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 Germantown (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 Germantown. 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 Germantown ...
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.
Another variation: German Town.
You might be interested in other communities that are also named Germantown. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Germantown.
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 and hospitals 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.
Germantown is located in Worcester 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 Worcester County: Sussex (DE), Somerset, Wicomico & Accomack (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Germantown. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Germantown:
- Worcester County (The home county of Germantown)
- The following are listed by their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Berlin
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- West Ocean City
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- West Ocean City is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Ocean City
- Newark
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Showell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Showell is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Showell
- Ocean Pines
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Ocean City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Whaleyville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Bishop
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Bishop is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop
- North Ocean City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- North Ocean City is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Ocean City
- Bishopville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Cedartown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Cedartown is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedartown
- Ocean Bay City
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
- Ocean Bay City is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocean Bay City
- Snow Hill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Somerset County
- The following are listed by their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Eden
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Eden is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eden
- West Pocomoke
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- West Pocomoke is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Pocomoke
- Loretto
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Loretto is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loretto
- Costen
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
- Costen is located in Somerset County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Costen
- Princess Anne
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Westover
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Rehobeth
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wicomico County
- The following are listed by their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- New Hope
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- New Hope is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Willards
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
- Powellville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Powellville is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellville
- Whiton
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Whiton is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whiton
- Pittsville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Parsonsburg
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- White Plains
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)
- White Plains is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Plains
- Dogwood Village
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Dogwood Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dogwood Village
- Salisbury
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
- Delmar
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Fruitland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
- Cedar Hurst Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)
- Cedar Hurst Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Hurst Village
- Centennial Village
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
- Centennial Village is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centennial Village
- Sussex County (DE)
- The following are listed by their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Selbyville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
- Bunting
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Bunting is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bunting
- Williamsville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Williamsville is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsville
- Bayville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Bayville is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayville
- Bayard
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Bayard is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bayard
- Roxana
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Roxana is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxana
- Fenwick Island
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
- Frankford
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Omar
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Omar is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Omar
- Boyers Village
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Boyers Village is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boyers Village
- Clarksville
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Clarksville is located in Sussex County (DE)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
- Dagsboro
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Ocean View
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Accomack County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Franklin City
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Franklin City is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin City
- Greenbackville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Chincoteague
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Chincoteague is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chincoteague
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,866 people
- Sign Post
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Sign Post is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sign Post
- Sinnickson
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Sinnickson is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinnickson
- Birch Town
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Birch Town is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birch Town
- Wattsville
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Wattsville is located in Accomack County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wattsville
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Germantown, see our County-by-County Page for Germantown.
Cemeteries Near Germantown ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Germantown.
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 Germantown - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Germantown covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Tyree Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- Buckingham Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
- St. Pauls Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Evergreen Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Bethany Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
- Sunset Memorial Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Trinity Gardens Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Old St. Martins Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Timmonstown Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
- Townsend Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)
- Libertytown Riverside Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
- Old Trinity Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Continue List (125 more) ...
- Whaleyville Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Ebenezer Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Pulletts Chapel Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
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 Germantown in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Germantown.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Germantown, with the one closest to Germantown listed first.
- Berlin
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Ironshire
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Ironshire is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ironshire
- Holly Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Holly Grove is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Grove
- Friendship
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Friendship is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
- Newark
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Showell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Showell is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Showell
- Campbell
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Campbell is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campbell
- Ocean City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- New Hope
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- New Hope is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Bishop
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
- Bishop is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bishop
- Truitt
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Truitt is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truitt
- Wesley
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Wesley is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley
- Continue List (16 more) ...
- Cedartown
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Cedartown is located in Worcester County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedartown
- Bishopville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Powellville
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
- Powellville is located in Wicomico County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Powellville
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Germantown. See our List of 1890's Communities around Germantown.
Newspapers Published in Germantown ...
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 18 newspapers that have been published in the area around Germantown.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Germantown, there are papers which were published within 13 miles [20.9 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Germantown.
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 either 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 Germantown:
- Websites specific to Maryland
- Pages specific to Worcester County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Somerset County
- Wicomico County
- Sussex County
- Accomack 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 Germantown, 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 from Point A (ie- Germantown) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |