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 Rural (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 Rural. 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.
Rural is located in Pike 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 Pike County: Floyd, Knott, Letcher, Martin, Buchanan (VA), Dickenson (VA), Wise (VA) & Mingo (WV).
Below are the counties that are near Rural. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Rural:
- Pike County (The home county of Rural)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- South Williamson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Sidney
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Forest Hills
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Forest Hills is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Hills
- Varney
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Varney is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Varney
- Canada
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Belfry
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Toler
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Toler is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toler
- Hardy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Hardy is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardy
- Huddy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Huddy is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huddy
- Stone
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Stone is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone
- McAndrews
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- McAndrews is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McAndrews
- Buskirk
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Buskirk is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buskirk
- Gulnare
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gulnare is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulnare
- Floyd County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Betsy Layne
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Ivel
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Stanville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Tram
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Tram is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tram
- Harold
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Harold is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harold
- Dana
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Dana is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
- Banner
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Dwale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Dwale is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dwale
- Grethel
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Grethel is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grethel
- Osborn
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Osborn is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Osborn
- Allen
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Allen is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
- Population from the 2020 Census: 168 people
- Allen has also been known as:
- Beaver Creek Junction
- Beaver Creek
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Allen <1>
- Auxier
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Auxier is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Auxier
- Watergap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Watergap is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Watergap
- Johnson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Butcher Hollow
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Butcher Hollow is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butcher Hollow
- Meally
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Meally is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meally
- Nero
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Nero is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nero
- Williamsport
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Williamsport is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsport
- Whitehouse
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Whitehouse is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehouse
- Van Lear
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- East Point
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Thelma
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Thelma is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thelma
- West Van Lear
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- West Van Lear is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Van Lear
- Tutor Key
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Tutor Key is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tutor Key
- Hagerhill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Hagerhill is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hagerhill
- Lowmansville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lowmansville is located in Johnson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lowmansville
- Paintsville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Lawrence County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Patrick
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Patrick is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patrick
- Peach Orchard
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Peach Orchard is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peach Orchard
- Clifford
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Clifford is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clifford
- Richardson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Richardson is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richardson
- Ben Bow
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Ben Bow is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ben Bow
- Maynard ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Maynard is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maynard
- Ulysses ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Ulysses is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ulysses
- Gallup ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Gallup is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallup
- Georges Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Georges Creek is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Georges Creek
- Charley
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
- Charley is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charley
- Bumblebee ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Bumblebee is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bumblebee
- Torchlight ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Torchlight is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Torchlight
- Noris ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Noris is located in Lawrence County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Noris
- Martin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Pilgrim
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Pilgrim is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrim
- Lovely
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Lovely is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovely
- Warfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Beauty
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Beauty is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beauty
- Hode
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Hode is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hode
- Debord
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Inez
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Tomahawk
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Tomahawk is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomahawk
- Buchanan County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Kelsa
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Kelsa is located in Buchanan County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelsa
- Big Rock
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Big Rock is located in Buchanan County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Rock
- Boone County (WV)
- Manila
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Manila is located in Boone County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manila
- Lincoln County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Harts
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
- Wewanta
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Wewanta is located in Lincoln County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wewanta
- Logan County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Holden
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Holden is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holden
- Troy Town
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Troy Town is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Troy Town
- Omar
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Stirrat
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Stirrat is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stirrat
- Whirlwind
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Whirlwind is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whirlwind
- Whitman
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hedgeview
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Hedgeview is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hedgeview
- Thompson Town
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Thompson Town is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompson Town
- Switzer
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Switzer is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Switzer
- Wilkinson
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Logan
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- West Logan
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Peach Creek
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Peach Creek is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peach Creek
- McDowell County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Wyoming City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Wyoming City is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyoming City
- Panther
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Panther is located in McDowell County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panther
- Mingo County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Chattaroy
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Chattaroy is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chattaroy
- Williamson
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Delbarton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Kermit
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Greyeagle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Greyeagle is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greyeagle
- Myrtle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Myrtle is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Myrtle
- Sprigg
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Sprigg is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sprigg
- Red Jacket
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Red Jacket is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Jacket
- Blackberry City
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Blackberry City is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackberry City
- Matewan
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Thacker
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Thacker is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thacker
- Musick
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Musick is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Musick
- Dingess
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Dingess is located in Mingo County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dingess
- Wayne County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Stonecoal
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Stonecoal is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonecoal
- Wilsondale
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Wilsondale is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilsondale
- Doane
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Doane is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doane
- Dunlow
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Dunlow is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunlow
- Kiahsville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Kiahsville is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kiahsville
- Cove Gap
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Cove Gap is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Gap
- Effie
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Effie is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Effie
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Rural, see our County-by-County Page for Rural.
Cemeteries Near Rural ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Rural.
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 Rural - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Rural covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Romans Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Hayes Lowe Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Orrison Lowe Branch #2 Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Thomas Shermon Lowe Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Orrison R Lowe #1 Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Fraley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Stepp Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Tandy Sester Alley Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Stepp - Vance Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Goff Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Weddington Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Marcum Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (699 more) ...
- Smith Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Scott Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Williamson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
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 in 1895, Rural had a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Rural, with the one closest to Rural listed first.
- Canada
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Pilgrim
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Pilgrim is located in Martin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilgrim
- Warfield
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Gulnare
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
- Gulnare is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulnare
- Pinsonfork
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Pinsonfork is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinsonfork
- Stonecoal
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Stonecoal is located in Wayne County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonecoal
- Thomas
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Thomas is located in Floyd County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
- Zebulon
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Zebulon is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zebulon
- Kimper
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Kimper is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kimper
- Inez
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Coal Run Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Coal Run Village is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Run Village
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,494 people
- Pikeville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Phelps
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Oilville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Oilville is located in Logan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oilville
- Fishtrap
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Fishtrap is located in Pike County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishtrap
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Rural. See our List of 1890's Communities around Rural.
Newspapers Published in Rural ...
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 25 newspapers that have been published in the area around Rural.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Rural, there are papers which were published within 17 miles [27.4 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Rural.
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 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 Rural:
- Websites specific to Kentucky
- Pages specific to Pike County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Floyd County
- Johnson County
- Lawrence County
- Martin County
- Buchanan County
- Boone County
- Lincoln County
- Logan County
- McDowell County
- Mingo County
- Wayne 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> | 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 Rural, 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Rural) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |