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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 Granite Falls (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 Granite Falls. 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 northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most hospitals and doctors were in the next county to the west. 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 west 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.

Granite Falls is located in Caldwell 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 Caldwell County: Alexander, Burke, Catawba, Watauga & Wilkes.

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

  • Caldwell County     (The home county of Granite Falls)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Sawmills
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Sawmills is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sawmills
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 5,156 people
    • Concord ‑ Historic
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Concord is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Concord
    • Northlakes
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Northlakes is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northlakes
    • Hudson
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Baton
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Downsville ‑ Historic
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Downsville is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downsville
    • Cajah's Mountain
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Cajah's Mountain is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cajah's Mountain
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,728 people
    • Lenoir
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Cedar Rock
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Cedar Rock is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Rock
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 299 people
      • Cedar Rock has also been known as:
      • Cedar Rock village
    • Draco
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Emanuel ‑ Historic
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
      • Emanuel is located in Caldwell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emanuel
    • Gamewell
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
  • Alexander County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Bethlehem
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
      • Bethlehem is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethlehem
    • Little River
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Little River is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little River
    • Taylorsville Beach
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
      • Taylorsville Beach is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsville Beach
    • Ellendale
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Liledoun
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
      • Liledoun is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liledoun
    • Isenhour Park
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Isenhour Park is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Isenhour Park
    • Millersville
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
      • Millersville is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millersville
    • Taylorsville
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Fairview Park
      (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
      • Fairview Park is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairview Park
    • Midway
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northeast)
      • Midway is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midway
    • Hiddenite
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
    • Rocky Springs
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Rocky Springs is located in Alexander County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Springs
  • Avery County
  • Burke County
  • Catawba County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Long View
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Long View is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long View
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,951 people
    • North Hickory
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
      • North Hickory is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Hickory
    • Hickory
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Viewmont
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Viewmont is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viewmont
    • Advent Crossroads
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Meadow Brook Village
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
      • Meadow Brook Village is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Brook Village
    • Brookford
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Brookford is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brookford
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 381 people
    • Mountain View
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Mountain View is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View
    • Sweetwater
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
      • Sweetwater is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetwater
    • Saint Stephens
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
      • Saint Stephens is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Stephens
    • Fairbrook
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairbrook is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairbrook
    • Fairgrove
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Fairgrove is located in Catawba County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairgrove
  • Cleveland County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Toluca
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
      • Toluca is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toluca
    • Olive Grove
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Olive Grove is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olive Grove
    • Knob Creek
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the south)
    • Belwood
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
      • Belwood is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belwood
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 963 people
    • Casar
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Cleveland Mills ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
      • Cleveland Mills is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cleveland Mills
    • Fallston
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the south)
    • Delight
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Lawndale
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the south)
    • Beam Mill
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
    • Wilson ‑ Historic
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Wilson is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wilson
    • Polkville
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Polkville is located in Cleveland County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Polkville
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
  • Gaston County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Dellview
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
      • Dellview is located in Gaston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dellview
      • Population from the 2010 Census: 13 people
    • Cherryville
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
    • High Shoals
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
      • High Shoals is located in Gaston County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Shoals
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 757 people
  • Iredell County
  • Lincoln County
  • McDowell County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Patten
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Mountain Home ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
      • Mountain Home is located in McDowell County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Home
    • Nebo
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
    • Ashford
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the west)
  • Rutherford County
  • Watauga County
  • Wilkes County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls listed first.
    • Ferguson
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Boomer
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Boomer is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boomer
    • Hendrix ‑ Historic
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Hendrix is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hendrix
    • Moravian Falls
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
    • Mount Pleasant
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
    • Maple Springs
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
      • Maple Springs is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Springs
    • Adley
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Purlear
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Purlear is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Purlear
    • Stokes ‑ Historic
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
      • Stokes is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stokes
    • Wilkesboro
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Cricket
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Cricket is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cricket
    • Fletcher ‑ Historic
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Fletcher is located in Wilkes County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fletcher

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

Cemeteries Near Granite Falls ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Granite Falls.

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 Granite Falls - one of the links might be able to help.

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

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Granite Falls, with the one closest to Granite Falls 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.<4>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Granite Falls had a population of 207 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Granite Falls had a population of 4,657 people.

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

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

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Granite Falls ...

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 56 newspapers that have been published in the area around Granite Falls.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Granite Falls. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Granite Falls and those printed in the larger area surrounding Granite Falls.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 16 miles [25.7 km]<3> of Granite Falls.

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 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 Granite Falls:

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 drawn from Point A (ie- Granite Falls) 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 Granite Falls, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.