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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 Four Oaks (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 Four Oaks. 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 northeast 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 north.

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 north 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.

Four Oaks is located in Johnston 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 Johnston County: Harnett, Nash, Sampson, Wake, Wayne & Wilson.

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

  • Johnston County     (The home county of Four Oaks)
  • Cumberland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Falcon
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falcon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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
    • Godwin
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Linden
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Wade
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Duplin County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Calypso
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Calypso have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Calypso
      • Calypso is located in Duplin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 528 people
    • Faison
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Faison have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Faison
      • Faison is located in Duplin County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 959 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Faison <1>
  • Harnett County
  • Nash County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Middlesex
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middlesex have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middlesex
      • Middlesex is located in Nash County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 834 people
    • Rogers Crossroads
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Murraytown
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Murraytown have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murraytown
      • Murraytown is located in Nash County
    • Bailey
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bailey have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bailey
      • Bailey is located in Nash County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 569 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bailey <1>
    • Union Hope
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Rocky Cross
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rocky Cross have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Cross
      • Rocky Cross is located in Nash County
  • Sampson County
  • Wake County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Mount Pleasant
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Wake County
    • Auburn
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northwest)
    • Emerald Village
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emerald Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerald Village
      • Emerald Village is located in Wake County
    • Kennebec
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Shotwell
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Shotwell. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shotwell
      • Shotwell is located in Wake County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Shotwell
      • From Four Oaks to Shotwell
    • Hopedale
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Macks Village
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Macks Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macks Village
      • Macks Village is located in Wake County
    • Garner
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
    • McCullers
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
      • 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.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCullers
      • McCullers is located in Wake County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to McCullers
      • From Four Oaks to McCullers
    • Fuquay - Varina
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fuquay - Varina have been provided by the GNIS.<2> 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 <1>
    • Eagle Rock
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Eagle Rock. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Rock
      • Eagle Rock is located in Wake County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Eagle Rock
      • From Four Oaks to Eagle Rock
    • Wendell
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
    • Hertford Village
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hertford Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hertford Village
      • Hertford Village is located in Wake County
  • Wayne County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Raynor Town
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Raynor Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raynor Town
      • Raynor Town is located in Wayne County
    • Grantham
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Nahunta
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Mar-Mac
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mar-Mac have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mar-Mac
      • Mar-Mac is located in Wayne County
    • Mar-Mac Village
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mar-Mac Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mar-Mac Village
      • Mar-Mac Village is located in Wayne County
    • Goldsboro
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
    • Brogden
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brogden have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brogden
      • Brogden is located in Wayne County
    • Pikeville
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
    • Dudley
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dudley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dudley
      • Dudley is located in Wayne County
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dudley <1>
    • Fremont
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
    • Mount Olive
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Berkeley Village
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Berkeley Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berkeley Village
      • Berkeley Village is located in Wayne County
    • Saulston
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Saulston. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saulston
      • Saulston is located in Wayne County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Saulston
      • From Four Oaks to Saulston
  • Wilson County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks listed first.
    • Lucama
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lucama have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucama
      • Lucama is located in Wilson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,155 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lucama <1>
    • Scotts
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scotts have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scotts
      • Scotts is located in Wilson County
    • Sims
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Black Creek
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Black Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Creek
      • Black Creek is located in Wilson County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 767 people

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

Cemeteries Near Four Oaks ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Four Oaks.

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 Four Oaks covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Four Oaks, with the one closest to Four Oaks 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>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Four Oaks had a population of 62 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Four Oaks had a population of 2,387 people.

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

  • Spilona
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spilona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spilona
    • Spilona is located in Johnston County
  • Smithfield
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Benson
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  • Bentonville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
  • Oliver
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Oliver have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oliver
    • Oliver is located in Johnston County
  • Selma
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Wilson's Mills
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)
  • Harper
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Harper. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harper
    • Harper is located in Johnston County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Harper
    • From Four Oaks to Harper
  • Pine Level
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • McKoy
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for McKoy. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McKoy
    • McKoy is located in Johnston County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to McKoy
    • From Four Oaks to McKoy
  • Blackmans Mills
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • Turlington
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Turlington. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turlington
    • Turlington is located in Harnett County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Turlington
    • From Four Oaks to Turlington
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Dunn
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Newton Grove
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
    • Micro
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Micro have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Micro
      • Micro is located in Johnston County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 553 people

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Four Oaks ...

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 41 newspapers that have been published in the area around Four Oaks.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Four Oaks. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Four Oaks and those printed in the larger area surrounding Four Oaks.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 21 miles [33.8 km]<5> of Four Oaks.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to 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 Four Oaks:

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

The official website for Johnston County: www.co.johnston.nc.us/

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

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 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.
<3>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.
<4>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.
<5>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- Four Oaks) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Four Oaks. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.4469, Longitude: -78.4280    
<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 Four Oaks, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 19 Aug 2025