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 Peters Switch (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 Peters Switch. 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 Peters Switch ...
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.
While the name of this community is Peters Switch, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<1>. So Peters Switch may originally have been Peter's Switch.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Peters Switch might be written as Peter Switch.
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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Peters Switch is located in Jackson County.
To see how the shape of Indiana's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Jackson County: Bartholomew, Brown, Jennings, Lawrence, Scott & Washington.
Below are the counties that are near Peters Switch. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Peters Switch:
- Jackson County (The home county of Peters Switch)
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Seymour
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Cortland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cortland is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cortland
- Fleming
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Fleming is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleming
- Kriete Corner
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Kriete Corner is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kriete Corner
- New Elizabethtown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- New Elizabethtown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Elizabethtown
- Spraytown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Spraytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spraytown
- Dudleytown
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Dudleytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudleytown
- Brownstown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Freetown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Retreat
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Retreat is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Retreat
- Crothersville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Houston
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Houston is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Bartholomew County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Jonesville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Bethel Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Bethel Village is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel Village
- Elizabethtown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elizabethtown is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabethtown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 540 people
- North Ogilville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- North Ogilville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ogilville
- Garden City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Garden City is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
- Jewell Village
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Jewell Village is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewell Village
- Grammer
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Grammer is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grammer
- Columbus
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Petersville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Petersville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersville
- Corn Brook
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Corn Brook is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corn Brook
- Stony Lonesome
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Stony Lonesome is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Lonesome
- Newbern
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Newbern is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newbern
- Brown County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Becks Grove
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Becks Grove is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Becks Grove
- Pikes Peak
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Pikes Peak is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pikes Peak
- Mount Liberty
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mount Liberty is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Liberty
- Story
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Story is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Story
- Gnaw Bone
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Nashville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Beanblossom
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Beanblossom is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beanblossom
- Beanblossom has also been known as:
- Bean Blossom
- Spearsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Spearsville is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spearsville
- Helmsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Helmsburg is located in Brown County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helmsburg
- Clark County
- Underwood
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Underwood is located in Clark County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Underwood
- Decatur County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Alert
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Alert is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alert
- Sardinia
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Sardinia is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sardinia
- Harper
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Harper is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harper
- Westport
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Westport is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,416 people
- Letts Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Letts Corner is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Letts Corner
- Letts
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Letts is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Letts
- Burney
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Burney is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burney
- Harris City
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Harris City is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harris City
- Milford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Millhousen
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Millhousen is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millhousen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 130 people
- Adams
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Adams is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adams
- Germantown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Germantown is located in Decatur County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Germantown
- Jefferson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Deputy
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Dupont
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Middlefork
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Middlefork is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlefork
- Kent
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Kent is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
- Smyrna
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Smyrna is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smyrna
- Bryantsburg
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bryantsburg is located in Jefferson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryantsburg
- Jennings County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Hayden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hayden is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayden
- Four Corners
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Four Corners is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
- Scipio
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Scipio is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipio
- Queensville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Queensville is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queensville
- North Vernon
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Vernon
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Grayford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Grayford is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayford
- Oakdale
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Oakdale is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakdale
- Commiskey
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Paris Crossing
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Paris Crossing is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paris Crossing
- Butlerville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- San Jacinto
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- San Jacinto is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for San Jacinto
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Edinburgh
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Nineveh
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Peoga
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Peoga is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoga
- Princes Lakes
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Princes Lakes is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Princes Lakes
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,342 people
- Amity
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Amity is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amity
- Samaria
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Samaria is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samaria
- Trafalgar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Zelma
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Zelma is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zelma
- Leesville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Leesville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leesville
- Fort Ritner
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Fort Ritner is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Ritner
- Heltonville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Erie
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Erie is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Erie
- Crawford
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Crawford is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crawford
- Tunnelton
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Tunnelton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tunnelton
- Bono
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Bono is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bono
- Ripley County
- Holton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Scott County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Austin
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Albion
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Albion is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Albion
- Marshfield
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Marshfield is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshfield
- Scottsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Blocher
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Blocher is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blocher
- Goshen
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Goshen is located in Scott County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goshen
- Lexington
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Shelby County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Flat Rock
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Norristown
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Norristown is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norristown
- Mount Auburn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Mount Auburn is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Auburn
- Geneva
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Geneva is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
- Wilson Corner
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Wilson Corner is located in Shelby County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson Corner
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Little York
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Little York is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little York
- Population from the 2020 Census: 191 people
- Plattsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Plattsburg is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plattsburg
- Kossuth
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Kossuth is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kossuth
- Harristown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Harristown is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harristown
- Salem
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- South Boston
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- South Boston is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Boston
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Peters Switch, see our County-by-County Page for Peters Switch.
Cemeteries Near Peters Switch ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Peters Switch.
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 Peters Switch - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Peters Switch covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Glasson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Knabb Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knabb Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Knabb Cemetery is located 3 miles [4.8 km]<3> to the northwest of Seymour.
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2316507 <4>
- Riverview Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- St. Ambrose Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery is located outside and to the west of Seymour.
- Lutheran Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Cortland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Crane Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Farmington Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Driftwood Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hunt Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wohrer Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Continue List (301 more) ...
- Sand Creek Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Gardner Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Weddell Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
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.<5>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Peters Switch had railroad service and no post office.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Peters Switch, with the one closest to Peters Switch listed first.
- Rockford
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Rockford is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
- Jonesville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Reddington
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Reddington is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reddington
- Seymour
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Fleming
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Fleming is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleming
- Azalia
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Azalia is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalia
- Waynesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Waynesville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waynesville
- Hayden
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Hayden is located in Jennings County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayden
- Waymansville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Waymansville is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waymansville
- Walesboro
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Walesboro is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walesboro
- Surprise
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Surprise is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surprise
- Shields
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Shields is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shields
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Chestnut Ridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Chestnut Ridge is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Ridge
- Elizabethtown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Elizabethtown is located in Bartholomew County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabethtown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 540 people
- Spraytown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Spraytown is located in Jackson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spraytown
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Peters Switch. See our List of 1890's Communities around Peters Switch.
Newspapers Published in Peters Switch ...
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 95 newspapers that have been published in the area around Peters Switch.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Peters Switch, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Peters Switch.
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 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 Peters Switch:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Jackson County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Bartholomew County
- Brown County
- Clark County
- Decatur County
- Jefferson County
- Jennings County
- Johnson County
- Lawrence County
- Ripley County
- Scott County
- Shelby County
- Washington County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Indiana
Footnotes ...
| <1> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Peters Switch) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Peters Switch, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |