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 Elkin (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 Elkin. 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 and 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.
Elkin is primarily located in Surry County. A portion of Elkin extends into Wilkes 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 Surry County: Alleghany, Forsyth, Stokes, Wilkes, Yadkin, Carroll (VA), Grayson (VA) & Patrick (VA).
Below are the counties that are near Elkin. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Elkin:
- Surry County (The home county of Elkin)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Elkin Valley
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Elkin Valley is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkin Valley
- State Road
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Mulberry
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mulberry is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry
- Rusk ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Rusk is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
- Mountain Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Mountain Park is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Park
- Zephyr
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Zephyr is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zephyr
- Fairview
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
- Fairview is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview
- Thurmond
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Stony Knoll
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
- Stony Knoll is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Knoll
- Rockford
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Rockford is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockford
- Dobson
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
- Copeland
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
- Copeland is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copeland
- Alexander County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Vashti
(23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
- Vashti is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vashti
- Rocky Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
- Rocky Springs is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Springs
- Hiddenite
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Midway
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
- Midway is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
- Stony Point
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Stony Point is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Point
- Taylorsville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview Park
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Fairview Park is located in Alexander County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Park
- Alleghany County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Roaring Gap
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
- Glade Valley
(18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
- Hooker
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
- Hooker is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooker
- Edmonds
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Edmonds is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonds
- Ennice
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
- Sparta
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
- Laurel Springs
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Amelia
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
- Amelia is located in Alleghany County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amelia
- Scottville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
- Ashe County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Transou
(27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
- Transou is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transou
- Glendale Springs
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Obids
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
- Obids is located in Ashe County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Obids
- Davie County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Pino
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southeast)
- Pino is located in Davie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pino
- Calahaln
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Calahaln is located in Davie County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calahaln
- Bermuda Run
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Mocksville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
- Forsyth County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Donnaha
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Donnaha is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnaha
- Heritage Village
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Heritage Village is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heritage Village
- Grapewood
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- Grapewood is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grapewood
- River Ridge Run
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
- River Ridge Run is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Ridge Run
- Dozier
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Dozier is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dozier
- Hunters Trace
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Hunters Trace is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Trace
- The Meadows
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- The Meadows is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for The Meadows
- Sherwood Forest
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
- Sherwood Forest is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherwood Forest
- Cinnamon Ridge
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Cinnamon Ridge is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cinnamon Ridge
- Eaglewood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
- Eaglewood is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eaglewood
- Dorchester
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Dorchester is located in Forsyth County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dorchester
- Lewisville
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
- Iredell County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Union Grove
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
- Houstonville
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- Houstonville is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houstonville
- New Hope ‑ Historic
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)
- New Hope is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Hope
- Love Valley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
- Harmony
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Olin
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)
- Olin is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olin
- Turnersburg
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
- Turnersburg is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turnersburg
- Cool Springs
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
- Cool Springs is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cool Springs
- Brevard ‑ Historic
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Brevard is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brevard
- Scotts
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
- Scotts is located in Iredell County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts
- Stokes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Pinnacle
(23 miles [37 km] to the east)
- Flat Rock
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
- Flat Rock is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Rock
- Mount Olive
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
- Mount Olive is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
- Capella
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
- Capella is located in Stokes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Capella
- Wilkes County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Pleasant Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Pleasant Hill is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Ronda
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Clingman
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Clingman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clingman
- Lomax
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Lomax is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
- Brier Creek ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Brier Creek is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brier Creek
- Roaring River
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Roaring River is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roaring River
- Traphill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
- New Castle ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
- New Castle is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Castle
- Zebra ‑ Historic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west)
- Zebra is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zebra
- Zimmerman ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
- Zimmerman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Zimmerman
- Hays
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
- Moxley
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
- Moxley is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moxley
- Yadkin County
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Jonesville
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Arlington
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Arlington is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arlington
- Swan Creek
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Swan Creek is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Creek
- Rena
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Rena is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rena
- Boonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Cycle
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
- Cycle is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cycle
- Marler
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
- Marler is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marler
- Nebo
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
- Nebo is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nebo
- Branon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
- Branon is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branon
- Mount Pleasant
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
- Mount Pleasant is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Hamptonville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
- Richmond Hill
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Richmond Hill is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richmond Hill
- Carroll County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Lambsburg
(23 miles [37 km] to the north)
- Cana
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
- Drenn
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Drenn is located in Carroll County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Drenn
- Pipers Gap
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
- Pipers Gap is located in Carroll County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pipers Gap
- Fancy Gap
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Galax City (VA)
- Galax
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
- Grayson County (VA)
- The following are listed by their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Low Gap
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)
- Low Gap is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Low Gap
- Baywood
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
- Baywood is located in Grayson County (VA)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Baywood
- Independence
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
- Patrick County (VA)
- Ararat
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Elkin, see our County-by-County Page for Elkin.
Cemeteries Near Elkin ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Elkin.
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 Elkin - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Elkin covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Jonesville Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- Oak Grove Cemetery
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
- Grassy Creek Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Arlington Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
- Island Ford Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
- Friendship Cemetery
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
- Fall Creek Cemetery
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
- Mt. Pleasant Cemetery
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Swan Creek Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Shady Grove Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Little Richmond Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Continue List (349 more) ...
- Open Door Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Bessies Chapel Cemetery
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Mulberry Cemetery
(5 miles [8 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.<2>
The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Elkin had a population of 288 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Elkin had a population of 4,001 people.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Elkin, with the one closest to Elkin listed first.
- Elkin Valley
(Less than 2 miles to the north)
- Elkin Valley is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkin Valley
- Jonesville
(Less than 2 miles to the south)
- State Road
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Benham
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Benham is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Benham
- Ronda
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
- Swan Creek
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)
- Swan Creek is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan Creek
- Rena
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
- Rena is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rena
- Rusk ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Rusk is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rusk
- Crutchfield
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Crutchfield is located in Surry County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crutchfield
- Clingman
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
- Clingman is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clingman
- Boonville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
- Longtown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
- Longtown is located in Yadkin County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longtown
- Continue List (17 more) ...
- Austin
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
- Austin is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Austin
- Lomax
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
- Lomax is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lomax
- Brier Creek ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
- Brier Creek is located in Wilkes County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brier Creek
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Elkin. See our List of 1890's Communities around Elkin.
Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Elkin ...
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 23 newspapers that have been published in the area around Elkin.
We have organized these newspapers into two lists:
- A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Elkin. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Elkin and those printed in the larger area surrounding Elkin.
- An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 19 miles [30.6 km]<3> of Elkin.
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 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 Elkin:
- Websites specific to North Carolina
- Pages specific to Surry County
- Genealogy information for nearby counties
- Alexander County
- Alleghany County
- Ashe County
- Davie County
- Forsyth County
- Iredell County
- Stokes County
- Wilkes County
- Yadkin County
- Carroll County
- Galax City
- Grayson County
- Patrick 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> | 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 Elkin, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Elkin) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |