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 Smith Ford (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 Smith Ford. 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 Smith Ford ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for Smith Ford: Smith Frd.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Smith Ford. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Smith Ford.
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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and 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.
Smith Ford is located in Caldwell 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 Caldwell County: Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Lyon & Trigg.
Below are the counties that are near Smith Ford. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Smith Ford:
- Caldwell County (The home county of Smith Ford)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Creswell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Creswell is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creswell
- Lewistown
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- Lewistown is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewistown
- Crider
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Crider is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crider
- Fredonia
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Princeton
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Claxton
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Claxton is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claxton
- Dulaney
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Dulaney is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dulaney
- McGowan
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- McGowan is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McGowan
- Hopson
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Hopson is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopson
- Cobb
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Cobb is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobb
- Christian County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Bainbridge
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Bainbridge is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bainbridge
- Empire
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Empire is located in Christian County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Empire
- Crofton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
- Crittenden County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Piney Fork
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Piney Fork is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney Fork
- Marion
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Crayne
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Crayne is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crayne
- Sheridan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Sheridan is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sheridan
- Dycusburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Dycusburg is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dycusburg
- Population from the 2010 Census: 26 people
- Tolu
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Tolu is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolu
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Dixie
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Dixie is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixie
- Corydon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Robards
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Hopkins County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Dalton
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Dalton is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalton
- Fiddle Bow
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Fiddle Bow is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fiddle Bow
- Charleston
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Charleston is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charleston
- Nebo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Nebo is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
- Dawson Springs
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
- Richland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Richland is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richland
- Manitou
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Manitou is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manitou
- Earlington
(18 miles [29 km] to the east)
- Saint Charles
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Saint Charles is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Charles
- Population from the 2020 Census: 269 people
- Madisonville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)
- Hanson
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Mortons Gap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Livingston County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Salem
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Pinckneyville
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Pinckneyville is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinckneyville
- Tiline
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Tiline is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tiline
- Lola
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Lola is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lola
- Burna
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Burna is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burna
- Hampton
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Hampton is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hampton
- Lake City
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Lake City is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake City
- Carrsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Carrsville is located in Livingston County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carrsville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
- Grand Rivers
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Lyon County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Fairview
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview is located in Lyon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Eddyville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Lamasco
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Lamasco is located in Lyon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamasco
- Kuttawa
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Carmack
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Carmack is located in Lyon County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carmack
- Muhlenberg County
- Earles
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Earles is located in Muhlenberg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Earles
- Trigg County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Cerulean
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Wallonia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Wallonia is located in Trigg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wallonia
- Trigg Furnace
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Trigg Furnace is located in Trigg County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trigg Furnace
- Union County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Sullivan
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Sullivan is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sullivan
- Sturgis
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Grangertown
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Grangertown is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grangertown
- Dekoven
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Dekoven is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dekoven
- Breckinridge Center
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Breckinridge Center is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breckinridge Center
- Morganfield
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Flournoy
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Flournoy is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flournoy
- Chapman
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Chapman is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapman
- Waverly
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Hitesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Hitesville is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hitesville
- Raleigh
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
- Raleigh is located in Union County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raleigh
- Webster County
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Providence
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Clay
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Blackford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Blackford is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackford
- West Wheatcroft
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- West Wheatcroft is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Wheatcroft
- Wheatcroft
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Wheatcroft is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheatcroft
- Population from the 2020 Census: 152 people
- Lisman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lisman is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisman
- Free Union
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Free Union is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Free Union
- Dixon
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Dixon is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dixon
- Population from the 2020 Census: 877 people
- Vanderburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Vanderburg is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vanderburg
- Slaughters
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Slaughters is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slaughters
- Population from the 2020 Census: 206 people
- Poole
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Sebree
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Gallatin County (IL)
- Old Shawneetown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Old Shawneetown is located in Gallatin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Shawneetown
- Population from the 2020 Census: 164 people
- Hardin County (IL)
- The following are listed by their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Cave-In-Rock
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Cave-In-Rock is located in Hardin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave-In-Rock
- Population from the 2020 Census: 278 people
- Cave-In-Rock has also been known as:
- Cave-In-Rock village
- Lamb
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Lamb is located in Hardin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lamb
- Saline Landing
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Saline Landing is located in Hardin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saline Landing
- Rock Creek
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Rock Creek is located in Hardin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
- Elizabethtown
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Mineral City ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Mineral City is located in Hardin County (IL)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mineral City
- Rosiclare
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Smith Ford, see our County-by-County Page for Smith Ford.
Cemeteries Near Smith Ford ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Smith Ford.
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 Smith Ford - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Smith Ford covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Davis Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Hoods Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Smith Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Barns Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Felker Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Trailer Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Towery Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Harper Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Carney Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Williams Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Willimson Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Roberts Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Continue List (459 more) ...
- Fox Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Johnson Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Pleasant Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Pleasant Hill Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 8 miles [12.9 km]<2> to the northeast of Fredonia.
- The Pleasant Hill Cemetery has also been known as:
- Old Pleasant Hill Cemetery
- Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #75559 <3>
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.<4>
While we didn't find Smith Ford in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Smith Ford.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Smith Ford, with the one closest to Smith Ford listed first.
- Shady Grove
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Shady Grove is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Grove
- Creswell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Creswell is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creswell
- Dalton
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Dalton is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dalton
- Rufus
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Rufus is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rufus
- Piney
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Piney is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney
- Providence
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Enon
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Enon is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enon
- Nunn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Nunn is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nunn
- Blackford
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Blackford is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackford
- Clay
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Repton
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Repton is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Repton
- Lisman
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lisman is located in Webster County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lisman
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Mattoon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- Mattoon is located in Crittenden County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattoon
- White Sulphur
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- White Sulphur is located in Caldwell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Sulphur
- Nebo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Nebo is located in Hopkins County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebo
- Population from the 2020 Census: 225 people
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Smith Ford. See our List of 1890's Communities around Smith Ford.
Newspapers Published in Smith Ford ...
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 62 newspapers that have been published in the area around Smith Ford.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Smith Ford, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<2>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Smith Ford.
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 Smith Ford:
- Websites specific to Kentucky
- Pages specific to Caldwell County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Christian County
- Crittenden County
- Henderson County
- Hopkins County
- Livingston County
- Lyon County
- Muhlenberg County
- Trigg County
- Union County
- Webster County
- Gallatin County
- Hardin 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> | 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- Smith Ford) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Smith Ford, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |