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 Shoals (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 Shoals. 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 and doctors 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.
Shoals is located in Martin County and is the County Seat.
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 Martin County: Davies's, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence & Orange.
Below are the counties that are near Shoals. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Shoals:
- Martin County (The home county of Shoals)
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Lacy
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Lacy is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacy
- Windom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Windom is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windom
- Loogootee
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Mount Olive
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Olive is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Burns City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Burns City is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns City
- Crane
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Crawford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Riceville
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Riceville is located in Crawford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Eckerty
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Taswell
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- English
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Davies's County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Alfordsville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Alfordsville is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alfordsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Cannelburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Cannelburg is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
- Montgomery
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Odon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Glendale
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Glendale is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale
- Washington
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Elnora
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Elnora is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elnora
- Population from the 2020 Census: 676 people
- Plainville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Plainville is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 500 people
- Capehart
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Capehart is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capehart
- Graham
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Graham is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graham
- Sandy Hook
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Sandy Hook is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Hook
- Dubois County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Hillham
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hillham is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillham
- Norton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Norton is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norton
- Haysville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Haysville is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haysville
- Dubois
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Portersville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Portersville is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portersville
- Celestine
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Jasper
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Ireland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Schnellville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Schnellville is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schnellville
- Birdseye
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Kyana
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Kyana is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyana
- Saint Anthony
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Greene County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Scotland
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Scotland is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotland
- Owensburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Owensburg is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owensburg
- Koleen
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Koleen is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Koleen
- Newberry
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Newberry is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newberry
- Population from the 2020 Census: 186 people
- Mineral City
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Mineral City is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral City
- Plummer
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Plummer is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plummer
- Bloomfield
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Elliston
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Elliston is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliston
- Lyons
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Solsberry
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Tulip
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Tulip is located in Greene County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulip
- Switz City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Sandborn
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sandborn is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandborn
- Population from the 2020 Census: 403 people
- Westphalia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Edwardsport
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Edwardsport is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwardsport
- Population from the 2020 Census: 298 people
- Wheatland
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Wheatland is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 469 people
- Bicknell
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Ragsdale
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Ragsdale is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ragsdale
- Freelandville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Freelandville is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freelandville
- Monroe City
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Monroe City is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 526 people
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Huron
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Huron is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huron
- Georgia
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Georgia is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georgia
- Williams
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Williams is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams
- Silverville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Silverville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverville
- Coxton
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Coxton is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coxton
- Hartleyville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Hartleyville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartleyville
- Mitchell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Fayetteville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
- Fayetteville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fayetteville
- Spring Mill Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Spring Mill Village is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Mill Village
- Springville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Springville is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springville
- Avoca
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Avoca is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
- Bedford
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Harrodsburg
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Harrodsburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrodsburg
- Kirksville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Kirksville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirksville
- Stanford
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Stanford is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanford
- Orange County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Prospect
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Prospect is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prospect
- West Baden Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- West Baden Springs is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Baden Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 557 people
- French Lick
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Abydel
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Abydel is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abydel
- Orleans
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Paoli
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Youngs Creek
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Youngs Creek is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Youngs Creek
- Leipsic
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Leipsic is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leipsic
- Chambersburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Chambersburg is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chambersburg
- Mahan Crossing
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Mahan Crossing is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahan Crossing
- Bromer
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Bromer is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bromer
- Trotter Crossing
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Trotter Crossing is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trotter Crossing
- Perry County
- Siberia
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Siberia is located in Perry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siberia
- Pike County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Highbank Town
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Highbank Town is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highbank Town
- Otwell
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Otwell is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otwell
- Algiers
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Algiers is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algiers
- White Sulphur Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Whiteoak
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Whiteoak is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiteoak
- Alford
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Alford is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alford
- Velpen
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Velpen is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Velpen
- Petersburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Petersburg is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,299 people
- Winslow
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Saltillo
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Saltillo is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saltillo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 93 people
- Claysville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Claysville is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claysville
- Campbellsburg
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Livonia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Livonia is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livonia
- Population from the 2020 Census: 120 people
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Shoals, see our County-by-County Page for Shoals.
Cemeteries Near Shoals ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Shoals.
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 Shoals - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Shoals covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Hall Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Sholts Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Acre Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Baxter Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- McBrides Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Houghton Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Brook Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Holtsglaw Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Hawkins Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Union Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Elliott Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Steep Hollow Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (304 more) ...
- Love Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- West Union Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Walker Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
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>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Shoals had a population of 738 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Shoals had a population of 781 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Shoals, with the one closest to Shoals listed first.
- Ironton
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Ironton is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironton
- Willow Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Willow Valley is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Valley
- Dover Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Dover Hill is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover Hill
- Loogootee
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Huron
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Huron is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huron
- South Martin
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- South Martin is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Martin
- Cale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Cale is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cale
- Indian Springs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Indian Springs is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs
- Bramble
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bramble is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bramble
- Mount Olive
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Mount Olive is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Alfordsville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Alfordsville is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alfordsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 102 people
- Hillham
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Hillham is located in Dubois County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillham
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- West Baden Springs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- West Baden Springs is located in Orange County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Baden Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 557 people
- Burns City
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Burns City is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burns City
- Cannelburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Cannelburg is located in Davies's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cannelburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 165 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Shoals. See our List of 1890's Communities around Shoals.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Shoals ...
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 51 newspapers that have been published in the area around Shoals.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Shoals. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Shoals and those printed in the larger area surrounding Shoals.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<3> of Shoals.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin 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 Shoals:
- Websites specific to Indiana
- Pages specific to Martin County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Crawford County
- Davies's County
- Dubois County
- Greene County
- Knox County
- Lawrence County
- Monroe County
- Orange County
- Perry County
- Pike County
- Washington County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Indiana
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 Shoals, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Shoals) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |