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 Fairplay (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 Fairplay. 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 Fairplay ...
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.
Another variation: Fair Play.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Fairplay. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Fairplay.
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 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.
Fairplay is located in Allegany 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 Allegany County: Garrett, Washington, Bedford (PA), Fulton (PA), Somerset (PA), Hampshire (WV), Mineral (WV) & Morgan (WV).
Below are the counties that are near Fairplay. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Fairplay:
- Allegany County (The home county of Fairplay)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Keifers
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Keifers is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keifers
- Green Ridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Green Ridge is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Ridge
- Oldtown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Little Orleans
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Town Creek ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Town Creek is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town Creek
- Rush
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Rush is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rush
- Flintstone
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Spring Gap
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Spring Gap is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Gap
- Cumberland
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Shanty Town ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Shanty Town is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanty Town
- Brady
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Brady is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brady
- Cedar Cliff
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
- Cedar Cliff is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Cliff
- Cresaptown
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
- Washington County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Pearre
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Pearre is located in Washington County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pearre
- Hancock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Big Pool
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Clear Spring
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bedford County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Beans Cove
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Beans Cove is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beans Cove
- Purcell
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
- Purcell is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purcell
- Robinsonville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Robinsonville is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinsonville
- Cooks Mills
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Cooks Mills is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Mills
- Stringtown
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Stringtown is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown
- Rainsburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
- Rainsburg is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rainsburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 128 people
- Hyndman
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Charlesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Charlesville is located in Bedford County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charlesville
- Fulton County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Warfordsburg
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Dott
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Dott is located in Fulton County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dott
- Covalt
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
- Covalt is located in Fulton County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covalt
- Needmore
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
- Emmaville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Emmaville is located in Fulton County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emmaville
- Somerset County (PA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Wellersburg
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Wellersburg is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellersburg
- Population from the 2020 Census: 169 people
- Fairhope
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Callimont
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Callimont is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Callimont
- Population from the 2020 Census: 38 people
- Wittenberg
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Wittenberg is located in Somerset County (PA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wittenberg
- Clarke County (VA)
- Wadesville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Wadesville is located in Clarke County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wadesville
- Frederick County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Good
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Good is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good
- Collinsville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
- Collinsville is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Collinsville
- Shockeysville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
- Shockeysville is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shockeysville
- Cross Junction
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Siler
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Siler is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Siler
- Nordic Village
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Nordic Village is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nordic Village
- Rock Enon Springs
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Rock Enon Springs is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Enon Springs
- Hayfield
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Hayfield is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayfield
- Lehew
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
- Lehew is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lehew
- Cedar Grove
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Cedar Grove is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Rosenberger
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Rosenberger is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosenberger
- White Hall
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
- Grimes
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Grimes is located in Frederick County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grimes
- Winchester City (VA)
- Winchester
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
- Berkeley County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Gerrardstown
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Arden
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Arden is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arden
- Hedgesville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Bunker Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Darkesville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Darkesville is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darkesville
- Inwood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Martinsburg
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Ridgeway
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Little Georgetown
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
- Little Georgetown is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Georgetown
- Baker Heights
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Baker Heights is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baker Heights
- Bedington
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Bedington is located in Berkeley County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bedington
- Falling Waters
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Hampshire County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Okonoko
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Okonoko is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Okonoko
- Higginsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Higginsville is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higginsville
- Points
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Points is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Points
- Slanesville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Slanesville is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slanesville
- Donaldson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
- Donaldson is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donaldson
- North River Mills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
- North River Mills is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North River Mills
- Good
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Good is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good
- Three Churches
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Three Churches is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Churches
- Springfield
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
- Capon Bridge
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
- Ritters
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
- Ritters is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ritters
- Wapocomo
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
- Wapocomo is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wapocomo
- Vance
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
- Vance is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vance
- Jefferson County (WV)
- Middleway
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mineral County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Fort Ashby
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
- Wiley Ford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
- Carpendale
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Carpendale is located in Mineral County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpendale
- Population from the 2020 Census: 900 people
- Ridgeley
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Short Gap
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- Short Gap is located in Mineral County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Short Gap
- Headsville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Headsville is located in Mineral County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Headsville
- Burlington
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
- Keyser
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Morgan County (WV)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Paw Paw
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Magnolia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Magnolia is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Hansrote
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
- Hansrote is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hansrote
- Doe Gully
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Doe Gully is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doe Gully
- Orleans Cross Roads
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Orleans Cross Roads is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans Cross Roads
- Woodmont
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Woodmont is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodmont
- Oakland
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Oakland is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakland
- Stotlers Crossroads
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Stotlers Crossroads is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stotlers Crossroads
- Bath
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Bath is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath
- Population from the 2020 Census: 587 people
- Berkeley Springs
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Berryville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
- Berryville is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berryville
- Hancock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Hancock is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hancock
- Holton
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
- Holton is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holton
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Fairplay, see our County-by-County Page for Fairplay.
Cemeteries Near Fairplay ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fairplay.
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 Fairplay - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Fairplay covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Camp Hill Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Ginnevan Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
- Sulphur Springs Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Bevans Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Woodrow Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Horn Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Cherry Orchard Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
- Old Enon Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Fifty-Four Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Enon Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Roby Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Rine Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Continue List (267 more) ...
- Mt. Nebo Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Dyche Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Veterans of Foreign Wars Burial Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
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>
While we didn't find Fairplay in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Fairplay.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Fairplay, with the one closest to Fairplay listed first.
- Paw Paw
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Little Cacapon
(Less than 2 miles to the west)
- Little Cacapon is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Cacapon
- Magnolia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Magnolia is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia
- Okonoko
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
- Okonoko is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Okonoko
- Levels
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Levels is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Levels
- Spring Gap ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Spring Gap is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Gap
- Doe Gully
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Doe Gully is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doe Gully
- Oldtown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
- Orleans Cross Roads
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Orleans Cross Roads is located in Morgan County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orleans Cross Roads
- Little Orleans
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Green Spring
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Green Spring is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Spring
- Higginsville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Higginsville is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higginsville
- Continue List (13 more) ...
- Town Creek ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Town Creek is located in Allegany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town Creek
- Slanesville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Slanesville is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slanesville
- Bloomery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
- Bloomery is located in Hampshire County (WV)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomery
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Fairplay. See our List of 1890's Communities around Fairplay.
Newspapers Published in Fairplay ...
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 73 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fairplay.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fairplay, there are papers which were published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fairplay.
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 Fairplay:
- Websites specific to Maryland
- Pages specific to Allegany County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Washington County
- Bedford County
- Fulton County
- Somerset County
- Clarke County
- Frederick County
- Winchester City
- Berkeley County
- Hampshire County
- Jefferson County
- Mineral County
- Morgan 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> | 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 Fairplay, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Fairplay) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |