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 Charlestown (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 Charlestown. 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 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.
Charlestown is located in Baltimore County.
To see how the shape of Maryland's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Baltimore County: Anne Arundel, Baltimore City, Carroll, Harford, Howard & York (PA).
Below are the counties that are near Charlestown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Charlestown:
- Baltimore County (The home county of Charlestown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Arbutus
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Catonsville
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Franklintown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Franklintown is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklintown
- Halethorpe
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Orange Grove ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Orange Grove is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orange Grove
- Woodlawn
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Woodlawn is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn
- Lansdowne - Baltimore Highlands
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Frederick Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Frederick Village is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frederick Village
- Baltimore Highlands
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Baltimore Highlands is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baltimore Highlands
- Lochearn
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Lochearn is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lochearn
- Hollofield
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Hollofield is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollofield
- Windsor Mill
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Windsor Mill is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor Mill
- Anne Arundel County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Patapsco
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Patapsco is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patapsco
- Brooklyn Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Linthicum Heights
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Linthicum
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Linthicum is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linthicum
- Pumphrey
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Pumphrey is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pumphrey
- Dorsey
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Dorsey is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorsey
- Arundel Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Arundel Village is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arundel Village
- Ferndale
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Harmans
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
- Harmans is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmans
- Cohansey Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Cohansey Village is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cohansey Village
- Glen Burnie
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Danza Village
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Danza Village is located in Anne Arundel County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danza Village
- Baltimore City
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Beechfield
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Beechfield is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechfield
- Oaklee Village
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Oaklee Village is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklee Village
- Violetville
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Violetville is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Violetville
- Carroll
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Carroll is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
- Edmondson Village
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Edmondson Village is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmondson Village
- Gwynn Oak
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Baltimore
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Old Town
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Old Town is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
- Hampden
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Woodberry
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Woodberry is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodberry
- Charles Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Charles Village is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charles Village
- Brooklyn
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
- Brooklyn is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
- Carroll County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Henryton
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Henryton is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henryton
- Freedom Village
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Freedom Village is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Village
- Sykesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
- Eldersburg
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Piney Ridge Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Piney Ridge Village is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney Ridge Village
- Gaither
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Gaither is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gaither
- Lakeview Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lakeview Village is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Village
- Berrywood Village
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Berrywood Village is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berrywood Village
- Finksburg
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Klee Mill
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Klee Mill is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Klee Mill
- Morgan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Morgan is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morgan
- Eastview
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Eastview is located in Carroll County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eastview
- Frederick County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Mount Airy Village West
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Sams Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Sams Creek is located in Frederick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sams Creek
- Oak Orchard
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
- Oak Orchard is located in Frederick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Orchard
- Smith Village
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Smith Village is located in Frederick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smith Village
- Unionville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Unionville is located in Frederick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unionville
- Bartholows
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Bartholows is located in Frederick County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bartholows
- Harford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Hess
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Hess is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hess
- Joppa
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Joppatowne
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Joppatowne is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joppatowne
- Lynchs Corner
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Lynchs Corner is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynchs Corner
- Mountain
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Mountain is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain
- Pleasant Hills
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Pleasant Hills is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hills
- Upper Crossroads
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Upper Crossroads is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Crossroads
- Amoss
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Amoss is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amoss
- Benson
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Benson is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benson
- Edgewater Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Edgewater Village is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater Village
- Fallston
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Wimbledon
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
- Wimbledon is located in Harford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wimbledon
- Howard County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Elkridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Lawyers Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Lawyers Hill is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawyers Hill
- Ilchester
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Ilchester is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ilchester
- Ellicott City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Linwood
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Woodland Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
- Woodland Village is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
- Saint Johns Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Saint Johns Village is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Johns Village
- Aladdin Village
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Aladdin Village is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aladdin Village
- Columbia
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Marydell
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Marydell is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marydell
- Village of Dorseys Search
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Font Hill Village
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Font Hill Village is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Font Hill Village
- Kent County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Rock Hall
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Edesville
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Edesville is located in Kent County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edesville
- Montgomery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Blackburn Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Blackburn Village is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn Village
- Burtonsville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Brighton
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Brighton is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brighton
- Ashton
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Brinklow
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Brinklow is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinklow
- Fairland
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Fairland is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairland
- Spencerville
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
- Spencerville is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencerville
- Cloverly
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Cloverly is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverly
- Norwood
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Norwood is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwood
- Sandy Spring
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Brookeville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Unity
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Unity is located in Montgomery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unity
- Prince George's County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Laurel
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Laurel is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
- Population from the 2020 Census: 25,548 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Laurel <1>
- South Laurel
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- South Laurel is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Laurel
- West Laurel
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- West Laurel is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Laurel
- Beltsville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Collington
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Collington is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collington
- Glenn Dale
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Goddard
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Goddard is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goddard
- Boxwood Village
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Boxwood Village is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxwood Village
- Bowie
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Bowie is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bowie
- Population from the 2020 Census: 58,212 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bowie <1>
- Greenbelt
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
- Berwyn Heights
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Berwyn Heights is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwyn Heights
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,249 people
- Berwyn
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Berwyn is located in Prince George's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwyn
- Queen Anne's County
- The following are listed by their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Bay City
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bay City is located in Queen Anne's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay City
- Stevensville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Chester
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Charlestown, see our County-by-County Page for Charlestown.
Cemeteries Near Charlestown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Charlestown.
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 Charlestown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Charlestown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Eucharist Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Baltimore National Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Arbutus Memorial Park
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- German Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Loudon Park Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Loudon Park National Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- New Cathedral Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Western Star Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- United Hebrew Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Olivet Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Western Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. Marys Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (439 more) ...
- Lorraine Park Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Evangelimas Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Holy Trinity Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
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 Charlestown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Charlestown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Charlestown, with the one closest to Charlestown listed first.
- Arbutus
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Beechfield
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Beechfield is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechfield
- Paradise
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Paradise is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
- Bloomsbury
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Bloomsbury is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomsbury
- Carroll
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Carroll is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
- Catonsville
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Winans ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Winans is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winans
- Halethorpe
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Claremont ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Claremont is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claremont
- Calverton
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Calverton is located in Baltimore City
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calverton
- Franklintown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Franklintown is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklintown
- Ilchester
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Ilchester is located in Howard County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ilchester
- Continue List (21 more) ...
- Elkridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Saint Denis
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Saint Denis is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Denis
- Powhatan
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Powhatan is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powhatan
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Charlestown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Charlestown.
Newspapers Published in Charlestown ...
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 20 newspapers that have been published in the area around Charlestown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Charlestown, there are papers which were published within 4 miles [6.4 km]<5>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Charlestown.
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 Charlestown:
- Websites specific to Maryland
- Pages specific to Baltimore County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Anne Arundel County
- Baltimore City
- Carroll County
- Frederick County
- Harford County
- Howard County
- Kent County
- Montgomery County
- Prince George's County
- Queen Anne's County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Maryland
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 Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) has created and maintains a database of historic properties that is called MIHP (for the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties). More information about the MHT and MIHP can be found on their website: mht.maryland.gov. |
| <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 Charlestown, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <5> | 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- Charlestown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |