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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 West Fork (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 West Fork. 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 West Fork ...

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.

For example, a typical abbreviation for West Fork: W. Fork

You might be interested in other communities that are also named West Fork. More information can be found on our Tidbits & Trivia Page for West Fork.

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 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.

West Fork is located in Reynolds County.

To see how the shape of Missouri's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Reynolds County: Carter, Dent, Iron, Shannon & Wayne.

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

  • Reynolds County     (The home county of West Fork)
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Bee Fork
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Bee Fork is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bee Fork
    • Greeley
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Greeley is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greeley
    • Oates
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Oates is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oates
    • Reynolds
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
      • Reynolds is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reynolds
    • Corridon
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Corridon is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corridon
    • Centerville
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Black
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Lesterville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Fruit City
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
      • Fruit City is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fruit City
    • Redford
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Redford is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redford
    • Munger
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
      • Munger is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Munger
    • Ellington
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
  • Crawford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Dillard
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
      • Dillard is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillard
    • Czar
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
      • Czar is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Czar
    • Davisville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
    • Cherryville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Cook Station
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Cook Station is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cook Station
    • Wesco
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Wesco is located in Crawford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesco
  • Dent County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Bunker
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Boss
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Boss is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boss
    • Gila
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Gila is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gila
    • Doss
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Doss is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doss
    • Sligo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Sligo is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sligo
    • Salem
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jadwin
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Jadwin is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jadwin
    • Howes
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Howes is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howes
    • Darien
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Darien is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Darien
    • Jack
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Jack is located in Dent County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jack
  • Iron County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Bixby
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Good Water
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Good Water is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Water
    • Viburnum
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
    • Glover
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Glover is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glover
    • Chloride
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Chloride is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chloride
    • Sabula
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Sabula is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sabula
    • Annapolis
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Belleview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Belleview is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belleview
    • Pilot Knob
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Arcadia
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • English Town
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • English Town is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for English Town
    • Ironton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
    • Middle Brook
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
  • Saint Francois County
    • Iron Mountain Lake
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Iron Mountain Lake is located in Saint Francois County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Mountain Lake
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 747 people
  • Shannon County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Round Spring
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Round Spring is located in Shannon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Round Spring
    • Akers
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Akers is located in Shannon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Akers
    • Eminence
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Alley
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Alley is located in Shannon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alley
  • Washington County
    • The following are listed by their distance from West Fork, with the one closest to West Fork listed first.
    • Horton Town
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Horton Town is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horton Town
    • Sunlight
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Sunlight is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunlight
    • Belgrade
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Caledonia
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Berryman
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Berryman is located in Washington County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berryman

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

Cemeteries Near West Fork ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of West Fork.

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 West Fork - one of the links might be able to help.

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

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

  • West Fork Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • West Fork Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
  • Estep Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
  • Davis Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
  • Little Radford Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
  • Weible Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
  • Callahan Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Parks Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Mayers Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Smith Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Barton Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Webb Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (252 more) ...
    • Myers Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Corridon & Reynolds Memorial Park Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Corridon & Reynolds Memorial Park Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Corridon & Reynolds Memorial Park Cemetery is located between<2> the communities of Reynolds and Corridon.  The cemetery lies less than 2 miles<3> to the north of Corridon.
      • The Corridon & Reynolds Memorial Park Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Corridon Cemetery
      • Corridon & Reynolds Cemetery
      • Corridon and Reynolds Memorial Park
      • Lattiz Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #28209 <4>
    • Howell Cemetery
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)

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.<5>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that West Fork had a population of 35 people in 1895 with a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Bee Fork
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Bee Fork is located in Reynolds County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bee Fork
  • Greeley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Greeley is located in Reynolds County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greeley
  • Oates
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Oates is located in Reynolds County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oates
  • Red Point
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Red Point is located in Iron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Point
  • Black
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
  • Gila
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Gila is located in Dent County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gila
  • Edgehill
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Edgehill is located in Reynolds County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgehill
  • Goodland ‑ Historic
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Goodland is located in Iron County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goodland
  • Alamode ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Alamode is located in Reynolds County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alamode
  • Howes Mill
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Howes Mill is located in Dent County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howes Mill
  • Lesterville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
  • Stone Hill
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Stone Hill is located in Dent County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone Hill
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Good Water
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Good Water is located in Iron County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Good Water
    • Redford
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Redford is located in Reynolds County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redford
    • Sinkin ‑ Historic
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Sinkin is located in Shannon County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinkin

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

Newspapers Published in West Fork ...

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 47 newspapers that have been published in the area around West Fork.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of West Fork, there are papers which were published within 27 miles [43.5 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for West Fork.

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 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 West Fork:

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>To help visualize the location of the cemetery, we've drawn a straight line between the communities of Reynolds and Corridon. The cemetery can be found near that line and roughly halfway between the two communities. Remember that this is just an approximate location.
<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- West Fork) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<4>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.
<5>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 West Fork, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.