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 West Fork (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 West Fork. 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 West Fork ...
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.
For example, a typical abbreviation for West Fork: W. Fork
You might be interested in other communities that are also named West Fork. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for West Fork.
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 doctors 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.
West Fork is located in Allen 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 Allen County: Barren, Monroe, Simpson, Warren, Macon (TN) & Sumner (TN).
Below are the counties that are near West Fork. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to West Fork:
- Allen County (The home county of West Fork)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Halfway
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Halfway is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway
- Halifax
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Halifax is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halifax
- Red Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Red Hill is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
- Pope
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Pope is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pope
- Trammel
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Trammel is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trammel
- Scottsville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Yesse
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Yesse is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yesse
- Petroleum
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Petroleum is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petroleum
- Mount Aerial
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Mount Aerial is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Aerial
- Meador
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Meador is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meador
- Adolphus
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Cedar Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Cedar Springs is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Springs
- Barren County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Austin
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Austin is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austin
- Lucas
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rocky Hill
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
- Rocky Hill is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Hill
- Beckton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Beckton is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckton
- Haywood
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Haywood is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haywood
- Etoile
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Etoile is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Etoile
- Oil City
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Oil City is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil City
- Glasgow
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Park City
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Highland Springs
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Highland Springs is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland Springs
- Eighty Eight
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Eighty Eight is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eighty Eight
- Nobob
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Nobob is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nobob
- Butler County
- Richelieu
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Richelieu is located in Butler County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richelieu
- Edmonson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Rocky Hill
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Rocky Hill is located in Edmonson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Hill
- Rhoda
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Rhoda is located in Edmonson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rhoda
- Union City
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Union City is located in Edmonson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union City
- Brownsville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Mammoth Cave
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Logan County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- South Union
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Auburn
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Schochoh
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Schochoh is located in Logan County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schochoh
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Fountain Run
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Akersville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Akersville is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akersville
- Mount Hermon
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Mount Hermon is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hermon
- Mud Lick
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Mud Lick is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mud Lick
- Gamaliel
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Simpson County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Gold City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Gold City is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold City
- Salmons
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Salmons is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salmons
- Franklin
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Black Jack
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Black Jack is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Jack
- Neosheo
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Neosheo is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neosheo
- Prices Mill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Prices Mill is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prices Mill
- Warren County
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Alvaton
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Claypool
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Claypool is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claypool
- Drake
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Drake is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drake
- Martinsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Martinsville is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
- Gotts
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Gotts is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gotts
- Woodburn
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Woodburn is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodburn
- Population from the 2020 Census: 372 people
- Plum Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Plum Springs is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Springs
- Population from the 2020 Census: 542 people
- Bowling Green
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Bowling Green is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowling Green
- Population from the 2020 Census: 70,631 people
- Former names for Bowling Green:
- Bolin Green
- McFadden's Station
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bowling Green <1>
- Rockfield
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Rockfield is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockfield
- Springhill
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Springhill is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springhill
- Oakland
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Oakland is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Population from the 2020 Census: 217 people
- Smiths Grove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Macon County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Siloam
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Siloam is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siloam
- Green Grove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Green Grove is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Grove
- Lafayette
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Frog Pond
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Frog Pond is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frog Pond
- Meadorville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Meadorville is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadorville
- Walnut Shade
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Walnut Shade is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut Shade
- Red Boiling Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mill Town
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
- Mill Town is located in Macon County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Town
- Robertson County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Black Jack
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Black Jack is located in Robertson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Jack
- Mitchell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mitchell is located in Robertson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchell
- Estimated population in 2014: 198 people
- Mulloy
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Mulloy is located in Robertson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulloy
- Orlinda
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Calistia
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Calistia is located in Robertson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calistia
- Cross Plains
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Jernigan Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Jernigan Town is located in Robertson County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jernigan Town
- White House
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Sumner County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Sugar Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Sugar Grove is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Grove
- Fairfield
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- Fairfield is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield
- Sengtown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Sengtown is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sengtown
- Westmoreland
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Corinth
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Corinth is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corinth
- Mitchellville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Mitchellville is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellville
- Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
- Bledsoe
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Bledsoe is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bledsoe
- Bransford
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Bransford is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bransford
- Population from the 2010 Census: 170 people
- Rock Bridge
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
- Rock Bridge is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Bridge
- Portland
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Bethpage
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Fountain Head
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Fountain Head is located in Sumner County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Head
- Trousdale County (TN)
- Hartsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to West Fork, see our County-by-County Page for West Fork.
Cemeteries Near West Fork ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Fork.
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 West Fork - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for West Fork covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Pope Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Agee Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Harmony Baptist Church Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Tabor Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Walthall Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Oakwood Mennonite Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Crescent Hill Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Old Liberty Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Liberty Cemetery
- The Old Liberty Cemetery has also been known as:
- Greenbriar Cemetery
- Marthas Chapel Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
- Coldwater Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Allen Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Oak Forest MB Church Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Continue List (538 more) ...
- Sherry Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Hinton Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Wolf Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 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.<3>
While we didn't find West Fork in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of West Fork.
These communities are listed based on their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
- Halfway
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Halfway is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halfway
- Halifax
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Halifax is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halifax
- Chapel Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Chapel Hill is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
- Trammel
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Trammel is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trammel
- Rodemer
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Rodemer is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodemer
- Scottsville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Mount Aerial
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Mount Aerial is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Aerial
- Petroleum
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Petroleum is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petroleum
- Alonzo
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Alonzo is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alonzo
- Settle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Settle is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Settle
- Motley
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Motley is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Motley
- Gainesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Gainesville is located in Allen County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gainesville
- Continue List (15 more) ...
- Claypool
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Claypool is located in Warren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claypool
- Temperance
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Temperance is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Temperance
- Gold City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Gold City is located in Simpson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold City
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around West Fork. See our List of 1890's Communities around West Fork.
Newspapers Published in West Fork ...
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 53 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Fork.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Fork, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Fork.
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 helpful 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 West Fork:
- Websites specific to Kentucky
- Pages specific to Allen County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Barren County
- Butler County
- Edmonson County
- Logan County
- Monroe County
- Simpson County
- Warren County
- Macon County
- Robertson County
- Sumner County
- Trousdale 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 West Fork, 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- West Fork) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |