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 Willis Creek (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 Willis Creek. 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 Willis Creek ...
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 Willis Creek: Willis Crk. (or less commonly used: Willis Ck. or Willis Cr.)
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Willis Creek. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Willis Creek.
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 northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.
Willis Creek is located in Clinton 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 Clinton County: Cumberland, Russell, Wayne, Clay (TN) & Pickett (TN).
Below are the counties that are near Willis Creek. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Willis Creek:
- Clinton County (The home county of Willis Creek)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Ida
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ida is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ida
- Browns Crossroads
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Browns Crossroads is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Crossroads
- Cumberland City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Cumberland City is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland City
- Albany
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Alpha
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Alpha is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpha
- Savage
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Savage is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savage
- Static
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Static is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Static
- Adair County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Cundiff
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Cundiff is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cundiff
- Inroad
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Inroad is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Inroad
- Crocus
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Crocus is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crocus
- Chance
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Chance is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chance
- Glens Fork
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Glens Fork is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glens Fork
- Fairplay
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Fairplay is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairplay
- Montpelier
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Montpelier is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montpelier
- Breeding
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Breeding is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breeding
- Gadberry
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Gadberry is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gadberry
- Joppa
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Joppa is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joppa
- Sparksville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Sparksville is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparksville
- Toria
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Toria is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toria
- Flatwood
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Flatwood is located in Adair County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatwood
- Barren County
- Nobob
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Nobob is located in Barren County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nobob
- Casey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Honey Acre
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Honey Acre is located in Casey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Acre
- Windsor
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Dunnville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Dunnville is located in Casey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunnville
- Teddy
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Teddy is located in Casey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teddy
- Cumberland County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Bakerton
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Bakerton is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bakerton
- Dougan Town
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Dougan Town is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dougan Town
- Burkesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Grider
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
- Grider is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grider
- Leslie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Leslie is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leslie
- Waterview
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Waterview is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterview
- Cloyds Landing
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Cloyds Landing is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloyds Landing
- Marrowbone
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Marrowbone is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marrowbone
- Dubre
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Dubre is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dubre
- Green County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Exie
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Exie is located in Green County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exie
- Liletown
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Liletown is located in Green County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liletown
- Metcalfe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Cedar Flat
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cedar Flat is located in Metcalfe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Flat
- Edmonton
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Beaumont
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Beaumont is located in Metcalfe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaumont
- Summer Shade
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Randolph
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Randolph is located in Metcalfe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Randolph
- Monroe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Martinsburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Martinsburg is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsburg
- Meshack
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Meshack is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meshack
- Hestand
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Hestand is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hestand
- Forkton
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Forkton is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forkton
- Tompkinsville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Boles
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Boles is located in Monroe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boles
- Pulaski County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Vinnie
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Vinnie is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vinnie
- Faubush
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Faubush is located in Pulaski County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faubush
- Russell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Long Bottom
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Long Bottom is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Bottom
- Freedom
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Freedom is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom
- Lula ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lula is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lula
- Stokes ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Stokes is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stokes
- Esto
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Esto is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Esto
- Jamestown
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Middletown
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Middletown is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middletown
- Russell Springs
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
- Salem
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Salem is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salem
- Wayne County
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Murl
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Murl is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murl
- Parnell
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Parnell is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parnell
- Shearer Valley
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)
- Shearer Valley is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shearer Valley
- Slickford
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Slickford is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slickford
- Monticello
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Sumpter
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Sumpter is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sumpter
- Rankin
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Rankin is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rankin
- Mount Pisgah
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Pisgah is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pisgah
- Mill Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Mill Springs is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mill Springs
- Parmleysville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Parmleysville is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parmleysville
- Frazer
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Frazer is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frazer
- Clay County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Thompsons Store
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Thompsons Store is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thompsons Store
- Estimated population in 2014: 3,180 people
- Cave Springs
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Cave Springs is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave Springs
- Free Hill
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Free Hill is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Free Hill
- Celina
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Moss
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Moss is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss
- Boles
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Boles is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boles
- Butlers Landing ‑ Historic
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Butlers Landing is located in Clay County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butlers Landing
- Fentress County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Pall Mall
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Little Crab
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
- Little Crab is located in Fentress County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Crab
- Cooper
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Cooper is located in Fentress County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooper
- Estimated population in 2014: 4,385 people
- Overton County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Oakley
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Oakley is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
- Taylors Crossroads
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Taylors Crossroads is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylors Crossroads
- Free Communion
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Free Communion is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Free Communion
- Grey ‑ Historic
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Grey is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grey
- Garretts Mill
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Garretts Mill is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garretts Mill
- Oak Dale
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Oak Dale is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Dale
- Estimated population in 2014: 222 people
- Livingston
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Poteet ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Poteet is located in Overton County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poteet
- Pickett County (TN)
- The following are listed by their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Static
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Static is located in Pickett County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Static
- Chanute
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Chanute is located in Pickett County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chanute
- Byrdstown
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
- Cedar Grove
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Grove is located in Pickett County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Willis Creek, see our County-by-County Page for Willis Creek.
Cemeteries Near Willis Creek ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Willis Creek.
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 Willis Creek - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Willis Creek covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Thurman Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
- Lewis Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Boyles Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Vincent Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Brents Family Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Hilltop Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Fairland Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Hickory Ridge Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- McWhorter Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Brown Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Piercy Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Ray Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Continue List (636 more) ...
- Hopkins Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Hopkins Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Brumley Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 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 Willis Creek in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Willis Creek.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Willis Creek, with the one closest to Willis Creek listed first.
- Ida
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Ida is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ida
- Seventy Six
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Seventy Six is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seventy Six
- Creelsboro
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Creelsboro is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creelsboro
- Green Grove
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Green Grove is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Grove
- Browns Crossroads
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Browns Crossroads is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Browns Crossroads
- Rowena
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Rowena is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rowena
- Amandaville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Amandaville is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amandaville
- Burkesville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Hegira
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Hegira is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hegira
- Cumberland City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
- Cumberland City is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland City
- Albany
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cartwright
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Cartwright is located in Clinton County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartwright
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Kettle
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Kettle is located in Cumberland County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kettle
- Cabell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Cabell is located in Wayne County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cabell
- Lula ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Lula is located in Russell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lula
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Willis Creek. See our List of 1890's Communities around Willis Creek.
Newspapers Published in Willis Creek ...
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 36 newspapers that have been published in the area around Willis Creek.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Willis Creek, there are papers which were published within 20 miles [32.2 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Willis Creek.
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 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 Willis Creek:
- Websites specific to Kentucky
- Pages specific to Clinton County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Adair County
- Barren County
- Casey County
- Cumberland County
- Green County
- Metcalfe County
- Monroe County
- Pulaski County
- Russell County
- Wayne County
- Clay County
- Fentress County
- Overton County
- Pickett 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 Willis Creek, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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 from Point A (ie- Willis Creek) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |