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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 Smithville (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 Smithville. 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 northwest 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 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.

Smithville is located in Dorchester 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 Dorchester County: Sussex (DE), Caroline, Somerset, Talbot & Wicomico.

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

  • Dorchester County     (The home county of Smithville)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Taylors Island
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Madison
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Madison is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
    • Woolford
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Woolford is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woolford
    • Golden Hill
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Golden Hill is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden Hill
    • Church Creek
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Thomas
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
      • Thomas is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thomas
    • James
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • James is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for James
    • Hills Point
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Hills Point is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Point
    • Lloyds
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Lloyds is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lloyds
    • Patamoke Village
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Patamoke Village is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Patamoke Village
    • Fishing Creek
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Algonquin
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Algonquin is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Algonquin
  • Anne Arundel County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Fairhaven
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Fairhaven is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairhaven
    • Deale
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Friendship
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Baywalker Village
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Baywalker Village is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baywalker Village
    • Churchton
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Jewell
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Jewell is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jewell
    • Tracys Landing
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Idlewilde
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Idlewilde is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Idlewilde
    • Shady Side
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Galesville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Greenock
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Greenock is located in Anne Arundel County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenock
    • Lothian
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Calvert County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Cove Point
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Cove Point is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Point
    • Brianwood
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Brianwood is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brianwood
    • Lusby
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Chesapeake Ranch Estates - Drum Point
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Leonard
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Cove View
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Cove View is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove View
    • Drum Point
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Drum Point is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drum Point
    • Coster
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Coster is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coster
    • Dowell
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Olivet
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Olivet is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivet
    • Another Place
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Another Place is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Another Place
    • Mackall
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Mackall is located in Calvert County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mackall
  • Caroline County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Bethlehem
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Bethlehem is located in Caroline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
    • Preston
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Tanyard
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Tanyard is located in Caroline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanyard
    • Hynson
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Hynson is located in Caroline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hynson
    • Grove
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Grove is located in Caroline County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove
    • Federalsburg
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Charles County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Benedict
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Hughesville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Independence Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Independence Village is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence Village
    • Malcolm
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Malcolm is located in Charles County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malcolm
  • Prince George's County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Cedarhaven
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Cedarhaven is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedarhaven
    • Eagle Harbor
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Eagle Harbor is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Harbor
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 69 people
    • Aquasco
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Aquasco is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aquasco
    • Westwood
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Westwood is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westwood
    • Horsehead
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Horsehead is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horsehead
    • Orme
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Orme is located in Prince George's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orme
  • Queen Anne's County
    • Mattapex
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Mattapex is located in Queen Anne's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mattapex
  • Saint Mary's County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Sotterley
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Sotterley is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sotterley
    • California
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Lexington Park
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • North Town Creek Manor
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • North Town Creek Manor is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Town Creek Manor
    • Hollywood
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
      • Hollywood is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hollywood
    • Callaway
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Great Mills
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Saint Marys City
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Summerseat Village
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Summerseat Village is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerseat Village
    • Dameron
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Dameron is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dameron
    • Golden Beach
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
      • Golden Beach is located in Saint Mary's County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden Beach
    • Drayden
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
  • Somerset County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Chance
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Deal Island
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Dames Quarter
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Mount Vernon
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Mount Vernon is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Vernon
    • Wenona
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Wenona is located in Somerset County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wenona
  • Talbot County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Oxford
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Tilghman Island
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
      • Tilghman Island is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilghman Island
    • Neavitt
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Neavitt is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Neavitt
    • Tilghman
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Tilghman is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tilghman
    • Trappe
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Royal Oak
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
    • Bozman
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Newcomb
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Newcomb is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newcomb
    • Riverside
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Riverside is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside
    • Sherwood
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Kirkham
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
      • Kirkham is located in Talbot County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirkham
    • Saint Michaels
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
  • Wicomico County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Smithville, with the one closest to Smithville listed first.
    • Bivalve
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Tyaskin
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Jesterville
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Jesterville is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jesterville
    • Nanticoke
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Nanticoke is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nanticoke
    • Mardela Springs
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Mardela Springs is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mardela Springs
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 351 people
    • Capitola
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Capitola is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capitola
    • Green Hill Village
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Green Hill Village is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill Village
    • Quantico
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Sharptown
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Sharptown is located in Wicomico County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharptown
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 664 people

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

Cemeteries Near Smithville ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Smithville.

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

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

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

  • Grace Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Bethlehem Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Joppa Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Woolford Mace Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Mary Star of the Sea Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Trinity Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • St. Johns Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Gootee Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Antioch Cemetery
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • St. Johns Chapel Cemetery
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
  • Middleham Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • St. Pauls Cemetery
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Continue List   (169 more) ...
    • Insley Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
    • Bethel Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Greenlawn Cemetery
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)

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.<3>

While we didn't find Smithville in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Smithville.

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

  • Taylors Island
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Madison
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Madison is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Madison
  • Golden Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Golden Hill is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden Hill
  • Woolford
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Woolford is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woolford
  • Church Creek
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
  • Dailsville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Dailsville is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dailsville
  • James
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • James is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for James
  • Cove Point
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Cove Point is located in Calvert County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Point
  • Hudson
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
    • Hudson is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hudson
  • Lloyds
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Lloyds is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lloyds
  • Cornersville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Cornersville is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornersville
  • Hills Point
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Hills Point is located in Dorchester County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hills Point
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Lusby
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Fishing Creek
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Lakesville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Lakesville is located in Dorchester County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakesville

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

Newspapers Published in Smithville ...

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 25 newspapers that have been published in the area around Smithville.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Smithville, there are papers which were published within 12 miles [19.3 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Smithville.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Smithville:

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>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 Smithville, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Smithville) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.