Williamson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Franklin County
- Gallatin County
- Hamilton County
- Hardin County
- Jackson County
- Jefferson County
- Johnson County
- Massac County
- Perry County
- Pope County
- Saline County
- Union County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Illinois
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 Crab Orchard, 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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Crab Orchard) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |