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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 Beaverdam (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 Beaverdam. 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 Beaverdam ...

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: Beaver Dam.

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

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 southeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the east. 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 east 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.

Beaverdam is located in Buncombe County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Buncombe County: Haywood, Henderson, Madison, McDowell, Rutherford, Transylvania & Yancey.

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

  • Buncombe County     (The home county of Beaverdam)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Candler
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Glady
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Glady is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glady
    • Enka Village
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Enka Village is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Enka Village
    • Bent Creek
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Bent Creek is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bent Creek
    • Enka
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Acton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Acton is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
    • Avery Creek
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Avery Creek is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery Creek
    • Newfound
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Newfound is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
    • Biltmore Forest
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Biltmore Forest is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Biltmore Forest
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,431 people
    • Emma
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Emma is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
    • West Asheville
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
      • West Asheville is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Asheville
    • Arden
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Busbee
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Busbee is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busbee
  • Haywood County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Morning Star
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
      • Morning Star is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morning Star
    • Cruso
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
      • Cruso is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cruso
    • Canton
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • West Canton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
      • West Canton is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Canton
    • Bethel
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Bethel is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
    • Sonoma ‑ Historic
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
      • Sonoma is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sonoma
    • Clyde
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
      • Clyde is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clyde
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,308 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clyde <1>
    • Lavinia ‑ Historic
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Lavinia is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lavinia
    • Lake Junaluska
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Waynesville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
    • Hazelwood
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
      • Hazelwood is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood
    • Teague ‑ Historic
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Teague is located in Haywood County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Teague
    • Maggie Valley
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
  • Henderson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Mills River
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Fletcher
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Holly Springs
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Holly Springs is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
    • Horse Shoe
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Naples
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
      • Naples is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naples
    • Etowah
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Mountain Home
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Balfour
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Balfour is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balfour
    • Sky Village
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Sky Village is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sky Village
    • Cumberland Village
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Cumberland Village is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
    • Laurel Park
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Pinehurst
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Pinehurst is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pinehurst
    • Timberland
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Timberland is located in Henderson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timberland
  • Jackson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Balsam
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Argura
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Argura is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Argura
    • Ruby City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Ruby City is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruby City
    • Addie
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Addie is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Addie
    • East Laport
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • East Laport is located in Jackson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Laport
    • Tuckasegee
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Cullowhee
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Madison County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Marshall
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Rollins
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Rollins is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
    • Trust
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Trust is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trust
    • Petersburg
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Petersburg is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
    • Spring Creek
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Spring Creek is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Creek
    • Ivy
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Ivy is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivy
    • Mars Hill
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
    • Walnut
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Walnut is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
    • Lynch ‑ Historic
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Lynch is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch
    • Bluff
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Bluff is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
    • Stackhouse
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Stackhouse is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stackhouse
    • Hot Springs
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
    • Bethel
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Bethel is located in Madison County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
  • McDowell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Dendron
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Dendron is located in McDowell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
    • Moffitt Hill
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Moffitt Hill is located in McDowell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt Hill
    • Old Fort
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
    • Lackey Town
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Lackey Town is located in McDowell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey Town
  • Polk County
    • Melrose
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Melrose is located in Polk County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
  • Rutherford County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Village of Chimney Rock Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
      • Village of Chimney Rock Village is located in Rutherford County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village of Chimney Rock Village
      • Estimated population in 2015: 108 people
    • Chimney Rock
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Lake Lure
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
  • Transylvania County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Penrose
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
    • Pisgah Forest
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Seven Springs
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
      • Seven Springs is located in Transylvania County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Springs
    • Brevard
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
      • Brevard is located in Transylvania County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brevard
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,899 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brevard <1>
    • Balsam Grove
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Cedar Mountain
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
    • East Fork
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • East Fork is located in Transylvania County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Fork
    • Rosman
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Rosman is located in Transylvania County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosman
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 624 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rosman <1>
    • Lake Toxaway
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Toxaway Falls ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Toxaway Falls is located in Transylvania County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toxaway Falls
  • Yancey County
    • Murchison
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Murchison is located in Yancey County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murchison
  • Greenville County (SC)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Beaverdam, with the one closest to Beaverdam listed first.
    • Caesars Head
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Caesars Head is located in Greenville County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caesars Head
    • Merrittsville ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Merrittsville is located in Greenville County (SC)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merrittsville
    • Cleveland
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
  • Cocke County (TN)
    • Tom Town
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
      • Tom Town is located in Cocke County (TN)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tom Town

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

Cemeteries Near Beaverdam ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Beaverdam.

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

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

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

  • Brooks Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
  • Justice Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • O'Kelley Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Gudger Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Forest Lawn Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Luther Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Pisgah View Memorial Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Hice Hill Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Acton UMC Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Harkins Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Ridgeway Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Trull Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Continue List   (428 more) ...
    • Stuart Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Baker Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Long Shoals Cemetery
      (6 miles [9.7 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.<3>

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

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

  • Glady
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Glady is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glady
  • Candler
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
  • Luther
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Luther is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luther
  • Acton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Acton is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Acton
  • Turnpike
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Turnpike is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnpike
  • Avery Creek
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Avery Creek is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avery Creek
  • Sulphur Springs
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Sulphur Springs is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
  • Newfound
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Newfound is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfound
  • Springdale ‑ Historic
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Springdale is located in Haywood County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springdale
  • Cruso
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Cruso is located in Haywood County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cruso
  • West Asheville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • West Asheville is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Asheville
  • Emma
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Emma is located in Buncombe County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emma
  • Continue List   (13 more) ...
    • Arden
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Skyland
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Busbee
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Busbee is located in Buncombe County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Busbee

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

Newspapers Published in Beaverdam ...

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 85 newspapers that have been published in the area around Beaverdam.

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

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful 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 Beaverdam:

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 Beaverdam, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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- Beaverdam) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.