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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 Severn (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 Severn. 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 southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most 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.

Severn is located in Anne Arundel 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 Anne Arundel County: Baltimore City, Baltimore, Calvert, Howard, Kent, Prince George's, Queen Anne's & Talbot.

Below are the counties that are near Severn. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Severn:

  • Anne Arundel County     (The home county of Severn)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Pioneer City
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Pioneer City is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pioneer City
    • Meade Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Meade Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meade Village
    • Severn Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Severn Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Severn Village
    • Lake Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Lake Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Village
    • Danza Village
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Danza Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Danza Village
    • Harmans
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Harmans is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmans
    • Cohansey Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Cohansey Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cohansey Village
    • East Park Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • East Park Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Park Village
    • Dorsey
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Dorsey is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorsey
    • Hidden Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Hidden Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden Village
    • Odenton
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Geraghty Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Geraghty Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geraghty Village
  • Baltimore City
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Brooklyn
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Brooklyn is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brooklyn
    • Curtis Bay
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Curtis Bay is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Curtis Bay
    • Beechfield
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Oaklee Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Oaklee Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oaklee Village
    • Violetville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Carroll
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Carroll is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carroll
    • Edmondson Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Edmondson Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmondson Village
    • Baltimore
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Old Town
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Old Town is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Town
    • Charles Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
      • Charles Village is located in Baltimore City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charles Village
    • Gwynn Oak
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Hampden
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
  • Baltimore County
  • Calvert County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Chaney
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the south)
    • Dunkirk Town Center
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Dunkirk Town Center is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunkirk Town Center
    • Dunkirk
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Penwick Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Penwick Village is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Penwick Village
    • Apple Greene
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • Owings Town Center
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Owings Town Center is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Owings Town Center
    • Owings
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • North Beach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Carroll County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Henryton
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Sykesville
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Eldersburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Freedom Village
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Freedom Village is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freedom Village
    • Gaither
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Piney Ridge Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Piney Ridge Village is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney Ridge Village
    • Lakeview Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Lakeview Village is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Village
    • Morgan
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Woodbine
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Finksburg
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Watersville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Berrywood Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Berrywood Village is located in Carroll County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berrywood Village
  • Frederick County
    • Mount Airy Village West
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Harford County
  • Howard County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Elkridge
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Lawyers Hill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Aladdin Village
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
      • Aladdin Village is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aladdin Village
    • Woodland Village
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Woodland Village is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodland Village
    • Savage
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Glenshire Towne
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Glenshire Towne is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenshire Towne
    • Guilford
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Oak View Village
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Oak View Village is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak View Village
    • Ilchester
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Ilchester is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ilchester
    • Hammond Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Hammond Village is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hammond Village
    • Leishear Village
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Leishear Village is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leishear Village
    • North Laurel
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • North Laurel is located in Howard County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Laurel
  • Kent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Rock Hall
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Edesville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Cliffs City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Cliffs City is located in Kent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cliffs City
  • Montgomery County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Blackburn Village
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Blackburn Village is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackburn Village
    • Burtonsville
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
    • Fairland
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Spencerville
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
      • Spencerville is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spencerville
    • Hillandale
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Hillandale is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillandale
    • Ashton
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Cloverly
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Cloverly is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverly
    • Colesville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Old Salem Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
      • Old Salem Village is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Salem Village
    • Paint Branch Farms
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Bonifant Village
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Bonifant Village is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonifant Village
    • Brinklow
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Brinklow is located in Montgomery County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brinklow
  • Prince George's County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Laurel
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • South Laurel
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • South Laurel is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Laurel
    • West Laurel
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • West Laurel is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Laurel
    • Bowie
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Collington
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Glenn Dale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Pin Oak Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Pin Oak Village is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pin Oak Village
    • Beltsville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Boxwood Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Boxwood Village is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxwood Village
    • Goddard
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Goddard is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goddard
    • Greenbelt
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Greenbelt is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenbelt
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 23,229 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenbelt <1>
    • Lanham
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Queen Anne's County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Bay City
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Bay City is located in Queen Anne's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bay City
    • Stevensville
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Chester
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Mattapex
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Cheslou Village
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Cheslou Village is located in Queen Anne's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cheslou Village
    • Kent Narrows
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Kent Narrows is located in Queen Anne's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent Narrows
    • Grasonville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Queenstown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Queenstown is located in Queen Anne's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queenstown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 701 people
  • Talbot County
  • Alexandria City (VA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Arlandria
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Warwick Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Warwick Village is located in Alexandria City (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Warwick Village
    • Alexandria
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Oakcrest
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Chinquapin Village
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Chinquapin Village is located in Alexandria City (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chinquapin Village
  • Arlington County (VA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.
    • Colonial Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Colonial Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
    • Riverwood
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Cherrydale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Lyon Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Lyon Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyon Village
    • Arlington Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Arlington Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington Village
    • Arlington
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Brandon Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Brandon Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandon Village
    • Buckingham
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Garden City
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Garden City is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
    • Williamsburg Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Williamsburg Village is located in Arlington County (VA)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamsburg Village
  • Fairfax County (VA)
  • Falls Church City (VA)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Severn, see our County-by-County Page for Severn.

Cemeteries Near Severn ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Severn.

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 Severn - one of the links might be able to help.

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Severn covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Severn had a population of 70 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Severn, with the one closest to Severn listed first.

  • Harmans
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Harmans is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmans
  • Odenton
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
  • Wellham Crossroads ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Wellham Crossroads is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wellham Crossroads
  • Dorsey
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Dorsey is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorsey
  • Annapolis Junction
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Hanover
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Glen Burnie
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Cromwell ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Cromwell is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cromwell
  • Shipley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Shipley is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shipley
  • Jessup
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Gambrills
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • Benfield
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Benfield is located in Anne Arundel County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benfield
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Elvaton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Marley
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Marley is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marley
    • Linthicum
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Linthicum is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linthicum

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Severn. See our List of 1890's Communities around Severn.

Newspapers Published in Severn ...

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 15 newspapers that have been published in the area around Severn.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Severn, 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 Severn.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we 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 Severn:

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>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.
<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 Severn, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Severn) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.