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 Coleman (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 Coleman. 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 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.
Coleman is located in McDowell 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 McDowell County: Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Mitchell, Rutherford & Yancey.
Below are the counties that are near Coleman. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Coleman:
- McDowell County (The home county of Coleman)
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Dendron
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Dendron is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
- Old Fort
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Lackey Town
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Lackey Town is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lackey Town
- Moffitt Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Moffitt Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moffitt Hill
- Greenlee
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Greenlee is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Providence
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Providence is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Providence
- Sugar Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Sugar Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Hill
- West Marion
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- West Marion is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Marion
- Marion
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
- Glenwood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
- Glenwood is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glenwood
- Little Switzerland
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Vein Mountain
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Vein Mountain is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vein Mountain
- Avery County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Linville Falls
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
- Plumtree
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Stamey Town
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
- Stamey Town is located in Avery County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stamey Town
- Buncombe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Ridgecrest
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Montreat
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Black Mountain
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Walkertown
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Walkertown is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkertown
- Swannanoa
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Wilson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
- Wilson is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
- Fairview
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Beech
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Beech is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech
- Riceville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Riceville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Swannanoa Hills
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Swannanoa Hills is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swannanoa Hills
- Rockview
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
- Rockview is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockview
- Azalea
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Azalea is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalea
- Burke County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Linville
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
- Linville is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Linville
- Brindletown
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Brindletown is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brindletown
- Parkhill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Parkhill is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkhill
- Glen Alpine
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Rollins ‑ Historic
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Rollins is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Calvin
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
- Calvin is located in Burke County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calvin
- Jonas Ridge
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
- Henderson County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Bearwallow
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
- Gerton
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Bat Cave
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Fletcher
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
- Naples
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Naples is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Naples
- U-No
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- U-No is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for U-No
- Baxter
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Baxter is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baxter
- Dana
(23 miles [37 km] to the south)
- Dana is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dana
- Cumberland Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Cumberland Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cumberland Village
- Mountain Home
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Balfour
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Balfour is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balfour
- Carolina Village
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
- Carolina Village is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carolina Village
- Madison County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Ivy
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Ivy is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivy
- Bethel
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Bethel is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethel
- Mars Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
- Petersburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
- Petersburg is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersburg
- Rollins
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
- Rollins is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollins
- Marshall
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
- Foster Creek
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Foster Creek is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foster Creek
- Walnut
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Walnut is located in Madison County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walnut
- Mitchell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Grassy Creek
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
- Grassy Creek is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grassy Creek
- Penland
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
- Spruce Pine
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
- Altapass
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
- Altapass is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altapass
- Bakersville
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Huntdale
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Huntdale is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntdale
- Red Hill
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Red Hill is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Hill
- Relief
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Relief is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Relief
- Tipton Hill
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Tipton Hill is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tipton Hill
- Bailey
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Bailey is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey
- Herrell ‑ Historic
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
- Herrell is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Herrell
- Little Rock Creek ‑ Historic
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Little Rock Creek is located in Mitchell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Rock Creek
- Polk County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Mill Spring
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
- Columbus
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
- Lynn
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Lynn is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynn
- Melrose
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Melrose is located in Polk County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melrose
- Tryon
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Rutherford County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Otter Creek ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Otter Creek is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Creek
- Whitehouse
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Whitehouse is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitehouse
- Village of Chimney Rock Village
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- 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
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Lake Lure
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
- Cuba ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Cuba is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cuba
- Thermal City
(18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
- Thermal City is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thermal City
- Union Mills
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
- Green Hill
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)
- Green Hill is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill
- Mount Pisgah ‑ Historic
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
- Mount Pisgah is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pisgah
- Ruth
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Ruth is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ruth
- Population from the 2020 Census: 400 people
- Rutherfordton
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Yancey County
- The following are listed by their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Hamrick
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
- Hamrick is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamrick
- Murchison
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
- Murchison is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murchison
- Pensacola
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Pensacola is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pensacola
- Celo
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
- Celo is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Celo
- Low Gap
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
- Low Gap is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
- Concord
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)
- Concord is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
- Micaville
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
- Burnsville
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Newdale
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)
- Newdale is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newdale
- Double Island
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Double Island is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Island
- Day Book
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Day Book is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Day Book
- Higgins
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
- Higgins is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Higgins
- Unicoi County (TN)
- Flag Pond
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Flag Pond is located in Unicoi County (TN)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flag Pond
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Coleman, see our County-by-County Page for Coleman.
Cemeteries Near Coleman ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Coleman.
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 Coleman - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Coleman covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Ridgecrest Memorial Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Pine Cove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Siloam Cemetery
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Davistown Cemetery
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
- Patton Cemetery
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Liberty Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
- Gragg Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Lee Fields Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Crisawn Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Robinson Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Simmons Cemetery
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
- To give a relative sense of its location, the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the northeast of Bat Cave.
- Continue List (470 more) ...
- Zion Hill Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Glades Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Good Cemetery
(10 miles [16.1 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.<4>
While we didn't find Coleman in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Coleman.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Coleman, with the one closest to Coleman listed first.
- Dendron
(Less than 2 miles to the east)
- Dendron is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dendron
- Black Mountain
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
- Old Fort
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
- Greenlee
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Greenlee is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenlee
- Swannanoa
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
- Dillingham
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
- Dillingham is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillingham
- Fairview
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)
- Otter Creek ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Otter Creek is located in Rutherford County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otter Creek
- Sugar Hill
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Sugar Hill is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Hill
- Toms Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Toms Creek is located in McDowell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toms Creek
- Beech
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Beech is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beech
- Riceville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Riceville is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riceville
- Continue List (14 more) ...
- Azalea
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
- Azalea is located in Buncombe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Azalea
- Pensacola
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
- Pensacola is located in Yancey County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pensacola
- Bearwallow
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Bearwallow is located in Henderson County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bearwallow
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Coleman. See our List of 1890's Communities around Coleman.
Newspapers Published in Coleman ...
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 93 newspapers that have been published in the area around Coleman.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Coleman, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Coleman.
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 Coleman:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to McDowell County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Avery County
- Buncombe County
- Burke County
- Henderson County
- Madison County
- Mitchell County
- Polk County
- Rutherford County
- Yancey County
- Unicoi County
- Cemetery Information and Directories for North Carolina
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> | 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- Coleman) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <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 Coleman, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |