Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
So far, we found very little information about Fords Wharf. The little that we've found leads us believe that the community is historic.<1>
We've added Fords Wharf to our Gazetteer with the hope that we can develop more information. If you can help us with Fords Wharf, please Contact Us.
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 Fords Wharf (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 Fords Wharf. 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 Fords Wharf ...
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.
While the name of this community is Fords Wharf, be aware that it's the common practice of mapmakers to remove the apostrophe from possessive names<2>. So Fords Wharf may originally have been Ford's Wharf.
Sometimes the trailing 's' might be dropped altogether, in which case Fords Wharf might be written as Ford Wharf.
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 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 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.
Although our information shows that the community of Fords Wharf is historic, it would have been located within present day Somerset 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 Somerset County: Wicomico, Worcester & Accomack (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Fords Wharf. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Fords Wharf:
- Somerset County (The home county of Fords Wharf)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Fairmount
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Fairmount is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
- Frenchtown - Rumbly
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Frenchtown - Rumbly is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchtown - Rumbly
- Upper Fairmount
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Upper Fairmount is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Fairmount
- Annemessix Towne ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Annemessix Towne is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Annemessix Towne
- Kingston
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Kingston is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Manokin
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Manokin is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manokin
- Daugherty Town
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Daugherty Town is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daugherty Town
- Tulls Corner
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Tulls Corner is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulls Corner
- Champ
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Champ is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Champ
- Somersett Town ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Somersett Town is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Somersett Town
- Crisfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Lawsonia
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Lawsonia is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawsonia
- Oriole
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Oriole is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oriole
- Dorchester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Crocheron
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
- Crocheron is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crocheron
- Bishops Head
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Bishops Head is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishops Head
- Elliott
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Elliott is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elliott
- Toddville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Toddville is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toddville
- Wingate
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Crapo
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Crapo is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crapo
- Andrews
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
- Andrews is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Andrews
- Lakesville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Lakesville is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakesville
- Fishing Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Rabbit Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Rabbit Town is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rabbit Town
- Vienna
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Bucktown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Bucktown is located in Dorchester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bucktown
- Saint Mary's County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Scotland
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
- Dameron
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Dameron is located in Saint Mary's County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dameron
- Ridge
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
- Wicomico County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Nanticoke
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Nanticoke is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nanticoke
- Capitola
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Capitola is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capitola
- Jesterville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Jesterville is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jesterville
- Bivalve
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Green Hill Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Green Hill Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill Village
- Allen
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Allen is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allen
- Twiggs Corner
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Twiggs Corner is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twiggs Corner
- Tyaskin
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Fruitland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Quantico
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Centennial Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Centennial Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centennial Village
- Dogwood Village
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Dogwood Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogwood Village
- Rockawalking Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Rockawalking Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockawalking Village
- Worcester County
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Pocomoke City
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Pocomoke City is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pocomoke City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,095 people
- Former names for Pocomoke City:
- New Town
- Stevens Landing
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pocomoke City <3>
- Stockton
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
- Girdletree
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Girdletree is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Girdletree
- Snow Hill
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Cedartown
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Cedartown is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedartown
- Sussex County (DE)
- Delmar
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Accomack County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Saxis
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Saxis is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saxis
- Population from the 2020 Census: 230 people
- Withams
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
- Withams is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Withams
- Hallwood
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Hallwood is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallwood
- Population from the 2020 Census: 199 people
- Groton Town
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Groton Town is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Groton Town
- Temperanceville
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Tangier
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
- Sign Post
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
- Sign Post is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sign Post
- Bloxom
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hopeton
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Hopeton is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopeton
- Wattsville
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Wattsville is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
- Atlantic
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mappsville
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Nelsonia
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the southeast)
- Nelsonia is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nelsonia
- Northumberland County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Ophelia
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Sunnybank
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Sunnybank is located in Northumberland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnybank
- Reedville
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Fleeton
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Fleeton is located in Northumberland County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fleeton
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Fords Wharf, see our County-by-County Page for Fords Wharf.
Cemeteries Near Fords Wharf ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Fords Wharf.
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 Fords Wharf - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Fords Wharf covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Union Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- A Hill Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Christ Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Fairmount Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- St. Peters Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- Sunny Ridge Memorial Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
- St. Stephens Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Upper Fairmount Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Trinity Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Quindocqua Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
- Mariners Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Continue List (117 more) ...
- Landford Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Salem Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Asbury Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 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.
Fords Wharf itself is historic and was described in the Rand McNally Atlas as having a post office and no railroad service.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Fords Wharf, with the one closest to Fords Wharf listed first.
- Fairmount
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Fairmount is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairmount
- Upper Fairmount
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
- Upper Fairmount is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Fairmount
- Hopewell
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
- Hopewell is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopewell
- Tulls Corner
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Tulls Corner is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tulls Corner
- Kingston
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Kingston is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingston
- Manokin
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Manokin is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manokin
- Crisfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
- Edwin ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Edwin is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edwin
- Westover
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Oriole
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Oriole is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oriole
- Monie
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Monie is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monie
- Deal Island
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Wenona
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Wenona is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona
- Marumsco
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
- Marumsco is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marumsco
- Dames Quarter
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Fords Wharf. See our List of 1890's Communities around Fords Wharf.
Newspapers Published in Fords Wharf ...
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 26 newspapers that have been published in the area around Fords Wharf.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Fords Wharf, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Fords Wharf.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first visit 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 Fords Wharf:
- Websites specific to Maryland
- Pages specific to Somerset County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Dorchester County
- Saint Mary's County
- Wicomico County
- Worcester County
- Sussex County
- Accomack County
- Northumberland County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for Maryland
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Fords Wharf, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | It's generally believed that possessive apostrophes are removed to prevent confusion on maps where the apostrophe may be confused with a cartographic symbol. While this is generally true, it's not uncommon to find possessive apostrophes in administrative names (such as towns or counties). |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 drawn from Point A (ie- Fords Wharf) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |