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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 Flat Branch (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 Flat Branch. 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 Flat Branch ...

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 have occurred.

For example, a typical abbreviation for Flat Branch: Flat Br. (or less commonly used: Flat Brnch.)

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 doctors and hospitals 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.

Flat Branch is located in Harnett County.

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

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Harnett County: Chatham, Cumberland, Johnston, Lee, Sampson & Wake.

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

  • Harnett County     (The home county of Flat Branch)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Anderson Creek
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Anderson Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anderson Creek
      • Anderson Creek is located in Harnett County
    • Norrington Crossroads
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Walkertown
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Walkertown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walkertown
      • Walkertown is located in Harnett County
    • Bunnlevel
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Harnett
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Harnett. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harnett
      • Harnett is located in Harnett County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Harnett
      • From Flat Branch to Harnett
    • Senter
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Senter. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Senter
      • Senter is located in Harnett County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Senter
      • From Flat Branch to Senter
    • Shawtown
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Fonville
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fonville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fonville
      • Fonville is located in Harnett County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Fonville
      • From Flat Branch to Fonville
    • Twin Lakes
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Twin Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lakes
      • Twin Lakes is located in Harnett County
    • Luart
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Luart have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luart
      • Luart is located in Harnett County
    • Mamers
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Lillington
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Barbecue
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Chatham County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Corinth
      (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
    • Brickhaven
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
    • Haywood
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Haywood. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haywood
      • Haywood is located in Chatham County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Haywood
      • From Flat Branch to Haywood
    • Moncure
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
    • Farmville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmville
      • Farmville is located in Chatham County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Farmville <3>
    • Gulf
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gulf have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf
      • Gulf is located in Chatham County
    • Carbonton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Cumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Linden
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Manchester
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Spring Lake
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Lake
      • Spring Lake is located in Cumberland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 11,980 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spring Lake <3>
    • North Point Village
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for North Point Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Point Village
      • North Point Village is located in Cumberland County
    • Shaw
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Godwin
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Wade
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Fort Bragg
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Bonnie Doone
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonnie Doone have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonnie Doone
      • Bonnie Doone is located in Cumberland County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bonnie Doone <3>
    • Holly Springs
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
      • Holly Springs is located in Cumberland County
    • Falcon
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falcon have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falcon
      • Falcon is located in Cumberland County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 250 people
    • Eastover
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Fayetteville
      (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
  • Hoke County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Rockfish
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rockfish have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockfish
      • Rockfish is located in Hoke County
    • Silver City
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
      • Silver City is located in Hoke County
    • Dundarrach
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dundarrach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dundarrach
      • Dundarrach is located in Hoke County
    • Raeford
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Raeford have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raeford
      • Raeford is located in Hoke County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,956 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Raeford <3>
  • Johnston County
  • Lee County
  • Moore County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Mount Pleasant
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Moore County
    • Cameron
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cameron have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cameron
      • Cameron is located in Moore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 352 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cameron <3>
    • Vass
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Lakeview
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
    • Whispering Pines
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whispering Pines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Pines
      • Whispering Pines is located in Moore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,461 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Whispering Pines <3>
    • Carthage
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
    • Southern Pines
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Southern Pines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Southern Pines
      • Southern Pines is located in Moore County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 15,070 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Southern Pines <3>
  • Robeson County
    • Parkton
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parkton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkton
      • Parkton is located in Robeson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 430 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Parkton <3>
  • Sampson County
  • Wake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Flat Branch, with the one closest to Flat Branch listed first.
    • Kennebec
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Wilbon
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Wilbon. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilbon
      • Wilbon is located in Wake County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Wilbon
      • From Flat Branch to Wilbon
    • Fuquay - Varina
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fuquay - Varina have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fuquay - Varina
      • Fuquay - Varina is located in Wake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 32,145 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fuquay - Varina <3>
    • Hollemans Crossroads
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Mount Pleasant
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Wake County
    • Holly Springs
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Springs
      • Holly Springs is located in Wake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 39,882 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holly Springs <3>
    • Macks Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Macks Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macks Village
      • Macks Village is located in Wake County
    • New Hill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
    • McCullers
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for McCullers. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCullers
      • McCullers is located in Wake County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to McCullers
      • From Flat Branch to McCullers
    • Apex
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Apex have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apex
      • Apex is located in Wake County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 64,388 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apex <3>
    • Indian Trail
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Trail have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Trail
      • Indian Trail is located in Wake County
    • Hopedale
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)

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

Cemeteries Near Flat Branch ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Flat Branch.

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.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

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

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

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.<6>

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

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

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

Newspapers Published in Flat Branch ...

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 66 newspapers that have been published in the area around Flat Branch.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Flat Branch, there are papers which were published within 18 miles [29 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Flat Branch.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we like to start 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 Flat Branch:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Flat Branch. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Harnett County: www.harnett.org/

The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<3>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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- Flat Branch) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Flat Branch. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.3135, Longitude: -78.8844       In this case, the coordinates for Flat Branch have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>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.
<6>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 Flat Branch, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025