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 Ponza (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 Ponza. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.
Ponza is located in Bell County.
To see how the shape of Kentucky's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Bell County: Clay, Harlan, Knox, Leslie, Whitley, Claiborne (TN) & Lee (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Ponza. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Ponza:
- Bell County (The home county of Ponza)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Calvin
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Calvin is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvin
- Varilla
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Varilla is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Varilla
- Jenson
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Jenson is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenson
- Straight Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Straight Creek is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Straight Creek
- Wasioto
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Wasioto is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasioto
- Miracle
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Miracle is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miracle
- Dorton Branch
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Dorton Branch is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorton Branch
- Pineville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Arjay
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Arjay is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arjay
- Kettle Island
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Kettle Island is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kettle Island
- Callaway
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Callaway is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callaway
- Fourmile
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Fourmile is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fourmile
- Clay County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Ashers Fork
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Ashers Fork is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashers Fork
- Brightshade
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Brightshade is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brightshade
- Goose Rock
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Goose Rock is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goose Rock
- Garrard
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Garrard is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garrard
- Hima
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Hima is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hima
- Big Creek
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Big Creek is located in Clay County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Creek
- Manchester
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Harlan County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Pathfork
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Pathfork is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pathfork
- Coldiron
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Tacky Town
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Tacky Town is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tacky Town
- Twila
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Twila is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twila
- South Wallins
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- South Wallins is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Wallins
- Wallins Creek
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Wallins Creek is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallins Creek
- Estimated population in 2016: 146 people
- Mary Alice
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Mary Alice is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mary Alice
- Loyall
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Loyall is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loyall
- Population from the 2020 Census: 585 people
- Baxter
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Harlan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Bledsoe
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Bledsoe is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bledsoe
- Bobs Creek
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Bobs Creek is located in Harlan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bobs Creek
- Knox County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Flat Lick
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Flat Lick is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Lick
- Trosper
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Trosper is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trosper
- Walker
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Walker is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walker
- Warren
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Warren is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warren
- Wheeler
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Wheeler is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
- Dewitt
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Dewitt is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dewitt
- Artemus
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Artemus is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artemus
- Scalf
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Scalf is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scalf
- Bimble
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Barbourville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hinkle
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Hinkle is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hinkle
- Bryants Store
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Bryants Store is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bryants Store
- Laurel County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Bush
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Bush is located in Laurel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bush
- Lake
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Lake is located in Laurel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
- Marydell
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Marydell is located in Laurel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marydell
- Leslie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Warbranch
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Warbranch is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warbranch
- Helton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Helton is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Helton
- Roark
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Roark is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roark
- Mozelle
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Mozelle is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mozelle
- Asher
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Asher is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Asher
- Chappell
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Chappell is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chappell
- Essie
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Essie is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essie
- Hoskinston
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Hoskinston is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hoskinston
- Stinnett
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Stinnett is located in Leslie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stinnett
- Whitley County
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Siler
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Siler is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siler
- Louden
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Louden is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Louden
- Nevisdale
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Nevisdale is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nevisdale
- Packard
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Packard is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Packard
- Verne
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Verne is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verne
- Lot
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Lot is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lot
- Saxton
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Saxton is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saxton
- Emlyn
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Emlyn is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emlyn
- Fairview
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Fairview is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Pleasant View
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Pleasant View is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
- Red Ash
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Red Ash is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Ash
- Rockholds
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Rockholds is located in Whitley County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockholds
- Campbell County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Morley
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Morley is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morley
- White Oak
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- White Oak is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Oak
- Flat Hollow
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Flat Hollow is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Hollow
- Stockville ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Stockville is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockville
- Habersham
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Habersham is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Habersham
- Jellico
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Victory
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Victory is located in Campbell County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victory
- Claiborne County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Cumberland Gap
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Shawanee
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Shawanee is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shawanee
- Harrogate
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Minton Mill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Minton Mill is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minton Mill
- Estimated population in 2014: 527 people
- Pruden
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Pruden is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pruden
- Tazewell
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- New Tazewell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Hamlin Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Hamlin Town is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamlin Town
- Head of Barren
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Head of Barren is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Head of Barren
- Clairfield
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Clairfield is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clairfield
- Goin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Goin is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goin
- Springdale
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Springdale is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
- Grainger County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Thorn Hill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Thorn Hill is located in Grainger County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorn Hill
- Washburn
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Washburn is located in Grainger County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washburn
- Beans
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Beans is located in Grainger County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,084 people
- Bowen
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Bowen is located in Grainger County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowen
- Hancock County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Alanthus Hill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Alanthus Hill is located in Hancock County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alanthus Hill
- Estimated population in 2014: 2,498 people
- Xenophon
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Xenophon is located in Hancock County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Xenophon
- Sneedville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Duck Creek
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Duck Creek is located in Hancock County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Creek
- Trent Valley
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Trent Valley is located in Hancock County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trent Valley
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,157 people
- Yount Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Yount Town is located in Hancock County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yount Town
- Union County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Braden
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Braden is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Braden
- Estimated population in 2014: 277 people
- Haynes ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Haynes is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haynes
- Phebe ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Phebe is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phebe
- Long Hollow ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Long Hollow is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Hollow
- Loo ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Loo is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loo
- Rhodelia ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rhodelia is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhodelia
- Lost Creek ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lost Creek is located in Union County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Creek
- Lee County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Wheeler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Wheeler is located in Lee County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
- Ewing
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Rose Hill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Hubbard Springs
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Hubbard Springs is located in Lee County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hubbard Springs
- Van
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Van is located in Lee County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van
- Fleenortown
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Fleenortown is located in Lee County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleenortown
- Jonesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Ponza, see our County-by-County Page for Ponza.
Cemeteries Near Ponza ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Ponza.
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 Ponza - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Ponza covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Hurst Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Slusher Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Greene Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Buell Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Laurel Hill Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Bingham Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Wilder Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Knuckle Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Henderson Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Liberty Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Greene Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Smith Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Continue List (858 more) ...
- Turner Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Barnett Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Miracle 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>
While we didn't find Ponza in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Ponza.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Ponza, with the one closest to Ponza listed first.
- Wasioto
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
- Wasioto is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasioto
- Pineville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Cubage
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Cubage is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cubage
- Callaway
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Callaway is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callaway
- Middlesboro
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Cumberland Gap
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Wheeler
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Wheeler is located in Lee County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheeler
- Ingram
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Ingram is located in Bell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingram
- Harrogate
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Flat Lick
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Flat Lick is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Lick
- Arthur
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Arthur is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arthur
- Walker
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Walker is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walker
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Ewing
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Artemus
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Artemus is located in Knox County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Artemus
- Bacchus
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Bacchus is located in Claiborne County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bacchus
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Ponza. See our List of 1890's Communities around Ponza.
Newspapers Published in Ponza ...
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 37 newspapers that have been published in the area around Ponza.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Ponza, there are papers which were published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Ponza.
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 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 Ponza:
- Websites specific to Kentucky
- Pages specific to Bell County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Clay County
- Harlan County
- Knox County
- Laurel County
- Leslie County
- Whitley County
- Campbell County
- Claiborne County
- Grainger County
- Hancock County
- Union County
- Lee County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Kentucky
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 Ponza, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ponza) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |