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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 Emerson (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 Emerson. 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.

Emerson is located in Bladen 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 Bladen County: Columbus, Cumberland, Pender, Robeson & Sampson.

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

  • Bladen County     (The home county of Emerson)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Rosindale
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Rosindale is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosindale
    • Clarkton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Council
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Council is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Council
    • Mount Olive
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
      • Mount Olive is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
    • Abbottsburg
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Abbottsburg is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbottsburg
    • Elizabethtown
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Kelly
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
      • Kelly is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelly
    • White Lake
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • East Arcadia
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • East Arcadia is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for East Arcadia
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 470 people
    • Bladenboro
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Yorick
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
      • Yorick is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yorick
    • Dublin
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Dublin is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dublin
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 328 people
  • Brunswick County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Exum
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the south)
      • Exum is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Exum
    • Makatoka
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
      • Makatoka is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Makatoka
    • Northwest
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Northwest is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northwest
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 806 people
    • Sandy Creek
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Sandy Creek is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Creek
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 319 people
    • Ash
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
      • Ash is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ash
    • Malmo
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Malmo is located in Brunswick County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malmo
  • Columbus County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Rico
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Rico is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rico
    • Hallsboro
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
      • Hallsboro is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallsboro
    • Lake Waccamaw
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Redbug
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
      • Redbug is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redbug
    • Whiteville
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Bolton
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Mount Olive
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
      • Mount Olive is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Olive
    • Brunswick
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Sandyfield
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Sandyfield is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandyfield
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 415 people
    • Byrdville
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Byrdville is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Byrdville
    • Chadbourn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Armour
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Armour is located in Columbus County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armour
  • Duplin County
    • Harrells
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Harrells is located in Duplin County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrells
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 191 people
  • Pender County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Atkinson
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
    • Currie
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
  • Robeson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Allenton
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Allenton is located in Robeson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Allenton
    • Orrum
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Orrum is located in Robeson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orrum
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
    • Proctorville
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
      • Proctorville is located in Robeson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Proctorville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 119 people
    • Lumberton
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Barnesville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Barnesville is located in Robeson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barnesville
    • Barker Ten Mile
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Barker Ten Mile is located in Robeson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barker Ten Mile
  • Sampson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Emerson, with the one closest to Emerson listed first.
    • Ivanhoe
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Ivanhoe is located in Sampson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivanhoe
    • Kerr
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Kerr is located in Sampson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kerr
    • Tomahawk
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Tomahawk is located in Sampson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tomahawk
    • Garland
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Ingold
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Ingold is located in Sampson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingold
    • McDaniels
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • McDaniels is located in Sampson County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McDaniels

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

Cemeteries Near Emerson ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Emerson.

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

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

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

  • Old Bethel Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
  • Mitchellfield Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • McCall Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • St. James Memorial Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for St. James Memorial Cemetery
    • To give a relative sense of its location, the St. James Memorial Cemetery is located 6 miles [9.7 km]<3> to the northeast of Hallsboro.
    • The St. James Memorial Cemetery has also been known as:
    • St. James Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery
    • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #2462746 <2>
  • Buie Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Holy Cross Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Blank Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
  • Batten Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • New Hope Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Warson Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Wright Cemetery
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • McKoy Cemetery
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (340 more) ...
    • Flynn Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • McEwen Cemetery
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Shiloh Memorial Cemetery
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiloh Memorial Cemetery
      • To give a relative sense of its location, the Shiloh Memorial Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located 4 miles [6.4 km]<3> to the northwest of Bolton.
      • The Shiloh Memorial Cemetery has also been known as:
      • Shiloh Methodist Church Cemetery
      • Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #323569 <2>

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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that in 1895, Emerson had a post office and no railroad service.

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

  • Rosindale
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Rosindale is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosindale
  • Elkton
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Elkton is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkton
  • Clarkton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Council
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Council is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Council
  • Westbrook
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Westbrook is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westbrook
  • Hallsboro
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Hallsboro is located in Columbus County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hallsboro
  • Abbottsburg
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Abbottsburg is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbottsburg
  • Lake Waccamaw
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Elizabethtown
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Whiteville
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Bolton
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Kelly
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
    • Kelly is located in Bladen County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kelly
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...
    • Bladenboro
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Richardson
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Richardson is located in Bladen County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Richardson
    • Chadbourn
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)

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

Newspapers Published in Emerson ...

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 21 newspapers that have been published in the area around Emerson.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Emerson, there are papers which were published within 23 miles [37 km]<3>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Emerson.

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 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 Emerson:

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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Emerson) 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 Emerson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.